Credential of Readiness (CORe)

CORe is offered with multiple durations of study—ranging from 10-week cohorts to extended 17-week cohorts. However, the course content and program requirements are identical regardless of the program length. Our goal in offering different program lengths is to give learners different options to balance the program’s rigors with their particular lifestyle and responsibilities.

The median time required to complete the program is approximately 150 hours, though this learning time varies widely. Some participants spend more time on the platform to enhance their understanding of course concepts and share insights with peers. This time includes all coursework on the platform, including written reflections and quizzes, as well as engagement with peers. This does not include review work outside the platform or preparing for and taking the three-hour CORe final exam.

In the standard versions of CORe—10-week and 12-week cohorts—you should be prepared to spend more time per week on the program. Although we have smoothed out the workload as evenly as possible, you should expect that some weeks will require more work than others.

During the January, May, and September CORe cohorts, we offer an undergraduate credit option through the Harvard Extension School. When you start your application, you can select whether you are seeking admission for the for-credit or non-credit option of CORe. The course content, deadlines, and grading process are all the same whether you choose to enroll in the undergraduate credit ($4,080) or credential-only ($2,500) version of CORe.

By enrolling in the undergraduate credit option of CORe, you will be enrolled at Harvard Extension School (January or September CORe cohorts) or Harvard Summer School (May CORe cohort) and eligible for student privileges like a Harvard University ID number (to access online library resources), free career and academic webinars, a Harvard Gmail account, and education tax credit and loan deferments.

Upon successful completion of CORe, undergraduate credit option participants will earn eight undergraduate credits from Harvard Extension School (January or September CORe cohorts) or Harvard Summer School (May CORe cohort). Harvard Extension School and Harvard Summer School are fully accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges—the same accreditation as all other schools at Harvard. Harvard transfer credit is accepted by institutions around the world, but it is always up to the accepting university to determine transferability. Successful undergraduate credit option participants will also receive a Credential of Readiness certificate from Harvard Business School Online, and an official transcript will be made available to verify your mastery of the program’s content.

The Harvard Extension School graduate program in the field of management or finance offers an accelerated admission pathway for students who pass CORe (in the for-credit or non-credit offering).

Financial aid and financing options available for CORe program participants also vary depending on whether participants have elected the undergraduate credit option or have enrolled in the non-credit version of the program. More information is available on the Payment & Financial Aid page.

CORe participants may be eligible for financial aid based on demonstrated financial need. To receive financial aid, you will be asked to provide supporting documentation. Please refer to our Payment & Financial Aid page.

Successful completion of CORe will help you prepare for an MBA program. While applicants to the MBA Program at HBS will have an opportunity to inform the Admissions Board of non-degree preparatory coursework (including CORe), this is one of many application elements and will be considered in the larger context of a holistic selection process.

The Harvard Extension School graduate program in the field of management or finance offers an accelerated admission pathway for students who pass CORe (in the for-credit or non-credit offering).

Please refer to our Policies page.

You will have access to the materials in every prior module as you progress through the program and prepare for the final exam. Access to course materials and the course platform ends 60 days after the final deadline in the program. At the end of each course module, you will be able to download a PDF summary of the module’s key takeaways. At the end of the program, you will receive a PDF compilation of all of the module summary documents.

Once you've earned your Credential of Readiness, list it on your resume along with the date of completion like this:

Harvard Business School Online
CORe: Credential of Readiness, [Grade]
[Cohort Start Month and Year]

List your credential on your LinkedIn profile under "Education" with the language from the Credential Verification page:

School: Harvard Business School Online
Dates Attended: [The year you participated in the program]
Degree: Other; CORe Credential of Readiness
Field of Study: Leave blank
Grade: "Pass," "Pass with Honors" or "Pass with High Honors" as applicable
Activities and Societies: Leave blank

For the program description on LinkedIn, please use the following:

Description: CORe (Credential of Readiness) is a 150-hour certificate program on the fundamentals of business from Harvard Business School. CORe is comprised of three courses—Business Analytics, Economics for Managers, and Financial Accounting—developed by leading Harvard Business School faculty and delivered in an active learning environment based on the HBS signature case-based learning model.