All you need to know about the MSc in Management

Contents

• What is the MSc in Management?
• MSc in Management versus MBA
• Top Schools by Location
• What is the CEMS program?
• What can I expect after the Msc in Management?

...........................................................

What is the MSc in Management?
The MSc in Management is a Master in Science academic degree primarily taught in European countries, but increasingly being taught in other countries as well. The program is similar to an MBA, but requires no work experience. This means the MSc in Management is more focused in theory, while the MBA is more focused on practice. The popularity of this program is growing fast, because it is suited for any background and normally has a deep impact in the participant's career.
Not all MSc in Management are the same, there are universities where the program lasts 2 years and others where it lasts a single year. Normally, the 2-year program is for students with non-business backgrounds such as arts, science or technology; while the 1-year program is for students from business, finance or marketing areas. There are universities that offer the 2 programs such as the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, or the London School of Economics and Political Science; other universities only offer the 1-year program for graduates in business-related areas, for instance, ESADE from Barcelona. A few exceptions such as London Business School offer a 1-year program for non-business graduates. The program is mainly taught in English, with a few exceptions like the Manheim Business School master, which is taught in German.
The admission normally requires taking the GMAT, although some universities accept the GRE exam, and others have their own admission exams. As stated in the beginning, the program is open for students without relevant experience, which is the main feature of the master. The application process is similar to that of the MBA, schools usually require a GMAT score, a proof of English proficiency if needed, at least 2 references and a bunch of essays (sometimes a single letter of motivation). Thus, it is recommendable to plan the application with enough time.

Typical denominations: MSc in Management, MSc in International Business, MSc in International Management, MSc in Business and Economics, Master in Business Engineering.

MSc in Management versus Master in Business Administration
MiM	MBA
Designed for Recent Graduates with no work experience	Designed for Applicants with minimum 2-3 years of relevant work experience
Theory oriented*	Practice oriented
Suited for managerial roles in any industry, usually in lower positions than those of the MBA graduates, and PhD in programmes.	Suited for managerial roles in any industry and normally DBA program, although also PhD
Originated in Europe	Originated in the US

* This doesn't mean that the MSc in Management is only a preparation for a PhD in Management Science. The distinction with the MBA is obvious because none of the participants is supposed to have work experience. Nonetheless, a MSc in Management is perfectly suited for people who want to work immediately after graduation.

Top schools by location

International

• CEMS
• ESCP Europe

UK

• London Business School
• London School of Economics and Political Science
• Cass Business School

France

• Hec Paris
• Essec Business School
• Em Lyon

Spain

• Esade Business School

The Netherlands

• Rotterdam School of Management

Sweden

• Stockholm School of Economics

Belgium

• Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management

Denmark

• Copenhagen Business School

Finland

• Helsinki School of Economics

Norway

• Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration

Ireland

• Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School

Austria

• Vienna University of Economics and Business

Germany

• Mannheim Business School

Poland

• Kozminski University

Hungary

• Corvinus University of Budapest

Canada

• HEC Montreal
• Queen’s School of Business

China

• Antai College of Economics and Management

Taiwan

• National Chengchi University

What is the CEMS program?
"CEMS is a strategic alliance of leading business schools and multinational companies. Its first mission is to set a global standard of excellence for pre-experience Master’s in management."
In order to apply for the CEMS Master in Management you need to be enrolled in a school of the CEMS Network. In the first months, students take the courses of the program from their home university. Afterwards, students have to do a thesis project along with an Internship that must take place in a different country than that of the home institution. Finally, the last 3-4 months students make an international exchange to another school of the CEMS Network, where they will do a business project in a multicultural team. The CEMS program is opened only for students with business-related backgrounds. Note that the CEMS program is ranked the 1st in the FT rankings for Masters in Management.

What can I expect after the Msc in Management?
This master degree prepares you for a career in consulting, finance, economics, marketing, accounting or management in any industry. The salaries after a 3-year period vary from 32000 to 72000$.

Summary of the Placement Report from Stockholm School of Economics

• The main destination industries for 2009 were: Investment Banking (22%), Management Consulting (20%), Finance, Banking (14%), Consummer Products (12%), Other Consulting (5%), PR, Marketing, Advertising (5%), Media, Culture (4%) Accounting / Audit (3%).
• 42% of students found their job more than 6 months prior to graduation, 46% of students found their job between 6 months and graduation time. So 88% of the students had a job upon graduation.
• Jobs in IB vary from 60 to 80 hours a week, while consulting jobs vary from 55 to 65 hours a week. The industries with less hours per week are PR/Advertising, Media, Culture and Accounting with 40-45 hours a week.
• If you wish, take a look to the entire Stockholm School of Economics' Placement Report 2009

