The Graduate School of Management at the University of California, Davis, is launching a fully online Master of Business Administration degree — the first in the 10-campus university.

MBA@UCDavis is now accepting applications, and its first cohort of students will start on Sept. 30.

Many business schools are developing niche programs as a new generation of students prefer to study at their own pace and meet virtually, said the dean, who studies consumer behavior.

The new online program offers the opportunity for more nontraditional students and working professionals anywhere in the world to earn an MBA from the UC Davis management school, ranked among the nation’s top 50 for 24 consecutive years.

MBA@UCDavis will mirror the UC Davis MBA curriculum offered through full- and part-time programs in Davis, Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay Area. It integrates collaborative leadership, innovation and sustainability.

Courses will be taught by UC Davis faculty, ranked eighth globally for overall quality by The Economist, and top lecturers who are experts in their fields. Students will participate in interactive courses with live weekly sessions. The program will culminate with residential sessions that bring students together to learn and network with the school’s community of faculty, other students and executives from Fortune 500 firms, startups and technology innovators.

The school plans for four cohorts of students to start the program each year, and the typical time to degree is estimated to be two years.

The program is pending approval by the WASC Senior College and University Commission.

To provide the online MBA program, UC Davis is partnering with 2U Inc., a global leader in education technology. The management school is the company’s first MBA partner in Northern California and the Pacific Northwest.

New online short courses

The management school is also launching two online short courses — Leadership and Strategic Negotiations — taught by leading UC Davis faculty and hosted by GetSmarter, a brand of 2U.

Leadership is an eight-week course. Strategic Negotiations is a six-week course. Each course requires seven to 10 hours a week of self-paced learning, entirely online. These online courses integrate rich, interactive media — such as videos, infographics and e-learning activities — as well as traditional components, such as course notes, and are offered to anyone looking to improve their professional skills in these areas.

About the UC Davis Graduate School of Management

The UC Davis Graduate School of Management is focused on preparing the next generation of innovative and collaborative leaders who are committed to making a positive impact. Its close-knit learning environment is distinguished by faculty members renowned for their research and teaching, entrepreneurial students, and a bold and innovative curriculum. The school offers Full-Time MBA and Master of Professional Accountancy programs at the UC Davis campus, Part-Time MBA programs in Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay Area, an online MBA, and a Master of Science in Business Analytics program in San Francisco.