The Master of Arts in International Relations & Master of Business Administration (IR/MBA) dual-degree program meets the needs of students seeking careers in administrative management (corporate or nonprofit), consulting, international banking, or finance. Students learn all the essential skills of business management through coursework in the Questrom School of Business and couple that with an understanding of international politics, economics, and security issues learned through coursework in the Pardee School. Students typically receive both degrees in two and a half years.
The IR MA & Master of Business Administration is a joint offering of the Pardee School of Global Studies and the Questrom School of Business. Candidates must submit applications to both Pardee and Questrom separately; only candidates who have admission to both programs can enroll in the dual degree program.
Curriculum
The MA in International Relations & Master of Business Administration requires a total of 80 units divided among Pardee International Relations core (12 units), International Relations electives (20 units), Questrom MBA core curriculum (28 units), Questrom electives (12 units), and free electives (8 units).
IR Courses
IR Core Courses (12 Credits)
The Pardee School IR Core ensures that students gain exposure to a range of important facets of international affairs. Students complete at least one course in three of the four core areas of study: Theory & Policy, Political Economy, Security Studies, and Regional Studies.
IR Electives (20 credits)
Students select five elective courses (20 units), from the graduate-level course offerings of the Pardee School. For a list of courses offered in International Relations at Pardee, please see the BU Bulletin here: https://www.bu.edu/academics/cas/courses/international-relations/
Note: With the approval of the Associate Dean of Studies, electives may also be chosen from graduate-level coursework at other BU schools and colleges. Elective coursework may also include up to two undergraduate or graduate level language courses (8 units). Course selection should be made in consultation with an academic advisor.
Up to 8 units of Pardee School electives may be fulfilled with courses from the following limited list of Questrom School electives (3 units each).
- QST FE 827 International Financial Management
- QST PL 834 Macroeconomics in the Global Environment
Students are encouraged to develop an informal regional or functional concentration with three to four of their electives. Doing so is not a requirement of the degree and a concentration will not appear on university transcripts, but choosing a concentration does help to give greater focus and definition to a student’s program of study.
Questrom Courses and Electives
MBA Core (34 credits)
Full-time students complete the standard 28-unit MBA core curriculum through study in Questrom plus 12 units of MBA electives. Part-time students complete a similar, but distinct, 31-unit MBA core curriculum, and they are not required to complete electives to meet their minimum Questrom enrollment for this dual degree.
Questrom School Electives (12 units)
Students select 12 units worth of coursework from the elective offerings of the Questrom School of Business. Students undertaking the program through QSM’s part-time MBA program do not take Questrom electives.
Free Electives (8 units)
Students take sufficient elective coursework to bring their total unit count for the program up to at least 80 units, typically 8 units. Any courses that can be used to fulfill either Pardee or Questrom elective coursework can be used as free electives. Add: With the approval of the Associate Dean of Studies, electives may also be chosen from graduate-level coursework at other BU schools and colleges. Course selection should be made in consultation with an academic advisor.
Foreign Language
Students are required to demonstrate graduate-level reading proficiency in a foreign language prior to completion of the degree. Graduate-level proficiency is the ability to understand newspaper and professional journal articles in the field of foreign relations accurately, using standard reference materials. Language proficiency must be demonstrated through a language examination. Language exams are offered by the Pardee School Graduate Office several times per year.
In the case of non-native English speakers who were required to submit a TOEFL score report as part of their application for admission, knowledge of English fulfills this requirement.
Research Project
Students write a Master’s Paper (commonly referred to as an MA Paper) as the capstone component of their degree. The paper may take one of two forms: either a traditional research paper or a policy paper. Students are given broad latitude in selecting topics and approaches, in consultation with their advisors.
All MA Papers must be defended orally in front of a panel of three professors, chosen by the Pardee School (one of the three professors will be the student’s adviser). The purpose of the oral examination is to test the student’s knowledge in the area of research related to the MA paper as well as the student’s ability to discuss that knowledge at length in a clear and compelling manner.