Summary of the Career Destinations from Manchester Business School

• Sectors: Consulting (17%), Financial Services (16%), Manufacturing (9%), Technology (7%), Consumer Products (7%).
• Job Functions: General Management (27%), Finance/Accounting (18%), Marketing/Sales (18%), Consulting (16%).
• If you wish, take a look to the entire Career Destinations 2008 Report from Manchester Business School

Employment Facts & Figures from HEC Paris

• 74% of students found a job prior to graduation and the average salary was 67000$.
• Sectors: Consulting (45%), Finance (18%), Real Estate (9%), Industry, Technology, Tourism, Luxury, Chemicals, Energy (4% each)
• Functions: Consulting (45%), Finance (14%), Management / Administration (14%), Marketing (9%), Audit (9%).
• If you wish, visit the entire Employment Facts and Figures from HEC Paris

...........................................................

References
Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_of_ ... Management
Financial Times - http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/94251a9a-a70f ... abdc0.html
Financial Times Rankings - http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolra ... management
About CEMS - http://www.cems.org/general/about/strat ... liance.php

Kudos!
Fantastic job.

Thanks for the amazing post!!!

What about MSc in Management programs in US? Can you plz suggest a couple of good ones for me. Cuz I'm considering doing MSc in Management, preferably in US. I heard that Duke has a new MMS program. Do you have any info on that one? Do you know of any other such programs in US?

Thanks

Hello,

Thanks for the magnificent post!

Could you tell me, if for people who finish their bachelor in business administration, would it be a waste of time a 2 year program? I am thinking that one year could just be two short, from someone coming not from those elite schools even if it has certain prior knowledge...

Thanks in advance!

arammug

I found these programs in the US:

SMU Cox School of Business from Dallas (Evening or weekend program)
University of Maryland
Boston University This is the first online program I've ever seen
Indiana Wesleyan University Here goes the second online program I've ever seen
Hough Graduate School of Business (Florida) "program designed specifically for individuals with NON-business academic backgrounds/degrees and have little or no professional work experience.
Minot State University
Thomas Edison State College (With all respects, this one seems a bit creepy)
Thunderbird School of Global Management
Florida Keys Community College

Not much as you can see. I don't have information of these schools, but personally, the Thunderbird course seems to be in a higher league than the others.

Regarding the Duke program, I've looked through the web and can't find any info related to the MSc in Management.

ioanadinu

The thing is that normally 2-year programs are designed for graduates from other disciplines, and therefore you are not eligible. If I were you, I would go for the CEMS Master, it is a 18-month program and you can choose among +/-18 different schools to do it (and is ranked 1st by the way).

Should you have more questions, don't hesitate =)

Good Job! This is total new information to me. Thanks.

hey...I was researching some MSc programs as well, (mainly in Canada) I was looking at Queens and Richard Ivey school of business (they're coming out with a new CEMS alliance program in Fall 2010) you might want to check it out. Regarding thunderbird, its a good school, but their curriculum is mundane (for a finance major) I majored in Finance, so 80-90% of the courses taught at thunderbird, I've already taken. Also, in my opinion, I dont think their recruiting center is really good. I personally want to get into consulting, and I'm targeting firms like Bain, McKinsey, Boston Consulting Group etc....and those firms dont recruit on that campus. I would suggest looking at the career center statistics, and what folks recruit from there, cuz at the end of the day thats what really matters.

Hi I am Akshay

I have made it to LSE MSc Management and Strategy for session 2010-11. I would like to know that how are the placement for this course what are the job role offered to students from LSE and the salary offered.

These are important consideration as I am an international student and would be dependent on loans therefore salary figure is an important consideration. Please give a break up of name of companies recruiting from LSE specifically from MSc Management and Strategy and the net salary offered.

Also what is the basic difference between LSE MSc Management (2yr) and various other Msc Management related courses such as 1.MSc Management and Strategy. 2. MSc Management organisation and governance and 3. Msc Management and Economics

Thanks

Well, first congratulations for being accepted to LSE. About the information you ask for, don't take it wrong, but don't you think you should've done a bit of research before applying? I'm quite surprised that you didn't look for this beforehand. Anyway, I think the only sources that could provide this information are the LSE website and the FT Rankings (click herer)



That's explained in the main post.

Good luck.

Hey thanks for your concerned reply.

I have done a lot of research and it is for this reason that I applied for the course. I am fully aware of the fact that the course is ranked 4th best in the world and LSE name on your CV would always fetch you an interview call.

However I would just like to further reinstate my opinion and belief. Please do so as its my request.

1. How well regarded is the LSE Brand name from a world perspective and 1.1the course MSc Management and Strategy.

2. Any other insights that you would like to share about the course and brand name LSE

I know after having gone through the ranking such question may sound trivial. But I am doing so to further establish my belief about the course. please do reply to my queries.

