M.B.A. – Master of Business Administration

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Introduction1

The program of study towards an MBA (Master of Business Administration) is offered by the Department of Management and Economics of the Open University. The aim of the program is to qualify students for middle and senior management positions in business and the public sector.

The program imparts professional knowledge, skills and capabilities in the major areas of management and business administration, enabling its students to specialize in functional areas including: business policy and strategy, marketing, accounting, finance, operations, human resources, international management, industrial and business economics, government and public policy, ethics and law, behavioral sciences, decision making, information systems, and quantitative methods. Students will study and gain experience in methods for diagnosing managerial phenomena and will acquire decision-making and problem-solving skills. Tools gained in various fields will be applied to analyzing and planning systems and projects from an integrated managerial perspective.

The MBA program is a non-thesis program.

Admission Requirements

Acceptance to the program is determined by the Admissions Committee. The requirements are:

  • A bachelor's degree in Management accredited by the Council for Higher Education with a grade point average of at least 80, after completing the required supplementary courses

  • A bachelor's degree in another field accredited by the Council for Higher Education with a grade point average of at least 80, after completing the required supplementary courses

  • A bachelor's degree with a grade point average below 80 will be considered by the Admissions Committee. In certain cases, candidates may be asked to come for a personal interview. At least 3 years of proven managerial experience is advantageous.

Accreditation of Prior Studies

The departmental Master’s committee will consider granting accreditation for up to 18 credits for graduate level courses relevant to the program at another institution of higher education. Additional details can be found in the Regulations Pertaining to Graduate Studies.

Program of Studies

To complete the degree requirements toward an MBA, students must accumulate 45 credits in required courses, elective courses and seminars. Students without the necessary background will be required to complete supplementary studies in basic courses that do not grant graduate level credits. Required courses include core courses in management as well as an advanced integrative course to be taken after the core courses. The multi-disciplinary character of graduate studies in business administration, as well as the diverse supplementary, required, elective and seminar courses, enable students to plan a curriculum based on a wide variety of courses. MBA students will be required to demonstrate their ability to apply their studies to practical managerial problems and case studies in their own fields and to other cases in Israel and abroad.

MBA students will not receive credits for a course they took during their undergraduate studies, and will be required to complete the 45 credits from among the elective and seminar courses offered.

Five groups of courses comprise studies towards an MBA:2

13902 Emotions in Organizations

Supplementary studies3

Credits

Introduction to Microeconomics (10131)

3

Introduction to Macroeconomics (10126)

4

Mathematics for MBA Students (91415)

Mathematics for MBA Students (Linear Algebra) (91416)

Introduction to Statistics for Students of Social Sciences I (30111)

3

Introduction to Statistics for Students of Social Sciences II (30112)

3

Research Methods in Social Sciences: Guiding Principles and Research Styles (10285)

4

Required studies4 – 18 credits

Operations Research (13001)

3

Accounting for Managers (13002)

3

Marketing (13003)

3

Management and Organizational Behavior (13004)

3

Financial Management (13005)

3

Corporate Law for Managers (13018)

3

Advanced required studies – 3 credits

Competitive Business Strategy (13015)

3

Electives5 – at least 18 credits

 Accounting Cluster

Managerial Accounting (13009)

3

Corporate Value Creation (13041)

3

Financial Statements I

Financial Statements II

 Financing Cluster

Financial Modeling (13022)

3

Financial Statement Analysis and Firm Evaluation (13008)

3

Capital Markets and Financial Intermediaries (13033)

3

Investment Theory

 Management, Marketing and Advertising Cluster

Issues in Consumer Behavior (13013)

3

Advertising: Theory and Practice (13014)

3

Planning and Conducting Surveys (13010)

3

Changing Attitudes and Persuasion in Marketing and Advertising

Emotions in Organizations (13902)

3

Strategy for a Multi-Business Corporation

 International Management Cluster

Multinational Financial Management (13035)

3

International Economics - Monetary Aspects (13020)

3

Culture and Management (13019)

3

Global Strategic Alliances (13038)

3

Entrepreneurship: Theory and Practice (13043)

3

 Business and Industry Economics Cluster

Location Theory (13026)

