Foreign Service, MS and Business Administration, MBA (Joint Program)
Modality
On Campus
Program URL
The Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) and the Master of Business Administration (MBA) dual degree is a three-year, full-time, 84-credit program in which students complete the first year of the Master of Business Administration program, the first year of the MSFS program, and complete a third year which combines MSFS and MBA electives.
Academic Policies
Students in the joint program in Foreign Service and Business Administration are expected to comply with the polices outlined in the Graduate Bulletin.
Program Requirements
Foreign Service
MSFS students must complete 48 credits, a language proficiency examination, a leadership requirement, and an oral comprehensive examination in order to graduate. Students select one of the following four concentrations to focus their studies: Global Politics and Security, International Development, Global Business, Finance & Security, Science, Technology, and International Affairs, or Self-Designed Concentration.
Required Credits
- Core Courses taken during first year (18 credits)
- Concentration courses (18 credits)
- Elective Courses (12 credits)
Leadership Requirement
The leadership requirement includes a list of curricular and extracurricular leadership training opportunities that enable students to explore and practice their leadership skills before they graduate from the program. This requirement provides students an opportunity to both learn and reflect on the nature of leadership.
The overall Leadership Requirement is composed of two segments – written self-reflection on leadership and practical demonstrations of leadership.
Business Administration
The MBA program is a general management degree, though students may opt to complete the STEM- eligible management science major, an MBA certificate, or otherwise focus their electives in particular areas. Students must complete a total of 54 graduate-level credits to earn the MBA degree. The required core curriculum in finance, marketing, strategy, decision sciences, economics, and management comprises 31.5 of these credits. This includes the Global Business Experience and the in- country residency portion. The program uses a cohort model for the core.
Starting in their second semester, students begin to tailor the curriculum to meet their interests by choosing elective courses from more than 70 course offerings in areas such as accounting, finance, marketing, management, operations and information management, and strategy, economics, ethics and public policy. Students complete a minimum 22.5 credits. These include up to 12 credits of Intensive Learning Experience courses, which are elective courses offered in short time periods that use innovative pedagogies, such as experiential learning and client- centered work.
Full-time MBA students also need to complete an internship or approved alternate experience in the summer between their first and second years in the program.
Required Examinations
Foreign Service
Language Proficiency Examination
Proficiency in English and at least one other language is essential for a successful career in international affairs and thus a requirement for graduation from the MSFS program. The MSFS program assesses language proficiency in the following ways:
- Language Placement Exam
Prior to the start of classes, MSFS students take language placement exams. This exam serves a dual purpose. First, it is used to determine which level of language study they should pursue at Georgetown, if at all. Second, it determines eligibility to sit for the language proficiency exam that takes place later in the academic calendar. Students whose native language is not English may declare English as their proficiency language, or may select a different non-native language for their proficiency requirement. - Language Courses
Students who are advised to take English or other foreign language course(s) before proceeding to the Language Proficiency Exam should enroll for an additional (fifth) course during their first semester. Language courses offered include: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Modern Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish, and Ukrainian. Additional language study in South and Southeast Asian languages are available to MSFS students through a consortium agreement with Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. Note: Language courses do not count for course credit toward the MSFS degree; grades received in language courses do not count in determining the student’s GPA.
Either after completing the Language Placement Exam or after taking language courses, each student must pass an Oral Language Proficiency Exam in their second language with a grade of “good” or better. MSFS strongly encourages all students to take and pass the Oral Language Proficiency Exam as soon as possible after enrolling in the program.
Oral Comprehensive Examination
In the spring of the second year, each MSFS student takes a final Oral Examination, given by a panel of three faculty and/or professionals in the field of international affairs. Students are judged on their ability to present material in a well-organized and articulate manner and to apply what they have learned to practical problems in the field of international affairs.