Deepest regards
Akshay

Thanks for ur information...Great job!!
Can u plz tell me what is the GMAT entry requirements and scholarships chances for schools in the UK?
Thanks in advance

Good job fellow Spaniard! I guess you are reading the MiM at LBS right now, right? I've got the interview for this programee this month! :D May I ask what was your background and GMAT score?

Hello Kitsune, nice to see another Spanish fellow around here. Actually I applied this year to the LBS program and unfortunately I was dinged. Now fighting for a place in Esade, LSE and ESCP, with EM Lyon as a possible alternative..
If you want we can talk in private and I'll give you a full account of my background / experiences until now.

I wish you the best of luck in your applications.

Saruba is famous around here
welcome-saruba-as-the-new-moderator-of-the-ms-forum-88841.html

Hello,
I'm kinda new to this forum even though I’ve been following your insightful posts for a while.
I'm contemplating an international management career in the IT industry. Can you please lend me your expert advice on which quality UK business schools offer the most reputable Management MSCs with a bias in IT? Someone once recommended Strathclyde, but I’m not sure and really need an insider's opinion!
Also, which business schools have a substantial number of students venturing into IT management after graduation?
I'm counting on y'all, and do keep up the good work!!!

Hello sabilonline,

first of all, I have to state that I am not an expert in this field (nor in any other field actually).

As far as I am concerned, you have two options:

1) if you have an IT background (undergraduate studies in this field), IMO you should take a standard MSc in Management degree and the specialization will happen naturally. In fact, the masters in management that are open to graduates from any discipline have been specifically created to serve that purpose. Another story is that people is going crazy with consulting and then forget about previous studies (hello!). Anyway, If that's the case (that you have an IT bg and want a MSc in Management) I think you will find enough information in the first post.

2) if you don't have an IT background and want to start a career in IT/Management then you have some interesting choices out there that can be helpful - I have considered this option in case I couldn't make it into one of the schools that I chose for the MiM.
As you say, the university of Strathclyde has a course named MSc in Business Information Technology. Unfortunately, I can't provide feedback about reputation of the school. All I know is that it is way to the bottom in the FT rankings.

Another similar courses that you could be interested in are:

Manchester Business School - MSc in Business IT

Lancaster University - MSc Information Technology, Management and Organisational change
Lancaster University - MSc in E-Business and Innovation
--I was very interested in this one prior to know about Lancaster. Not the kind of 'experience' I am looking for--

City University - MSc Information Management
Other related courses in City

Outside UK:

Grenoble EM - MSc in Innovation, Strategy and Entrepreneurship
--I was very interested in this one, but I sent 2 mails with some questions and never got answer, so obviously had to forget about it--

University of Barcelona (home : ) - Creation and Management of Innovative Technology Based Companies
--I have already applied to this one, love it --

Well, I have provided you with a few ideas. I hope you are closer to your decision after this post.

Good luck!

Hey Saruba,

Thanks a million for your insightful advice!
Actually, my undergrad's in marketing and I've just started checking out the schools you proposed in the second option.
Once mo' 10x!
Ciao.

Lancaster University - MSc in E-Business and Innovation
--I was very interested in this one prior to know about Lancaster. Not the kind of 'experience' I am looking for--

Hello once again Saruba,

Just did a preliminary survey of the shcools you proposed and I understand that you're quite the entreprenual type (somthing I wanna be!).

Anyway, can you please explain the kind of "experience" you said Lancaster dos'nt offer?

Counting on you as usual,
ciao

Hello again sabilonline,

You understood quite well

About your question, it is strictly personal, but I can tell you some thoughts.

As I suggested on the prior post, I am from Barcelona, so I am used to live in a 'big' city with warm weather. When I looked for Lancaster in Google Maps I was expecting to locate it somewhat near London, such as Oxford or Birmingham, but I was a bit disappointed when I found out where it really is. Before giving up, I wanted to know a bit more from the city, so I went to wikipedia and found that it has around 50k residents. That was what finally put me off. I am looking for academic rigor, but also for a big city that had enough cultural offer, nightlife, and obviously, job opportunities, so I concluded it is not the place where I should be. Apart from that, I don't think the reputation of Lancaster University would be enough as to make a difference here in Barcelona.
It is a pity, because the course is amazing and it seems that there's a nice community there, but I will do a huge investment and I need to be sure that it will meet my expectations.

The conclusion is that you shouldn't be influenced by my comment, just ask yourself if Lancaster would meet your expectations.

Good luck!

I agree with saruba.

I spent five months in Poitiers (a city of 90k people in the middle of nowhere in France) and I told myself I would not study / work again in a small city. But that depends on each person... I need to meet people outside the university / school area. I know people who studied at Warwick and on their 2nd year, they were going mad...

Saruba, you would better off graduating from ESADE than from Lancaster...