‘WE’RE NOT LEARNING ANYTHING’: Stanford GSB Students Sound The Alarm Over Academics

Stanford Graduate School of Business, long considered among the most elite MBA programs in the world, is facing a storm of internal criticism from students who say the academic experience has fallen far short of expectations. In a series of interviews with Poets&Quants, current MBA students voiced concerns about outdated course content, a disengaged faculty culture, and a broken curriculum structure that they say leaves them unprepared for post-MBA careers — and worse, dilutes the reputation and long-term value of a Stanford degree by producing scores of grads unprepared for the modern world of work.

“We’re coming to the best business school on Earth, and the professors can’t teach,” says a rising second-year MBA student and elected member of the school’s Student Association. “We’re not learning anything. The brand is strong, but there’s nothing here to help you build discernible skills.”

The student and their peers have been sounding the alarm to administrators, they say, but they’ve been met with resistance, delays, or indifference. At the core of their frustration is a belief that the school’s curriculum has not adapted to the realities of a rapidly evolving business world. While some faculty members have been receptive and collaborative when students raise concerns, they say, others see teaching as a secondary priority, and administrators have been slow or reluctant to act. In speaking candidly to Poets&Quants, the students asked for anonymity to avoid repercussions in their student experience and employment prospects. (See “AI Is Devaluing The MBA”: Stanford Students Speak Out On Curriculum Lag & The Risk To The B-School’s Brand and “We Expected More”: Stanford GSB Students Call For Higher Teaching Standards.)

Meanwhile, a senior member of the GSB’s leadership team tells P&Q that they “hear the students’ concerns,” and new Dean Sarah Soule, who began her tenure in June, adds that “This is an extremely important set of issues, which I take very seriously.”

OUTDATED COURSES AND ‘ROOM TEMP’ TEACHING

As an example of what’s gone wrong, the rising second-year student points to Stanford GSB’s required Optimization and Simulation Modeling classes. “They feel like they were designed in the 2010s,” the student says. “We’re living in an AI age, but there’s nothing here that reflects that.”

The student describes courses where the ability to “prompt well” or subscribe to a premium AI tool matters more than actual understanding. The student and others say they increasingly teach themselves material outside class because what’s offered isn’t novel or skill-building. One says that in a required course, they were offered little more than what amounted to “a five-minute Excel tutorial” or “teaching me how to use Copilot, not teaching me how to use data.”

Students also raised concerns about the school’s teaching culture. Several said that professors often treat teaching as a nuisance, a not uncommon critique at many B-schools because of the predominance of academic research. One faculty member reportedly told colleagues, “If you’re worried about the class you teach, you’re doing it wrong.”

In stark contrast with HBS’s “cold calling” method, where each student could be called on at any time to answer a question about a reading or synthesize the current material, professors will often send out a “Room Temp” list the day before class, listing the five to seven people who may be called on in this manner. “You know what that teaches the students?” one student asks. “It teaches them that they don’t have to read or prepare before class if they’re not on the list. It teaches us that we don’t have to learn.”

NO STRATEGY, LIMITED ACCESS, AND RIGGED LOTTERIES

GSB’s curriculum is structured around core and “Distribution” requirements that are meant to teach the students fundamental business concepts. The GSB’s website describes the first-year curriculum as “Designed to make sure you’re ready for anything and everything— to build your analytical foundation and intuitive skills to succeed in whatever comes next.” But the students who spoke with P&Q say these requirements are uncoordinated and incoherent. For example, when choosing “Distribution” requirements, students must choose from a narrow menu of around 15 electives — some of which overlap, like two courses on online marketplaces, but none on foundational business strategy. “Nearly everyone took ‘Strategy Beyond Markets,’ which is about influencing governments to allow you to do business,” the student says. “And the only reason many of us took this is because it was one of the few ‘Distribution’ classes that had seats.”

