RISD and Harvard have partnered to offer RISD students an amazing online learning experience to gain core business skills and knowledge.

RISD Careers is pleased to announce our collaboration with Harvard Business School Online and their Credential of Readiness (CORe) program which will provide you with the fundamentals of business. If you apply and are accepted into their sessions, you'll be eligible for scholarship support from Harvard if you're also currently receiving financial aid from RISD. There also may be additional funding support available through the Career Center to students who complete the program.

Overview of Program

  • CORe is an interactive online program, with no prior business experience or coursework required.

  • CORe utilizes Harvard Business School's proven case method and social learning experience to help you develop real world analytical and problem solving skills.

  • CORe teaches you the essentials of business - Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and Financial Accounting - through immersive case studies and a fully interactive online platform.

Cost and Financial Aid

  • The program fee for CORe is $2,250.

  • As a collaborating college, RISD students may be granted need-based scholarships from Harvard Business School (HBS) Online. You must be currently receiving financial aid from RISD to be eligible for Harvard scholarships. HBS Online will work with the RISD Financial Aid Office to review your financial aid eligibility.

  • Depending on the timing of your application, admission and scholarship decisions may take up to 4 weeks.
  • For students currently receiving financial aid, scholarships may be $1,800 for high need, $1,350 for medium need and $675 for low need.

Funding Support For Summer Sessions

  • The Career Center will provide $8,000 of support ($4,000 for the May cohort & $4,000 for the June cohort) to be distributed among students based on their completion of the program, performance, and remaining costs after they finish either session.

  • To be considered for funding, RISD students must complete the program, sit for the in-person final exam, and then notify Kevin Jankowski, Director RISD Career Center, at kjankows@risd.edu when this has been accomplished. Once students attain their final grades, they must also submit them to Kevin Jankowski and a deadline will be established to do so. This additional funding is only available after these steps are taken.

  • For students who meet the above eligibility, funding support will start with the top performing students (based on their grades) to cover their remaining costs (after any scholarships they've received from Harvard) and will continue until the $4,000 has been depleted for each session. Since funding may be depleted, this support is not guaranteed for all that are eligible.

Learn More and Apply