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Graduate Certificate in Management Studies

Graduate Certificate in Management Studies

The Graduate Certificate in Management Studies (G.C.M.S.) is designed to provide those who have completed the equivalent of the first year of an accredited traditional 2-year M.B.A. at another university with an opportunity to pursue further studies at the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business. The program is also especially valuable for those who completed a one-year M.B.A. program and wish to enhance their knowledge in a specialized area of business.

Graduate Certificate in Management Studies

ACADEMIC OVERVIEW

Completion of the Graduate Certificate in Management Studies degree requires a minimum of 12 graduate units for all candidates — usually four 3-unit courses.

GCMS applicants are urged to consider areas of specialization available to Marshall graduate students. The applicant is asked to identify areas of interest as part of the application process, but may choose coursework from the full range of graduate electives available to Marshall MBA students.

Prior to application, students must complete at least the first year of a traditional 2-year MBA accredited by the AACSB, EQUIS, ACBSP, AOCTE, IACBE or AMBA.

An evaluation of work previously completed at the graduate/master’s level determines if specific content areas are missing. If it is determined that preliminary courses are needed and are available at USC Marshall, the number of units needed to complete the certificate will increase.

None of the GSBA-prefixed classes required for completion of a Marshall MBA program may be applied toward the Graduate Certificate in Management Studies unless they are required to update prior work and are added to the 12-unit total.

All courses applied toward the certificate must be taken within the Marshall School of Business. Acceptable course prefixes include ACCT, BAEP, BUCO, DSO, FBE, GSBA, MKT and MOR. No courses numbered lower than 500 may be included in this program. No coursework completed prior to matriculation in the program can be applied toward the Graduate Certificate in Management Studies.

APPLYING TO USC MARSHALL

We welcome applications from individuals who have never applied to attend USC before as well as current USC graduate students.

Current USC Students

Only students currently enrolled in a Masters or Doctoral degree at USC are considered ‘current USC students.’ If you are an alumnus, even if recently graduated, you must follow the directions to apply as a non-USC student.

Non-USC Students

Interested applicants who are not active students in a USC Masters or Doctoral program should follow the application instructions below.

International Students

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