Master of Science in Business and Management

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The Programme

The MSc in Business and Management is a two-year programme that provides students with advanced and significant expertise in the concepts, tools and skills essential to contemporary business strategies and functions. The first year of the course provides a mixture of quantitative subjects and more general management subjects, including human resource management, economics, and finance. In the second year students will specialise in either HRM or Financial Management. They will take three modules and prepare a minor dissertation.

The six subjects of the first year cover topics essential to any advanced business and management qualification, including cost-benefit analysis, financial policy, human resource planning, the management of cash and assets, decision-making in organisations, strategic management, leadership and change, and the principles of research. The second year builds on the knowledge obtained in the first and allows students specialise in an area they are most interested in. The minor dissertation will likely address an issue relevant to the student’s professional formation and will draw upon the theories and principles students have learned. The research methods module from the first year will be a very useful preparation for the dissertation phase.

Is This Programme for you?

Yes, if you want to obtain a high level of expertise in the contemporary principles and practices that determine business strategies and operations. On successful completion of the MSc, graduates will be able to:

• Critically appraise advanced business theory and practice.
• Demonstrate expertise in key business functions.
• Apply quantitative methods and subjects to contemporary theories in the relevant social sciences.
• Interrogate common business norms from the perspective of the most current scholarship.
• Situate business problems and solutions within a variety of different contexts: economic, financial, statistical, managerial, legal and organisational.

Subjects

Stage One

The first stage of the MSc programme is divided into two semesters and each semester is devoted to the study of three key business and management subjects:

Semester One

Economics

This course focuses on the economic principles especially applicable to business strategies and objectives. It addresses such topics as pricing, taxation, growth, regulation, and managing in competitive markets.

Human Resource Management

Among the topics addressed on this course are motivation theory, group dynamics, politics and conflict in organisations, human resource planning, performance appraisal, training and development, corporate culture, and organisational change.

Finance

This course covers, among other topics, annual financial statements, investment appraisal, cost and management accounting, standard costing, ratio analysis, the management of cash, stocks and debtors, business planning and budgeting, and company valuations.

Semester Two

Organisation and Strategy

This course addresses several key issues in the literature on organisation and strategy, including decision-making in organisations, contingency theory, the nature of bureaucracy, markets, strategic management, and networks.

Leadership and Strategy Implementation

The topics addressed in this course include leadership theories, the differences between private- and public-sector leadership, leadership and vision creation, leadership and strategy formulation, policy formulation and implementation, the management of change, and ethics and social responsibility.

Research Methods

This course provides a comprehensive explication and analysis of sophisticated quantitative and qualitative research. It considers, among other things, research strategy and design, sampling, depth interviews, random variables, hypothesis testing, and appropriate mathematical techniques.

Stage Two

The second stage of the course is also divided into two semesters. Students choose to follow the HRM stream or the Financial Management stream.

HRM Stream

Semester One 

Human Resource Strategy

This course explores the theory and practice of human resource management from a strategic perspective. Among the topics addressed are frameworks for strategic HR, management development, employee relations, and reward management.

Managing People

This course addresses the organisational and psychological components of managing people. It attends to, among other topics, attitudes and behaviour in work, motivate employee motivation, the management of conflict, and theories of leadership.

Employment Law

A very significant body of law determines contemporary employment. Among the topics that students will examine on this course are the contract of employment, the duties that an employer has to an employee, how an employment contract can be ended, and the laws governing harassment in the workplace.

Semester Two: 

Students write a minor dissertation on an agreed topic in HRM. Students must successfully complete the taught modules before moving to the dissertation phase.

Financial Management Stream

Semester One

Corporate Finance

This course exposes to students to the key principles, practices and tools in corporate finance. It covers a range of topics, including short- and long-term financing, capital budgeting, company valuation, and the risks that arise from interest and exchange rates.

Governance and Auditing

This course examines governance and audit and the related issue of risk management. It does so in the context of the significant developments that have taken place in corporate accountability and governance over recent decades.

Financial Reporting and Decision-Making 

This course will teach students how to prepare reports that disclose an organisation’s financial status. It will also address issues in management accounting and financial decision making.

Semester Two:

In the second semester, students write a dissertation on an agreed topic in financial management.

Assessment

Students are assessed by means of assignments, examinations and a dissertation. 

How To Apply

To apply, please:

1. Download this Application Form and complete it (if your fees are being paid by your employer, be sure to include the relevant details on the form).
2. Obtain a copy of your degree or other relevant qualification.
3. Send the completed application form and copy of your prior qualification to postgrad@ipa.ie.

You may also apply by post.

If you are paying the programme fee yourself, you can do so by cheque, bank draft or by debit/credit card (contact the Postgraduate Office for further details).

Prospectus

Programme Delivery and Application Form

IPA postgraduate prorgammes are part time and delivered through a blended learning model. To apply,  see the How to Apply section on the relevant programme and complete the application form below. 

Application Form

Postgraduate Application Form