The Duke University Master of Management Studies program is one of the earlier MMS degrees offered and it has been incredibly popular over the years it has been in existence. I have posted about this degree numerous times, but it has been a while since I last updated everyone on this program. I was checking the site and figured it would be helpful to write an overview post since a number of things have changed.
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Overview
The Duke MMS program is a 10-month degree, offering a broad graduate level business management education to students with minimal work experience. The degree is comprised of 15 business classes (43 credit hours total) with two degree options to choose from:
- Master of Management Studies: Foundations of Business
- Master of Management Studies: Duke Kunshan University
This overview will focus on the first option – Foundations of Business
Every year, starting in July, students will begin their studies on Duke’s campus in Durham, NC. This is a full time, cohort based program. The Duke MMS is a STEM-designated program as well (for all the international students). Over the 5 terms and 15 courses you will take the 6 classes in accounting, economics, and finance; two in analytics and critical thinking; two in communication and leadership; and five in markets, strategy, and management.
Class Profile
The Duke MMS program has always had larger class sizes and detailed reporting on class profile. This is always helpful to anyone considering the program.
- Class Size – 219
- Average Work Experience – 16 months
- Average GPA – 3.4
- GMAT Range (Middle 80%) – 620-750
- GRE Verbal Range (Middle 80%) – 151-164
- GRE Quant Range (Middle 80%) – 152-170
- Women – 46%
This is a very diverse program with 130 undergraduate schools represented as well as 25 countries. Not only will you get a comprehensive education, but you should leave the school with a global network of friends and fellow graduates.
Scores for this program are also competitive and in line with similar masters in management programs. With a large class there is also room for students who have outlier scores to continue to remain competitive during the application process.
Placement Information
Duke puts together detailed reporting on each year with placement stats and who hired graduates. The firms who hire MMS students is very impressive and since the program is so large and has been around for so long, there is large body of alumni for students to network with. I have no doubt that this helps with placements. Below are some highlights from the most recent employment report (Class of 2021):
- Number of students seeking employment – 114
- % employed within 6 months of graduation – 97%
- Average base salary – $70,044
Roughly 20% of students found their jobs through school services. I would have thought this was a little higher. Honestly, this tells me students probably aren’t utilizing the alumni network as well as they should. Graduates found jobs throughout the United States, but the Northeast (NYC) and Texas/California were the clear concentrations. A good number of graduates found employment in China as well.
Industry wise, finance (32%) and consulting (29%) were the biggest areas that students were employed in. This makes sense for a management graduate degree. As for hiring firms, all the big name banks and F500 companies are represented. The programs history, along with the Duke name, carry a lot of weight.
You can read the full report here. Tons of detail and information. I highly recommend it.
Admissions
The program admissions process is fairly standard (transcripts, references, test scores, essays, etc.). Duke requires test scores, but they allow the GMAT/GRE as well as SAT/ACT scores. I would imagine you pick whichever best highlights your academic ability.
Tuition for the program is $59,300 for the upcoming year (2023). There are a number of merit and other scholarships available as well. Definitely inquire and apply for these.
Application deadlines are in the near future. There are four deadlines, while international applicants should focus on the first two.
- Round 1 – October 19, 2022
- Round 2 – January 18, 2023
- Round 3 – March 8, 2023
- Round 4 – April 19, 2023
For interested MMS students, there is an upcoming virtual information sessions to check out:
- MMS Virtual Information Session – Wednesday, August 24, 2022 at 9:00 AM until 10:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time
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This turned out to be longer than I expected, but this is just a reflection of all the great things going on with Duke. I will try and get some updated student reviews in addition to other program information. They have a couple other specialized masters that I will be showcasing in the near future as well. Until then, hope you found this helpful.
Here is a link to the Duke University Master in Management Studies Program
