Curriculum

Our Global MBA (Global Business and Management Studies) curriculum at Doshisha Business School is designed to give you a solid foundation in the core business subjects, and to allow you to shape your program to match your interests by choosing from a broad menu of electives.

To earn your MBA degree, you will be required to complete courses totaling 46 credits. Most courses in the program are worth 2 credits. All courses in the Global MBA program are conducted in English.

The curriculum is made up of four parts:
Core (16 credits or more)
Global Intensive (2 credits or more)
Electives (16 credits or more)
Required Courses (8 credits)

Core [16 credits or more]

The core consists of 9 courses (2 credits each) that build a foundation of knowledge in the key areas of management. You are required to take at least 8 courses. The core courses are:

Foundation Subjects
  • Accounting
  • Marketing
  • Finance
  • People and Organizations
  • Business Economics
  • Strategic Management
  • Operations Management

Perspective Subjects
  • Business and Society in the Global Context
  • Responsible Leadership in the Global Context

Global Intensive [2 credits or more]

These courses are offered in a compressed format (typically one-week or two-week) by top professors from leading overseas business schools. You are required to take at least one or more Global Intensive courses during your program.

Electives [16 credits or more]

There are two categories of electives:
  • Global MBA Electives
  • Courses taken at overseas partner universities and/or in the Japanese MBA Program

A. Global MBA Electives
These courses cover a broad range of business subjects, including those in our three focus areas of Sustainability and Green Business, Culture and Creativity, and Business in Asia. All elective courses are open to all students.

Sustainability and Green Business Courses
Foundations for Sustainable Management
Green Management in Action
Environmental Accounting
Sustainable and Responsible Marketing
Sustainable Human Resource Management
Economics for Sustainable Development

Culture and Creativity Courses
Cultural and Creative Industries
The Business of Japanese Pop Culture
The Business of Fashion Industry
Cultural Tourism
e-Marketing
Creativity in Organizations
Creativity and Communication

Business in Asia Courses
Understanding Japanese Corporations
Japanese Business Practices
Marketing in Asia
Human Resource Management in Asia
Investment in Asia
Operations Management in Asia

Advanced Management Courses
Business Analysis and Valuation
Business Law
Business Research Methods 1
Business Research Methods 2
Knowledge and Innovation Management
Marketing Research
Making Sense of the Global Economy
Statistics
Strategic Cost Management
Strategic Management for Innovation and Change
Professional Development
Writing Skills for Effective Communication
Communication and Information Technology
Innovation Management in Technology-based Industries
Open Innovation in Technology-based Industries

B. Courses Taken at Overseas Partner Universities and Japanese MBA courses
If you apply to spend a term or quarter studying at one of our overseas partner universities and/or take courses offered by our sister Japanese MBA program (Japanese Language Proficiency Test N1 required), up to 10 credits of courses can be counted toward your Doshisha MBA degree. (Approval of course professor required.)

Required Courses [8 credits]

The required courses help students to develop conceptual understanding and critical thinking and analytical skills as a foundation for their major project.

  • Critical and Analytical Thinking
  • Master's Thesis and Research Project I
  • Master's Thesis and Research Project II
  • Master's Thesis and Research Project III

Japanese Language and Culture Courses [for-credit, but do not count toward MBA degree]

Doshisha’s Center for Japanese Language and Culture (“CJLC”) offers a wide range of Japanese language and culture courses for international students studying in undergraduate and graduate programs at Doshisha. A certain number of these courses are open to Global MBA students free of charge. Please note, however, that these courses cannot be included in the 46 credits required for the Doshisha MBA degree.