The Master's program in Economics and Business Administration is a two-year course totaling 120 ECTS credits. The master's degree consists of common courses (30 ECTS credits), major-specific courses (30 ECTS credits), and elective courses (30 ECTS credits). These courses form the academic foundation for students, enabling them to complete their degree with a master's thesis in their chosen major. Students select a major within the economic-administrative field:

Economic Field: Economics
Administrative Field: Innovation Management or Management

Students also choose elective courses. The electives must be within the economic-administrative field but cannot be in the same area as the major. This requirement ensures that students have advanced knowledge in at least two areas of the economic-administrative field and specialized knowledge within their major. Overall, the program's courses provide the foundation and necessary competence to complete the degree with a master's thesis.

First Year

The first year consists of eight courses. Two mandatory courses provide knowledge of methods across the economic-administrative field ("Mathematics, Statistics, and Programming" and "Research Methods"), two mandatory courses provide knowledge of technology ("Programming for Managers" and "Cyber Security for Business Operations"), and four mandatory courses within the chosen major.

Common Courses

The common course "Research Methods" introduces students to research methodology and the research process, teaching a systematic approach to empirical and theoretical investigations. The course also supports the development of the master's thesis project description. The common course "Mathematics, Statistics, and Programming" introduces students to frameworks and methods in the fields of mathematics, statistics, and programming for economic modeling and data analysis.

An essential tool for all economists is Excel. This program allows users to perform statistical modeling, make predictions, and extract decision-relevant information. Advanced knowledge of Excel is a requirement in most economist jobs. Excel uses object-oriented programming to perform the most advanced operations. To have a deep understanding of software like Excel, a good understanding of how they are created and skills in object-oriented programming are required. The common course "Programming for Managers" provides students with comprehensive knowledge of the process of developing large software systems and updated techniques for modeling, testing, and implementation. The common course "Cyber Security for Business Operations" introduces general principles of cybersecurity, focusing on existing forms of attacks, protection mechanisms, and known incidents through practical exercises and guest lectures from the industry. Furthermore, these practical exercises and guest lectures, along with a focus on laws and regulations, provide a holistic understanding of how to proactively secure critical operations at all levels of an organization.

Major in Economics

In the first semester, the course "Market Structures and Firm Strategy" provides students with the necessary tools from industrial organization to analyze economic decisions in markets. The course "Theory of Organizations" uses advanced economic logic and methods to examine competition and cooperation strategies used by agents in a wide range of bilateral and multilateral situations in organizations. Both courses support the development of the master's thesis project description. In the second semester, the course "Quantitative Decision Making" provides students with a broad range of techniques used in data analysis appropriate for their deep understanding of economics and programming techniques to implement these techniques in the master's thesis and further in their careers. The course "Macroeconomics" provides students with a comprehensive understanding of modern macroeconomic theory and policy, both in the short and long term. The course also has an applied focus, providing students with analytical tools to assess macroeconomic developments and policies in practice. This course also supports the development of the master's thesis project description. Combined, these four courses provide students with advanced and specialized knowledge and skills in economics.

Major in Management

The major in Management is structured into two thematic pillars: (i) management of employees and (ii) governance and leadership as a tool. First, the course "Strategic Organizational Behavior" provides a comprehensive foundation for understanding and applying the interplay between organizational behavior and strategy. Then, the course "Leadership, Power, and Critical Thinking" focuses on fundamental phenomena within governance and leadership as a tool. In the second semester, "Leadership Development" introduces students to popular and critical perspectives on leadership development and provides tools to understand and apply various approaches in practice. Finally, the course "New in Leadership Role" provides a deep understanding of the transition between different roles and phases in leadership, such as when entering leadership for the first time or during subsequent leadership changes. Together, these four courses provide students with advanced and specialized knowledge and skills in management.

Major in Innovation Management

In the first semester, the course "Innovation Management" provides students with insights into innovation theory and skills in leading innovation processes in organizations. The course "Product and Service Innovation" provides students with a deep understanding of the history of innovation research and practice, focusing on the differences and similarities between various perspectives within innovation. In the second semester, the course "Corporate Entrepreneurship" teaches students how to become entrepreneurs within an already established organization and how to lead entrepreneurs internally in an organization. The course combines recent research articles in strategy, management, psychology, and marketing with practical perspectives on innovation and entrepreneurship within established organizations. The course "User-driven Innovation" focuses on user involvement and other stakeholders in the innovation process. Students learn how organizations can work together with users to uncover latent needs, create new ways of thinking, co-create, test prototypes, and implement innovations. These four courses provide students with advanced and specialized knowledge and skills in innovation management.

Second Year

The second year is dedicated to 4 elective courses (30 ECTS credits) within the economic-administrative field and writing the master's thesis. In the third semester, elective courses are offered at Kristiania University of Applied Sciences or as part of an exchange program at one of our partner institutions. These electives complement the major area of the student's economic-administrative field. These electives ensure that students gain advanced knowledge in at least two areas of the economic-administrative field and ensure that students have a specialization in other related fields. Students can also combine master's courses from different majors.

An exchange program at one of our partner institutions is also an option. See "International Student Exchange" further down in the document for examples of partners and study programs.

During the third semester, students will complete the project description for the master's thesis based on common courses, major-specific courses, and electives. Through their common courses and major-specific courses, students have already made significant progress in developing the project outline for the master's thesis. This is finalized, and students work in groups to provide feedback on the various research proposals. Students are followed up in parallel as they complete their other courses.

Together, the courses provide students with advanced and specialized knowledge in key areas of the economic-administrative field, as well as skills and competence to apply the knowledge in business and society. Responsibility for one's own learning will progressively increase throughout the master's program, where in the final semester, a very high degree of independence and responsibility for one's own work is expected, and where knowledge from multiple courses should be combined and applied.

Master's Thesis

Instruction related to the project description will be conducted as seminars, as well as through individual group supervision. The fourth semester is dedicated to writing the master's thesis. The master's thesis thus provides students with the opportunity to work on a problem over time, allowing them to reflect and use the knowledge, skills, and general competence acquired during the previous three semesters.

Supervision is an essential part of the work on the master's thesis. Supervision involves necessary quality assurance in data collection and processing, ensuring that this is conducted within research ethical guidelines. Students are expected to critically evaluate their own and others' research and assess research relevance in practice. The master's thesis, along with the other courses in the program, provides scientific competence qualifying for admission to a doctoral program.

Study program MOL

Master in Economics and Business Administration