Next Act
New Purpose and Impact are Yours to Define.
Overview
You've succeeded by following the script. Now you get to rewrite it.
After decades of building careers, accomplished leaders are now asking themselves: What do I want to do next? Next Act helps you write your next chapter—and make it your best one yet.
Over three immersive in-person and online modules, you'll work with world-class faculty and accomplished peers to define what meaningful contribution looks like in the years ahead. Through a guided period of real-world discovery and planning, your next chapter isn’t simply imagined; it’s thoughtfully explored, shaped, and ready to put into action. You’ll build a concrete action plan, test ideas with coach and cohort support, and return ready to put your time, energy, and wisdom toward what matters most.
Step into a future only you can define with a clear path forward, a community behind you, and the momentum to bring your next act to life.
Key Takeaways
Discover New Possibilities Beyond the Obvious
Move past familiar paths and consider new directions with the curiosity of a beginner's mind. Explore opportunities, interests, and forms of contribution you may not have previously considered.
Get Clear on What Matters
Identify the values, sense of purpose, and legacy that will guide your next act, grounded in the reflection and life journey that brought you here.
Find Community and Lasting Support
Form meaningful relationships with accomplished peers on similar journeys who expand your thinking and open doors.
Build a Practical Plan You Can Act On
Transform what’s possible into a clear vision and concrete strategy with guidance from faculty, coaches and peers, and refinement through real-world exploration.
More about the Next Act program
After decades of achievement, you have wisdom and experience to draw upon and so much more to contribute.
Next Act brings together world-class faculty who’ve built their work around the very questions at the heart of life transition: wisdom and purpose, connection and authenticity, compassion and joy, and what it means to keep growing and contributing. Over several months, you’ll have the time and space to explore deeply, test new possibilities, and refine what matters most. You don’t leave this program simply contemplating what’s next. You leave with clarity and direction, practical tools, a plan, and people invested in your success.
Enjoy An Engaging Program Experience
Your Next Act requires vision, aspiration, and a strategy. The program unfolds over several months, giving you the time and space to explore deeply, test new possibilities, and refine what matters most. Three immersive experiences combine on-campus learning at UC Berkeley with guided real-world discovery and planning, so your next chapter isn’t simply imagined—it’s thoughtfully explored, shaped, and ready to put into action.
Module 1: Looking Inward to Contribute Outward | 5-day in-person intensive
Begin your journey at UC Berkeley, learning from industry-leading experts, bonding with your peer community, exploring themes including: Be Here Now, Pause to Reflect, Envision the Future, Craft a Plan, and Activation.
Module 2: From Possibility to Path | 4-month virtual connective nexus
Build your plan through deeper reflection, experimentation, faculty and speaker sessions, ongoing engagement with your peers, and support and guidance from your personal coach.
Module 3: Launch Your Next Act | 3-day in-person intensive
Reconvene with your cohort to reflect on and celebrate your journey, commit to the plan you’ve built, and carry your next act forward.
Emerge Ready to Write Your Best Chapter Yet
Next Act delivers something many accomplished leaders rarely find: clarity on what comes next and the agency to shape it intentionally. You'll leave with a clear vision, concrete plan, and momentum to begin what’s next. Just as importantly, you'll gain a lasting community of peers who understand and support your journey because they're navigating it themselves.
Who's it for
- Accomplished individuals who are ready for a professional life transition and who recognize this moment as one of the most consequential transitions of their lives
- Senior leaders who have had a successful career and who are considering different types of impact and contributions
Format & Structure
Program Dates
This program includes a combination of in-person and online modules held over six months.
- Module 1: in-person on the UC Berkeley campus on April 26–30, 2027
- Module 2: online May 3–Aug 27, 2027 (Sessions held Thursdays at 8:00am PST)
- Module 3: in-person on the UC Berkeley campus on Aug 30–Sep 1, 2027
Blended
- Six-month life transition program combining in-person intensive learning at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business with supported online discovery and real-world exploration
- Teaching and guidance from world-renowned experts on life transitions, purpose, and fulfillment
- Multi-phase structure: 5-day campus intensive, 4-month online discovery and coaching with peer forums and faculty sessions, 3-day campus intensive to continue learning and finalize your plan
- Community building with accomplished peers on similar journeys who expand your thinking and open doors
- Rigorous inquiry, peer dialogue, creative work, and practical planning frameworks
Note: Pre-work required (approximately 3 hours).
