Big News: Another M7 School Launches A Master In Management Program

The era of European dominance of the master in management degree may be coming to an end.

Long the leader in the space, Europe for the last 10 years has had to contend with a growing number of highly regarded MiM programs in the United States. Now those ranks have grown by a big new player.

The University of Chicago Booth School of Business announced Tuesday (July 18) the launch of a 10-month master in management program, the Booth School’s first new degree program since before World War II. Applications to the first MiM cohort will open September 1, 2023, and the first classes are scheduled to get underway in fall 2024.

A CHANGING LANDSCAPE

Booth’s announcement makes it the fourth M7 business school with a master in management program, after neighbor Northwestern Kellogg School of Management, MIT Sloan School of Management, and Stanford Graduate School of Business — and according to the most recent credible B-school rankings, the highest-ranked (see Poets&Quants‘ breakdown of U.S. News‘ MBA ranking here and P&Q‘s own ranking here). The launch of the Booth MiM comes less than a month after P&Q published the first authoritative list of U.S. master in management programs.

Tuition for the Booth MiM won’t be announced until April 2024, according to the school, but will be an estimated $65,000 to $67,000 — less than the $84,200 for MIT Sloan’s Master of Science in Management Studies and significantly less than the $138,640 for Stanford GSB’s MSx program for older students, but slightly more than Kellogg’s Master in Management ($62,349). Those prices are substantially higher than the roughly $55,500 tuition cost at highly ranked European players such as INSEAD and HEC Paris, where the MiM programs last between 14 months and two years versus the 10-month option at Chicago Booth.

Booth estimates other attendance costs outside fees will be around $35,000. Nonetheless, compared to a top MBA, the Booth MiM is a real bargain.

“We are excited to debut Chicago Booth’s one-year Master in Management, the school’s first new degree program in 88 years,” says Madhav Rajan, Booth dean and the George Pratt Shultz professor of accounting, in a statement accompanying the announcement of the new program. “We look forward to introducing foundational business skills to a new generation of Booth students, enhancing their impact in that first job and beyond.”

THE U.S. MiM — A RISING PLAYER IN THE GRADUATE BUSINESS EDUCATION SCENE

Nearby, Kellogg’s 10-month Master of Science in Management Studies has long been regarded as the top U.S. master in management program for pre-experienced students. Steve Thompson, senior director of full-time admissions, told P&Q in a recent interview that even as the format has long favored European B-schools and students, U.S. schools and employers are beginning to see the value in programs of shorter duration than MBAs, with younger students who have less work experience, many of whom may have non-business degrees and backgrounds.

“An advanced degree like a master’s in management is a valuable opportunity to fine-tune and build an early and initial set of skills that will set you on an early path to success as you’re entering the workforce,” Thompson said. “As some undergraduate students approach the end of their degree, they may recognize that they would benefit from enhancing their business acumen before entering the job market and our MSMS program serves to bridge that gap in a meaningful and impactful way. The employment outcomes for our MSMS students highlight that the degree is highly valued across industries, but we agree there is an opportunity to increase awareness of the Masters in Management amongst prospective students and employers.

“We are actively working to do that; and have seen great success thus far.”

(See Poets&Quants‘ Spotlights on the Georgetown McDonough Master of Science in Management and the Illinois Gies Master of Science in Management.)

Next page: More details about the Chicago Booth MiM program.