28 January 2015. From Autumn Semester 2015 onwards, the University of St.Gallen (HSG) will introduce programme-specific integration weeks and a Master’s preparatory level for external students starting their studies in all the Master’s programmes in Business Administration and Economics. External applicants will only be able to start Master’s programmes in economic sciences in an Autumn Semester.

Non-specialised Master’s programmes

The non-specialised Master’s programmes (Business Innovation (MBI), Marketing, Service and Communication Management (MSC), Business Management (MUG), Accounting and Finance (MAccFin) and Economics (MEcon)) are contingent on the completion of both a programme-specific integration week and a Master’s preparatory level.

New students with a degree in a similar major will have to complete an integration week, which combines courses from such areas as Business Administration (financial management, the St.Gallen Management Model and marketing), Economics, Business Law (company law, corporate group law and liability), as well as from Contextual Studies (nature/culture), and thus provides an integrative overview of studies at the University of St.Gallen. The integration week will take place in calendar week 36. A retaking date will be offered in calendar week 44.

Applicants with a Master’s degree in a different major and applicants with a Fachhochschule degree in Business Administration will have to complete a Master’s preparatory level, which is based on a clearly defined subject catalogue amounting to 60 credits (Business Administration) and 56 credits (Economics). As soon as applicants have acquired these programme-specific fundamentals, they will be able to start the Master’s programme of their choice without any more conditions.

Specialised Master’s programmes

In the specialised Master’s programmes (Strategy and International Management (SIM), Banking and Finance (MBF) and Quantitative Economics and Finance (MiQE/F)), applicants have to complete a programme-specific integration week, which can be done before the beginning of studies at the Master’s Level. The integration weeks focus on the special subjects of the programmes. Integration weeks were already introduced in the Master’s programmes SIM and MBF two years ago. Since they proved useful, the model has now been extended to all Business Administration and Economics programmes.

Transitional regulations

Graduates with a Bachelor’s degree from the HSG who want to change majors for the Master’s Level will experience only marginal changes. The few changes will be subject to transitional regulations, with no changes until Spring Semester 2016. The transitional regulations have been published in the University’s StudentWeb. From Autumn Semester 2016, internal students who change majors will have to complete the Master’s preparatory level, but with the previous catalogue of subjects.

There will not be any changes for the Master’s programmes in International Affairs and Governance (MIA), Management, Organization Studies and Cultural theory (MOK) and the Master’s Programmes in Law, which are not affected by this reform.

Optimal start to degree courses

With this reform, the HSG has developed a model that enables students to satisfy any possible subject-specific admission conditions before they actually start their studies at the Master’s Level. To date, many new external students have had to submit work for the Bachelor’s Level during their studies at the Master’s Level; now, they will be able to complete such work in the context of the Master’s preparatory level or an integration week. This will provide students with an optimal subject-specific start in the Master’s programme of their choice. In particular, the integration weeks will not only acquaint them with selected programme-specific fundamentals but will also help them to understand the special features that embody the HSG right from the start.