Apply for the Program
The application deadline is April 16, 2027.
Dates & Costs
Blended
Get more information
Is Next Act a retirement program?
No. Retirement programs prepare you to leave your career. Next Act is a rigorous, inspiring UC Berkeley experience designed to help you define what meaningful contribution looks like in the years ahead.
Is Next Act a traditional leadership program?
No. Traditional leadership programs focus on becoming a better leader. Next Act focuses on a different question: What do you want to do with everything you’ve learned and accomplished? Next Act gives you the guidance, time and space to explore deeply, test new possibilities, and refine what matters most.
What happens during the 4-month-long online module?
Module 2 follows a structured weekly rhythm. You'll move between three session types:
- Framework Sessions: Faculty-led sessions to inspire and guide you as you work your Life Journey Map. Held roughly every other week
- Peer Circles: You will meet regularly in your small groups to share your progress, provide input, and support each other’s journeys. Held roughly every other week
- Individual Coaching: You will receive 1:1 coaching during this module to support your work on your Life Journey Map
- UC Berkeley Assets: You will have opportunities to immerse yourself in the UC Berkeley ecosystem by taking advantage of a collection of different in-person and online experiences
By the final weeks, you'll have either a defined action plan for your next phase, or—if you're still testing—a concrete plan for your next round of experiments.
Who else will be in the room with me?
You'll be joining a cohort of leaders who, like you, have reached a high point in their careers and are deliberately choosing what comes next. Your peers are intellectually curious, high-achieving individuals questioning what success and impact mean at this stage of life, and who see this transition as too consequential to leave to chance.
They've chosen to invest real time and resources in shaping their next chapter with intention, and they're seeking the same thing you are: to stay challenged, relevant, and connected while applying decades of hard-earned wisdom in a new way.
What will I walk away with?
You won't leave this program with inspiration alone, you'll leave with a concrete, yet adaptable plan and the tools to execute it:
- Life Journey Map: A visual plan mapping your path and pointing toward possible directions for your next act
- Real-world evidence: Tested experiments and focused conversations that turn abstract ideas into validated insight
- Refined action plan: A clear next step, shaped by coaching, peer input, and faculty guidance
- Personal practice toolkit: Habits and tools to navigate transitions with curiosity long after the program ends
- Committed forum and cohort: A dedicated structure for ongoing peer support and connection to the Next Act alumni community
Faculty
Chip Conley
Founder, Modern Elder Academy (MEA) | Hospitality Pioneer and Bestselling Author
Susan Houlihan
Professional Faculty | Persuasive Communication & Interpersonal Dynamics, Haas School of Business
Dacher Keltner
Distinguished Professor of Psychology, UC Berkeley | Faculty Director of the Greater Good Science Center
Certificates
Certificate of Completion
Signal your professional achievement to your network and get recognized for your completion! Upon successful completion of the program, UC Berkeley Executive Education grants a verified digital certificate of completion to participants that you are encouraged to add to your profiles.
Note: This program results in a digital certificate of completion and is not eligible for degree credit/CEUs. After successful completion of the program, your verified digital certificate will be emailed to you directly. All certificate images are for illustrative purposes only and may be subject to change at the discretion of UC Berkeley Executive Education.
Certificate of Business Excellence
Participants in the Certificate of Business Excellence (COBE) program will earn a mark of distinction from a world-class university, gain access to a powerful global network, and enjoy the flexibility of completing the program in up to three years. A UC Berkeley Certificate of Business Excellence allows individuals to create a personal learning journey structured by our four academic pillars to gain management essentials in Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Strategy, and Finance to drive both personal and organizational development.
