Global Affairs and Management - Executive, MA
Business, Global, Global Affairs, Management
Gain a global mindset that makes sense of a fractured world through deep engagement with today's cross-cutting issues. Master new skills for managing complexity and creating the future across geographies and across sectors.
At the Intersection of Global Business and Global Policy
Today's world needs future-ready global leaders and managers more than ever. Accelerating global complexity and dynamism in this changing world is reshaping how people create value, work and live.
This one-year MA program in global affairs and management with an executive focus provides a digital global mindset and a unique combination of hard and soft skills for leading systems and new enterprises, managing complexity, disruptive innovation, digital transformation, collaborative problem-solving and creating sustainable global futures across geographies, cultures and sectors.
Based in Washington, D.C., the program is tailored for midcareer professionals in all sectors, offering specializations in global business or global public policy. The schedule --- most classes meet every other Friday and Saturday --- allows participants to remain working while earning their degree. Students can choose to travel abroad by adding one of Thunderbird's immersive weeklong Global Challenge Labs or Field Seminars.
Earning this leading-edge executive master's degree prepares graduates for executive leadership positions within their existing organizations or to make a bold move in their careers by switching industries entirely. The program allows students to earn a master's degree from a top global leadership and management school in as little as one year, so they can immediately put their newly acquired skills to work and leverage Thunderbird's global alumni network to advance their career goals.
Global Leadership for the Fourth Industrial Revolution
Thunderbird's executive Master of Arts program in global affairs and management in Washington, D.C., includes an intensive focus on how to manage the systemic hazards facing the business and policy worlds. Policymakers and business leaders alike learned from the financial crisis of 2008 that they need to understand the risks emerging from interactions in interdependent financial institutions, rather than merely looking at each institution on its own. Such systemic fragilities are becoming increasingly apparent as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, global social unrest, and the ever more evident impacts of climate upheaval, for example. To build more robust organizations and resilient societies, new mindsets and new tools are needed.
Thunderbird School of Global Management has produced unique leaders for over 75 years --- leaders in every sector capable of tackling the world's greatest challenges. The alumni network comprises 45,000 graduates and 170 chapters around the globe.
- College/school:
Thunderbird School of Global Management
- Location: ASU at Washington, D.C.
30 credit hours including the required capstone course (TGM 545)
Required Core (3 credit hours) Electives (9 credit hours) Other Requirement (15 credit hours) Culminating Experience (3 credit hours) Additional Curriculum Information Coursework on complex systems provides a framework for insights into how many social, economic and ecological systems actually work, and --- despite the inherent uncertainties in such systems --- how to manage them, using a much larger toolkit than the standard tools of policy and business analysis. A key element of managing complexity and uncertainty is the engagement of a wide range of stakeholders in decision-making. Multiple required courses and elective courses cover techniques for facilitating productive multistakeholder engagement in the context of complex global systems. For example, in the core course on the craft of global networks in global affairs, students learn how and why to build resilient collaborations across borders and sectors in areas as varied as health, human rights, war, economic renewal, the environment and terrorism. The program culminates in the global leadership and strategy capstone course, which enables students to apply the new form of leadership needed to manage complex systems through a deep dive into addressing a specific real-world problem. The course thus pulls together the full set of capabilities required to excel at the top of a global organization.
TGM 575 Global Affairs (3)
TGM 505 States and Markets in a Global Economy (3)
TGM 518 International Finance and Trade (3)
TGM 549 Global Leadership (3)
TGM 577 International Organizations (3)
TGM 586 Global Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Business (3)
TGM 545 Global Leadership and Strategy (3)
Students focus their elective courses in a specific area approved by the academic unit. Other requirement courses may be substituted with approval of the academic unit.
Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and Thunderbird School of Global Management.
Applicants are eligible to apply to the program if they have earned a bachelor's or master's degree in any subject from a regionally accredited institution.
Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in the last 60 hours of their first bachelor's degree program, or they must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in an applicable master's degree program.
Applicants are required to submit:
- graduate admission application and application fee
- official transcripts
- one letter of recommendation
- proof of English proficiency
Additional Application Information
An applicant whose native language is not English must provide proof of English proficiency regardless of their current residency.
Program learning outcomes identify what a student will learn or be able to do upon completion of their program. This program has the following program outcomes:
- Develop the ability to build sustainable and trusting relationships with others from diverse parts of the world.
- Develop the ability to analyze complex global issues concisely.
- Develop the ability to strategize with impact in a complex world.
Students can choose to travel abroad by adding one of Thunderbird's immersive weeklong Global Field Seminars or Global Challenge Labs.
Global Field Seminar
During this course, students experience an intensive one-week immersion in-country. Students enjoy a hands-on learning experience in a focused region of the world, comprising company site visits, high-level meetings and presentations with business, government and cultural leaders, as well as Thunderbird alumni. Through these interactions, students learn the challenges and opportunities that make doing business in the region unique.
Global Challenge Laboratories
This is a client-facing, project-based course built on a one-week immersion assignment in one of many destinations all over the world. Projects are tailored to the business needs of the client and challenge students to provide sophisticated data and market analysis, strategy recommendations and plans for sustained growth that are both practical and effective. For more information, students should visit the Thunderbird Global Challenge Labs website.
Career examples include:
- adjunct professor
- chief executive
- chief sustainability officer
- general and operations manager
- human resources manager
- lawyer and officer for the Joint Chiefs of Staff
- leader of an international organization
- leader in federal and state government
- managing partner at a consulting firm
- senior diplomat
Thunderbird School of Global Management
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TGHB 209
admissions.tbird@asu.edu
602-496-7100
3 year programs
These programs allow students to fast-track their studies after admission and earn a bachelor's degree in three years or fewer while participating in the same high-quality educational experience of a 4-year option. Students should talk to their academic advisor to get started.
Accelerated master's
These programs allow students to accelerate their studies to earn a bachelor's plus a master's degree in as few as five years (for some programs).
Each program has requirements students must meet to be eligible for consideration. Acceptance to the graduate program requires a separate application. Students typically receive approval to pursue the accelerated master’s during the junior year of their bachelor's degree program. Interested students can learn about eligibility requirements and how to apply.
