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Business program

​​​​​​​​​In the Master of Science in Management program, students develop the managerial skills necessary to advance as leaders in the private or public sector. Students gain a thorough understanding of management theory and techniques, and learn how to apply them through hands-on learning experiences. Graduates of this program emerge with the interpersonal, analytical and strategic knowledge necessary to successfully manage and implement change in today’s organizations. This degree is designed for early career professionals from non-business backgrounds in liberal arts, engineering, mathematics, technology and other fields.​

Most MS degrees can be completed in four quarters of full-time study or eight quarters of part-time study. The MS in Management degree offers the added benefit of providing 24 credits toward an MBA should you decide to pursue one in the future.

Program Features

In this program, you will acquire leadership skills, methods and tools to:

  • Manage projects, strategy, innovation and people effectively in a variety of organizational settings.
  • Think critically, analyze a wide range of information and initiate creative solutions to business challenges.
  • Use current sustainable management and ethical decision-making frameworks in your role as a manager.
  • Understand business fundamentals, including operations management, financial accounting and economic conditions analysis.

Students in the program have the opportunity to pursue focus areas such as project management, human resources, marketing and sales.​

Degree Requirements

  1. Satisfactory completion of the college residency requirement.
  2. Satisfactory completion of the 13 required courses, or their substitutes as approved by the Chair of the Management Department.
  3. All courses for credit toward the degree must be completed within six calendar years after the candidate's first term of enrollment in the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business. After a lapse of six years, a course is expired. An expired course is not acceptable for the purpose of satisfaction of degree requirements and is not applicable to the degree.​
Program Requirements Quarter Hours
Degree Requirements 48
Total hours required 48

Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

  • Describe values, attitudes, emotions, and cultures.
  • Recognize and analyze ethical and legal problems within applied business situations, choose a resolution, and justify that ethical choice.
  • Identify the differences among global economies, institutions, and cultures and understand the implications these have on global management.
  • Produce a coherent written statement and oral presentation of the analysis of a complex business issue.
  • Exhibit sophisticated knowledge of management practices leading to applicable skills in relevant areas.

​Degree Requirements

​Students in the MS-Management program complete 12 courses (48 credit hours).

Course Title Quarter Hours
ACC 500FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING4
or ACC 502 FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING FOR MANAGERIAL DECISION MAKING
MGT 500LEADING EFFECTIVE AND ETHICAL ORGANIZATIONS4
MGT 502OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT4
MGT 515SUSTAINABILITY MANAGEMENT4
MGT 530LEADERSHIP IN ORGANIZATIONS4
MGT 555HUMAN CAPITAL STRATEGY AND SCIENCE4
MGT 584CONSULTING SKILLS4
MGT 598PROJECT MANAGEMENT4
Select 4 (4-credit hour) Kellstadt electives16

MS in Management Career Tracks

The following four career tracks enable students to pursue a specialization or focus of interest by selecting appropriate classes for electives.

Career Tracks

Management Consulting

This career track aims to deepen knowledge and skills specific to the management consulting profession.  O*NET describes several foundational knowledge bases (Administration and Management, Customer and Personal Service, and Education and Training) and skills (Providing Consultation and Advice to Others, Making Decisions and Solving Problems, and Analyzing Data or Information). The following classes would support students in building these skills and knowledge, and are therefore recommended to compose the career track.

Course Title Quarter Hours
MGT 506DECISION MAKING FOR MANAGERS4
MGT 525TRAINING AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT4
MGT 535CHANGE MANAGEMENT AND CONSULTING4
MGT 589EXECUTIVE COACHING: LEADERSHIP IN A VOLATILE, UNCERTAIN, CHAOTIC AND AMBIGUOUS BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT4

Managing Personal and Professional Wellness

This Managing Personal and Professional Wellness career track aims to deepen knowledge and specific skills related to creating, reinvigorating, and preserving wellness in an occupational context, including self-regulation (e.g., stress management), the ethical leadership of others (e.g., coaching related to work-life balance), and the intentional development of programs, policies, and culture that supports well-being at work, all of which align with O*NET’s defined work activities of a manager:  guiding, directing, and motivating subordinates; establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships; and the meta-skills of effective executive function to capably complete other important critical work activities.  

Course Title Quarter Hours
MGT 589EXECUTIVE COACHING: LEADERSHIP IN A VOLATILE, UNCERTAIN, CHAOTIC AND AMBIGUOUS BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT4
MGT 798SPECIAL TOPICS (Preventing & Addressing Organizational Burnout OR Stress Sleep and Performance)4
MGT 798SPECIAL TOPICS (The Mindful Leader)4

Operations Management

This career track aims to deepen knowledge and skills related to strategies and practices in operations management, such as process improvement, service operations, supply chain management, analytics, and negotiation. 

Course Title Quarter Hours
MGT 501STRATEGIC SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT4
MGT 545MANAGING SERVICE OPERATIONS4
MGT 563NEGOTIATION SKILLS4
MGT 585FUNDAMENTALS OF BUSINESS ANALYTICS4

Sports Business

This career track aims to deepen knowledge and skills that can be applied to the evolving sports business industry that is growing in size and complexity. These include leadership and coaching, sports sponsorship marketing, sports management and the opportunity to apply these skills working on projects with sports organizations.

Choose any four courses:

Course Title Quarter Hours
MGT 519SPORTS MANAGEMENT4
MGT 524LEADERSHIP COACHING IN SPORTS AND ORGANIZATIONS4
MKT 574SPORTS SPONSORSHIP MARKETING4
MGT 514BEHIND THE SCENES WITH CHICAGO SPORTS ORGANIZATIONS4
MGT 798SPECIAL TOPICS (Chicago Cubs Summer Consulting Project (cross-listed with MKT 798))4
IB 750INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SEMINAR I (The Business of International Sports in London )4

Sustainable Management

This career track aims to deepen knowledge and skills related to strategies and practices in sustainable management, including developing and implementing sustainable management strategies and practices for managing human, financial, and natural resources in the organization and marketplace. O*NET explicitly asks those holding jobs in sustainability to be well-versed in “Making Decisions and Solving Problems” and “Developing Objectives and Strategies,” while utilizing deep knowledge of sustainability practices, methods, and outcomes for those activities.  The following classes would support students in building these skills and knowledge, and are therefore recommended to compose the career track.

Course Title Quarter Hours
MGT 512DEVELOPING SUSTAINABLE STRATEGIES (FORMERLY GSB 595)4
MGT 535CHANGE MANAGEMENT AND CONSULTING4
MGT 595SOCIAL AND SUSTAINABLE ENTERPRISE 4
FIN 559SUSTAINABLE VALUE CREATION4