Maryland Cuts MBA To 48 Credits – Saving Full-Time Smith Students Over $10K

Smith School Dean Prabhudev Konana: “By reducing our MBA from 54 to 48 credits and redesigning the curriculum around AI fluency and the realities of uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity, we’re creating a future-focused MBA equipping graduates with the skills to lead confidently in a rapidly changing business landscape.”

The University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business is trimming its MBA programs down to size – and students will feel it in both their course load and their wallets.

Smith has announced that starting with the Fall 2026 cohort, the College Park, Maryland B-school is cutting degree requirements across its Full-Time, Flex and Online MBA programs from 54 credits to 48. At the school’s current per-credit tuition rates – $1,759 for Full-Time MBA students and $1,733 for Flex and Online students – the six-credit reduction works out to savings of roughly $10,554 for Full-Time MBAs and $10,398 for Flex and Online students, on top of the time saved finishing the degree faster.

AI FLUENCY MOVES TO THE CORE

The redesign is not just a credit-count exercise. Smith says the leaner curriculum is built around embedding AI fluency throughout the core and electives, while preserving the experiential learning and leadership development the school is known for.

The changes come as business schools nationally face pressure to demonstrate return on investment amid rising tuition and a cooling MBA applicant pool in some segments.

“Today, professionals pursuing an MBA look at lasting value and return on their investment, while seeking flexibility,” Smith School Dean Prabhudev Konana says in a news release. “Employers require graduates who can lead through constant change. By reducing our MBA from 54 to 48 credits and redesigning the curriculum around AI fluency and the realities of uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity, we’re creating a future-focused MBA equipping graduates with the skills to lead confidently in a rapidly changing business landscape.”

The credit reduction lands alongside other moves by Smith to widen its reach. The school recently opened a new location at Baltimore Peninsula’s Rye Street Market, a waterfront campus aimed at working professionals that puts Smith closer to major Baltimore-area employers and innovation hubs.

Smith’s MBA programs continue to post strong marks in U.S. News & World Report’s rankings, with the Flex MBA landing at No. 1 in Maryland, No. 2 in the region, and No. 11 nationally among public universities in the most recent Best Graduate Schools rankings.

HOW SMITH COMPARES TO PEER PROGRAMS

Smith’s move brings its credit count and per-credit price closer in line with – and in some cases below – a number of peer part-time and online MBA programs:

• Indiana Kelley (Kelley Direct Online MBA): 54 credits, $94,944 total tuition for students locking in the current cohort rate – about $1,758 per credit.
• Georgetown McDonough (Part-Time/Online MBA): 54 credits at $2,686 per credit for 2026-27 – a total of roughly $145,000, among the priciest in this set.
• Rutgers Business School (Part-Time MBA): already a leaner 45-credit program, at $1,363 per credit in-state and $2,389 per credit out-of-state.
• Penn State Smeal (Online MBA): already at 48 credits – the number Smith is moving to – priced at $1,248 per credit, for $59,904 total.

Against that field, Smith’s new 48-credit Full-Time MBA works out to roughly $84,432 in tuition at $1,759 per credit, while the Flex and Online programs run about $83,184 at $1,733 per credit. That puts Smith below Georgetown and Indiana on total cost even after accounting for its higher per-credit rate than Rutgers or Penn State.

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