M.Sc. in International Business

Programme Aims

to create an awareness and understanding of the nature of different business environments around the world.

to introduce the kinds of decision faced by organisations wishing to establish themselves and compete on a global basis.

to equip students with practical skills and competencies for survival in multi-cultural settings.


The MSc. Programme in International Business at the Institute is primarily designed for those who wish to pursue an academic career which can translate into a work placement. Our programme provides you with the tools and the skills necessary for success in the business world. Because we prepare student for professional careers we stress the importance of indepth study.

The SOME offers several features that make it an excellent college for you to obtain your Postgraduate degree in management. First, we have an outstanding faculty. Second, the programmer's relatively small size - which allows close contact between faculty and students. The faculty enjoys the challenge presented by students to keep abreast of the latest developments in their fields. A third factor that students often mention is the high caliber of their fellow students and how much they learn from one another. We encourage a supportive learning environment at IIMT, fostering cooperation as well as competition among our students. COMPULSORY MODULES 1. Module: P58800-International Management Competencies This module provides opportunities for developing students' cognitive, affective, behavioural and technical management skills, with a view to enhancing their effectiveness when operating within an international organisation. The programme is centrally concerned with issues of international management process and therefore takes as its focus cross-cultural interpersonal dynamics, team working, organisational and management development, and decision-making. This module aims to enable students to identify the influence of cross-cultural factors on interpersonal dynamics and to select appropriate management and leadership styles given cultural constraints and to provide a framework in which students will be able to decide upon appropriate and credible problem-analysis and decision-making strategies. 2. Module: P58803-Principle of Strategic Management This module will look at the essential principles of international management especially those relating to the initial stages of involvement in international business. It examines the decisions that have to be taken by international managers from an integrated functional perspective, against the dynamic global environment in which those decisions are made. This module aims to enable students to gain the intellectual skills required for an understanding of the principles of international business and management, particularly with respect to the globalisation process and the strategic decisions to be made by managers in developing business in an international context. 3. Module: P58801 - Environment of the International Manager - Politico-Economic This module will focus on examining the issues concerning the management of the external environment of organisations, as viewed from an international perspective. This module will introduce the major trends and debates affecting international business and act as a link for the study of the ecological and ethical environment of the sustainability module. The aim will be to develop the intellectual skills of an international manager to look at the changing global politico-economic environment and to respond to these changes for making practical decisions. 4. Module: P58805 - Principles of Financial Accounting and Statistics This module provides an opportunity for students to develop core competencies in accounting, basic statistics and their integration in business decision-making. The purpose of this module is to develop an understanding of financial and quantitative information relevant to middle or senior managers, to enhance their effectiveness when operating in an international organisation. The programme is primarily concerned with the analysis and interpretation of quantitative and financial information, not its production. The content will be used as a foundation for further study in other modules including Research Methods, International Management Competencies and International Management Practices. The module aims to develop a basic understanding and critical assessment of corporate financial information. It also aims to deliver an understanding of statistical and quantitative data within a business context. 5. Module: P58804-Strategic Management Practices This module will build upon the principles introduced in Semester 1 and looks primarily at their application to the functional areas of business. Particular emphasis will be placed on the role of the international manager in making short and long term decisions relating to the setting up and long term management of overseas operations and relationships with headquarters. This module aims to develop the principles of international business and management and show by looking at specific functional areas the kinds of decisions faced and the need for integration to ensure effectiveness in setting and meeting business objectives. 6. Module: P58802-Corporate Social Responsibility The module seeks to build on the base established by Environment of the International Manager Part 1. It provides the student with the opportunity to extend their learning into a specific aspect of international management. The area of environmental sustainability and ethics is used, as it is an increasingly important area, especially for large multinational organisations. Secondly, it allows consideration of a wide range of management decisions. Lastly it invites students to consider their assumptions about the role of managers and organisations in a complex, dynamic and challenging context. The module aims to develop a critical sense of awareness about the role of business in working towards environmental sustainability. It will review the relative costs, benefits and risks associated with being proactive or reactive in this area. 7. Module: P58806-Dissertation Incorporating Research Methods Research Methods: Students on the MSc programme will be expected to undertake effective research drawing upon a range of primary and secondary data sources in the preparation of their assignments and dissertation. It is therefore important that they are exposed to range of generic methodological issues, techniques and study skills. Whilst these research skills are of relevance to other MSc modules, the Research Methods component of this module is particularly geared towards preparation for and successful completion of the MSc dissertation. Dissertation: The organisational world which students will enter on completion of the MSc is becoming more global and knowledge intensive. This creates a need for managers with an international focus who are able research areas of organisational activity in depth, and are able to structure, collect, analyse and interpret appropriate data and communicate their findings clearly. The dissertation provides students with a vehicle to develop and demonstrate their skills and abilities in these areas. 1. Module: P58807-Regional Studies: Developing Economies of Asia, Africa and Latin America This module is one of the optional modules and develops - in depth and range - some of the issues covered in the core module Environment of the International Manager. This module will focus on the recent developments in the 'Third World' economies of Asia, Africa and Latin America. The challenges of managing development in these economies will be examined by locating these economies in the context of the international political economy. This module aims to equip the students with the broad understanding of the importance of the developing economies of Asia, Africa and Latin America in the modern global economy. It also aims to familiarise the students with the alternative strategies to overcome the barriers to development in these Third World economies. 2. Module: P58310 - Global Market Development The Global Market Development elective will apply many of the concepts studied in the earlier parts of your programme, with emphasis on the global context and environment. Increasing recognition by many international businesses of the world as a potential market has led to the widespread study of global marketing strategy, particularly the emphasis on creating sustainable competitive advantage, implementing strategies to take into account the many differences found in various markets and, where possible, creating global products having near universal application and appeal. Many companies that traditionally have only been involved in satisfying domestic markets, are finding increasingly that from a manufacturing capacity point of view, supply is exceeding demand. This situation has been brought about by falling market growth rates, increased competition from both home and overseas companies, and a lowering of trade barriers resulting from the formation of trading blocks such as the EU, NAFTA, SAFTA etc. Engaging in global marketing operations is no longer a question of earning foreign currency or satisfying a corporate profit objective, it is a matter of absolute survival in an increasingly competitive world. The central purpose is to be able to apply the concepts of strategic analysis in a global context. This is the genesis of the creation of global business and marketing strategies, and the process of strategic planning as introduced in earlier modules is equally relevant.