Announcement
Boston, MA —
Emerson College announced today that it will launch a new major in Fall 2016. The Business of Creative Enterprises major is one of the first of its kind in the country, focusing on preparing students for careers in the creative economy—a rapidly growing sector of the global economy today.
The Business of Creative Enterprises major at Emerson reflects a new way of thinking and doing, emphasizing the true intersection between creative development and business. Its focus will be on graduating students with the necessary skills to establish new creative businesses and lead existing organizations in the creative economy. Experiential learning lives at the core of this major to help students discover new pathways to pursue their passion for communication and the arts.
Building upon a tradition of educating leaders in the arts and communication fields, in combination with a liberal arts foundation, Emerson will offer this distinctive major for students who want to explore a variety of creative industries including marketing, advertising, visual arts, film and media, television, performing arts, entertainment, and publishing. Prospective students can apply now to the new major, housed in Emerson’s School of Communication, to be considered for enrollment in Fall 2016.
Emerson President Lee Pelton embraces the innovative spirit of students today, and he says the timing is right to offer a major that fits harmoniously within the College’s arts and communication studies. The new Business of Creative Enterprises major will join Emerson’s existing business-related offerings including the Entrepreneurial Studies (E3) and Business Studies minors as well as the more recently launched program, Emerson Launch (formerly known as Emerson Accelerator). “Emerson’s campus culture is one that is creative, collaborative, and innovative. These qualities lend themselves very naturally to supporting the transition into the business side of the disciplines that students pursue here and contribute to the emerging creative economy,” said President Pelton.
“There are increasingly more opportunities for students who want to apply their creative passion toward a business venture,” said alumnus David G. Breen, principal designer and founder of VDA Productions—a Boston-based creative agency specializing in event design, management, and production company. Breen, who studied Technical Theater and Design while at Emerson before launching his business 30 years ago, says he saw the opportunity to use the creative skills he developed as a student to fulfill a need for design management and installation for a range of events, trade shows, and conferences. “Today, the creative economy is helping to fuel economic growth and the combination of a creative skillset with a foundation in business is in even higher demand,” he said.
Classes in the interdisciplinary major will include a solid business core as well as offerings in marketing, media, performing arts, communication, and publishing. Examples of newly developed Business of Creative Enterprises courses include Developing an Aesthetic Sensibility Through Creative and Critical Thinking, Creative Collaboration Seminar, Marketing the Creative Enterprise, Strategic Management and Analytical Decision Making, and Cultural Economics.
“Creative thinkers are highly desirable. They see the world differently and are able to communicate ideas in a compelling manner with an innate predisposition for storytelling,” said Director of Business of Creative Enterprises Yuri Cataldo, who understands the creative economy through first-hand experience. A classically trained set designer with credits on Broadway, feature and independent films, theater, and opera, he founded IndigoH2O, an award-winning alkaline water business. Cataldo says the new major’s focus on creative, business, and technical talents with human-centered thinking will allow students to thrive in a world where business strategy and artistic vision are no longer at odds but rather working in tandem.
Internships, capstone projects, and studio courses will also be options for students, as well as a Senior Year experience in the Business of Creative Enterprises major. Students will also have the opportunity to spend a semester at Emerson Los Angeles—the College’s LA-based facility—to experience a broad range of internships with studios, production companies, publications, non-profits, agencies, and start-ups.
For more information, visit the BCE web pages at emerson.edu.
About the College
Based in Boston, Massachusetts, opposite the historic Boston Common and in the heart of the city’s Theatre District, Emerson College educates individuals who will solve problems and change the world through engaged leadership in communication and the arts, a mission informed by liberal learning. The College has 3,780 undergraduates and 670 graduate students from across the United States and 50 countries. Supported by state-of-the-art facilities and a renowned faculty, students participate in more than 90 student organizations and performance groups. Emerson is known for its experiential learning programs in Los Angeles, Washington, DC, the Netherlands, London, China, and the Czech Republic as well as its new Global Portals, with the first opening last fall in Paris. The College has an active network of 51,000 alumni who hold leadership positions in communication and the arts. For more information, visit Emerson.edu.
