Master's of Research in Management Sciences

Admission to the Master's of Research in Management Sciences (M2) requires the equivalent of a 4-year university degree (240 ECTS) or more, or equivalent. Most of the students come from classic programmes in Management and Economics (universities and business schools). The Master's of Research is also open to students from different disciplines (engineering, sociology, mathematics, philosophy, law, political science, etc.) and their applications are encouraged.

Recruitment is based on:

• The candidate’s application file
• Official copies of previous degrees and transcripts
• Results from management skills testing (TAGE-MAGE, GMAT)
• English language proficiency assessment (TOEFL, TOEIC, IELTS, or solid evidence of time spent in an English-speaking environment)
• French language proficiency assessment for non-French candidates (TCF4 or B2 or equivalent)
• The candidate’s cover letter
• An essay
• Letters of recommendation
• An interview with the admissions board

The Master's of Research associates the School of Applied Economics (FEA), the IAE Graduate School of Management and the Institute of Public Management and Territorial Governance (IMPGT). It therefore benefits from their excellence in teaching and research in Management Sciences.

This programme offers a wide range of courses that enables students to major in one of the following five options:

• Financial Management
  Pedagogic coordinator: Patrick Rousseau – IAE-Aix
• International Management
  Pedagogic coordinator: Jean Philippe – FEA
• Public Management
  Pedagogic coordinator: Robert Fouchet – IMPGT
• Human Resources Management and Corporate Strategy
  Pedagogic coordinator: Emmanuelle Reynaud – IAE-Aix
• Marketing
  Pedagogic coordinator: Elyette Roux – IAE-Aix

Students attend two types of courses:

• A common-core syllabus which makes up the methodological bases of research in Management Sciences.
• Specific courses in each specialty.

This programme is administered from September to September: the first trimester is devoted to the common-core syllabus and the next two trimesters to the specialised courses.

There is an oral exam at the end of courses in April. The summer trimester is devoted to the writing of a thesis which must be defended in the second week of August for the first session and in the last week of October for the second session.

Content of the Programme

Common-core courses: The methodological bases of Research (Semester 3)

• Methodology and Research Design
• Qualitative Research Methods
• Quantitative Analyses of Qualitative Data
• Data Analysis Methods
  
  
• Seminar introducing the different specialities (Statistics and Econometrics, The Major Challenges of Public Management, The Major Trends in International Management Research).

Courses specific to each speciality: (Semester 4)

Financial Management – IAE-Aix

• Common-core courses specific to this speciality:
  • Financial Microeconomics
  • Financial Instruments and Capital Structure
• Optional courses in Corporate Finance:
  • Management Control
  • Risk Management
• Optional courses in Market Finance:
  • Financial Markets: Models and Data
  • Models and Valuation Methods

Human Resources Management and Corporate Strategy – IAE-Aix

• Organisational Theory
• Human Resources and Career Management
• Fundamental Theories in Strategy
• The strategy of Sustainable Development
• Human Behaviour in Organisations

Marketing – IAE-Aix

• Consumer Behaviour
• Services Marketing
• Brand Management Research
• Communication and Persuasion

International Management – FEA

• International Corporate Management
• International Services Management
• Corporate and Organisational Theory
• Information Systems and Organisation of International Firms

Public Management – IMPGT

• Public Management and Private Management
• Territorial Management
• Performance and Public Services
• Systems and Complexity

Master’s of Research Thesis

The Master’s thesis is designed to be a full-fledged research project. It must therefore be homogeneous, thorough and reveal the ability of the student to formulate a subject and rigorously implement the research methodology that is associated with it. The Master’s thesis therefore includes a subject and its interest, a review of the literature, research hypotheses and an empiric field study.
The student-researcher works under the direction of a faculty advisor with the view to publication in a scientific review. The thesis is orally defended in front of a panel of two professor-researchers.

The Oral Exam (Grand Oral)

The Oral Exam makes it possible to evaluate the extent of knowledge and the ability of candidates to present, in a synthetic and pedagogic manner, a subject relevant to their speciality. Candidates are given a subject with a limited time for preparation of an oral presentation to a panel of two professor-researchers.

Evaluation

The evaluation system favours an understanding of the concepts and methodologies of Management Sciences as well as the ability to present them.
At the end of the programme, the students are expected to:

• Master the fundamental qualitative and quantitative methods of management research,
• Know the latest advances in their specialisation,
• Have performed a rigorous research project within the framework of their Master’s thesis,
• Be capable, during the Oral Exam, of creating and developing a high-level presentation on a management research theme.

Up to now, approximately half of the students in the Master's of Research have registered to do a doctoral dissertation in Management Sciences in order to become professor-researcher at universities or business schools. In this perspective, the team of professors in the Master's of Research help students define their dissertation project, choose their future research director and continue their studies at the CERGAM (Centre of Studies and Research on Management of the Paul Cézanne Aix-Marseille University). They also help students obtain scholarships: regional scholarships, research grants and CIFRE contracts (dissertations in firms)… The other half of the students go on to careers in consulting or management (marketing, human resources, strategy…) in national or international firms or organizations. The internationalization of the Paul Cézanne University, with students from the five continents and renowned foreign professors, has made this programme a real asset for the development of your career.

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