The most popular classes, they say, are often out of reach. One student recounts that one of the in-demand Distribution classes, Financial Restructuring, filled almost immediately — but first with second-year MBA students and then with first-years. “How can you have a system where you can ONLY take from a choice of 15 classes, but seats aren’t guaranteed to you? It’s insanity.” Stanford uses a lottery system that randomly assigns students priority numbers to enroll. “I put a class at the top of my list and still did not get in,” the student says. “You’re paying $250,000 and might not get a single class you came here for. Sounds unlikely, but it happens all the time.”

Even classes that are filled during “Super Round,” a pre-registration lottery that lets the highest-demand classes fill first, there are no guarantees: The student points to high-demand electives like Product Market Fit, taught by a well-known investor, that routinely shut out more than half of interested students. “They know the class is gold. Why isn’t the school offering more sections?” Even lower-demand courses, such as Graham Weaver’s Managing Growing Enterprises, fill before the first draft of Super Round closes. “Getting into Stanford was enough of a lottery. I’m shocked that I’m here and still unable to register for classes I want,” the student says.

SURVEY DATA SHOWS SLIPPING CONFIDENCE

The rising second-year student and Student Association member shares results from Stanford GSB’s own winter student survey, which show a sharp drop in those who agree with the statement, “My classes are interesting and engaging.”

“This is the lowest it’s been in two or three years,” the student says. “It’s a 2.9 on a 5-point scale. The floor is 1. Would you ever buy something from Amazon with 2.9 stars?”

The student rejects the notion that Stanford GSB students aren’t interested in learning. After all, these are high-achievers who earned admission to the most selective B-school in the world: Last fall the GSB admitted just 6.8% of 7,295 applicants. 

“It’s not that Stanford picks people who don’t care about academics,” they say. “It’s that the academic experience is just that bad. Stanford doesn’t admit duds. They admit fireworks, then forget to light the fuse.”

The student and their peers in the Student Association have proposed changes — revamping the core curriculum, reforming the Distribution system, expanding popular classes — but say those proposals are often dismissed by deans unwilling to expend political capital.

A MOMENT FOR CHANGE

With a new dean, Sarah Soule, having officially began her first term in June, students hope the window for change may be opening.

“This could be the moment to fix things,” the rising second-year student says. “But someone has to listen.

“If leadership doesn’t act now, we’re going to lose more than just student satisfaction. We’re going to lose the value of the degree.”

For now, the student and others are seeking to make their voices heard — through media, alumni outreach, and direct appeals to the administration. As the student puts it: “We’re not trying to burn the place down. We love it here. We just want it to be worthy of the name.”

STANFORD RESPONDS: ‘WE HEAR THE STUDENTS’ CONCERNS’

Asked to respond to a list of the issues laid out by GSB students, Anne Beyer, senior associate dean for academic affairs, tells P&Q in an email that “We hear the students’ concerns. The new leadership team at the GSB has only been in place for a little over a month, and I can assure you that we have a commitment to our students and curriculum. I took on this role because I care deeply about the student experience and the academic journey at the GSB. Dean Sarah Soule and I take these recent comments seriously, and addressing them is a top priority for our team.

“At the same time, it’s important to recognize that some aspects of the student experience — particularly in the first year — are intentional by design. The first year is meant to establish foundations so the students are prepared for the rigor and relevance of the extraordinary elective curriculum that follows in the second year. This structure has been in place for decades, and it underpins the learning experience we aim to provide at the GSB.

“We are hopeful that as our current students progress through our program, they will continue to value this foundation — just as many alumni do. We continue to hear from our graduates how impactful these courses have been in their careers and lives.”

And Dean Sarah Soule adds: “This is an extremely important set of issues, which I take very seriously. Senior Associate Dean Anne Beyer is the absolute right choice to take on the challenges in the MBA program, curriculum, and student experience.”

More to come: Future stories in this series will explore perspectives from more Stanford GSB students, including international students, who are concerned about declining academic rigor at one of the world’s premier MBA programs.

DON’T MISS ‘AI IS DEVALUING THE MBA’: STANFORD STUDENTS SPEAK OUT ON CURRICULUM LAG & THE RISK THE B-SCHOOL’S BRAND and SARAH SOULE BECOMES THE FIRST WOMAN TO BE NAMED DEAN OF STANFORD GSB

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