3

Econometrics: Managerial Applications (13029)

3

Game Theory with Business Applications (13044)

3

Managerial Economics

 Management and Public Policy Cluster

Public Policy: Theory to Practice (13037)

3

Strikes and Lockouts in a Democratic Perspective (12018)

3

Democracy and Democratization (12003)

3

Policy and Economics of Local Government

Approaches and Roles of the Government

 Ethics, Law and Taxation Cluster

Labor Law (13011)

3

Business Ethics for MBA Students (13012)

3

International Trade Law (13042)

3

Principles of Income Tax (13036)

3

 Operations Management Cluster

The Strategy of Operations (13027)

3

Operations Management in Organizations (13034)

3

Project Management for Business Administration (13032)

3

Management and Quality Control

 Quantitative Methods and Information Systems Cluster

Analysis and Design of Information Systems - A Combined Object-Oriented and Functional Approach (13021)

3

Information Systems Policy (13006)

3

Economics of Information Goods (13030)

3

Simulation Modeling and Analysis

Managerial Decision-Makingp

 Organizational Behavior in Management Cluster

Dynamics of Negotiation (13017)

3

Statistical Techniques for Manpower Planning (13016)

3

Leadership in Organizations (13023)

3

Participation Programs in Work Organizations (13031)

3

Labor Relations in Globalization (13040)

3

Performance Appraisal at Work: Evolution and Change (13039)

3

Seminars6 – 6 credits

Seminar: The Capital Market in Israel (13202)

3

Seminar: Electronic Markets (13801)

3

Seminar: Knowledge Management (13802)

3

Seminar: Globalization – Its Effects on the Economy, the Production Sector and Financial Markets (13401)

3

Seminar: The Information Value of Financial Reports (13101)

3

Seminar: Labor Economics (13501)

3

Seminar: Financing – Issues and Applications in Israel

3

Seminar: Behavioral Economics and Finance (13201)

3

Seminar: Information Systems Development Methodologies (13803)

3

Seminar: Product and idea promotion and spread (13301)

3

Workshop: Critical Organizational Behaviors and Organizational Performance (13901)

3

Program of Study – Approval and Changes

Each student’s individual study program must be approved by the departmental Master's committee. The committee determines when the student is required to submit the program for approval. A student who wishes to change the study program after it was approved may submit a request to change the program to the committee. The committee will consider the student’s request and decide whether to approve it.

Program approval is valid for 3 years. If there are changes in the prerequisites of courses included in the program, students will revise their program according to the prerequisites in force when they register for the course. In addition, if the University no longer offers a course listed in the program, students will be required to select an alternate course.

Duration of Studies

Students are required to complete their studies within 5 years of taking their first course in the program (not including supplementary courses).7

Degree Eligibility

Students receive an MBA following completion of all the courses and seminar papers in their approved final program of study.

Final Degree Grade

The final degree grade is the weighted average of all course grades.


1

The details below are subject to the Regulations Pertaining to Graduate Studies.

2

The courses listed below include courses currently offered as well as courses in the planning and development stages.

3

Courses in economics, mathematics, statistics and computer science (with an average grade of 75) are required of students who did not take these courses, or corresponding courses in content and scope, within an academic framework.

4

Core courses in management and business administration. In special cases, the departmental Master’s committee may exempt students from core courses if they took corresponding courses as part of their prior studies. In any case, students will be required to complete the 45 credits required for the degree from among the elective courses.

5

The 10 clusters of elective courses enable students to gain in-depth knowledge and to specialize in various areas. Due to the integrative nature of the program, students are required to select a minimum of 6 courses from at least 3 clusters. Students may not take an elective course if they took it as part of their undergraduate studies.

6

Students will actively participate in two seminars of their choice, subject to the approval of the program advisor. Students must meet the seminar prerequisites before enrolling in the seminar. Seminars are studied in small groups using distance-learning technologies (CMC, video-conferencing, etc.).

7

In exceptional cases, students may apply to the departmental Master’s committee for an extension. The committee may require that students take additional courses, which will be included in the study program, instead of, or in addition to, courses that the student has taken.