MBA offers new specializations and opportunities to earn credentials

The Royal Roads MBA program has expanded its suite of specialization options to allow students to gain key skills and credentials to further their careers and address pressing global issues. MBA students can now choose a specialization from among any of the more than 20 professional Graduate Certificates offered by RRU, plus several programs offered by the renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). By completing one of Royal Roads MBA specializations, students will earn a dual credential of Royal Roads MBA plus a professional graduate certificate.

RRU Graduate Certificates are available in fields such as Management Consulting, Leadership, Sustainability, International Business, Professional Coaching, Project Management, Human Resources, Change Management, and Social Innovation. For a full list of RRU Graduate Certificates, visit the MBA Specializations page.

In addition to the Graduate Certificates from RRU, the program also offers MBA students the opportunity to take courses and complete a MITx MicroMasters® credential from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Royal Roads University is the only Canadian school offering this opportunity, which opens new opportunities for Royal Roads MBA students interested in more technical fields to specialize in Supply Chain Management, Principles of Manufacturing, Data, Economics and Development Policy or Statistics and Data Science.

The new specialization options also allow new laddering opportunities for students into the MBA program. Prospective students who are unsure about completing a full MBA can take a Royal Roads’ Graduate Certificate or MicroMaster program, and then later apply to the MBA and transfer their earned credits into the MBA.

These Graduate Certificates also allow students to earn credits toward professional affiliations from organizations such as the Canadian Association of Management Consultants (CMC-Canada), the Chartered Professional in Human Resources (CPHR), Association of Change Management Professionals®, International Coaching Federation (ICF), Project Management Institute (PMI), and the Association of Change Management Professionals®.

“These changes to our MBA represent an exciting evolution of our program towards a more individualized learning experience tailored to students personal and professional interests while still honouring all of the traditional benefits of our applied and experiential MBA and the cohort model” says Dr. Robert Mittelman, acting Dean of the School of Business. “As business and organizational leaders, our students are facing grand challenges and wicked problems that cross sectors, industries, borders, and oceans. An interdisciplinary education is crucial to transforming the world and re-imagining the way we do business” says Mittelman. “In addition to our more business-related Graduate Certificates, students can now also combine an MBA education with courses in the Science and Policy of Climate Change, Strategic Global Communication, or Tourism Management to name but a few more. This is the type of education that will allow students to see the wider systems and achieve their desired impact in their chosen field”.

For Charles Krusekopf, MBA Program Head, these new opportunities offer flexibility and the opportunity to personalize the learning experience to suit the student’s professional as well as personal interests. “The new specialization options provide in-depth knowledge to support one’s career and diversify work options and roles within current organizations. It also allows students to transition out of their organizations and establish an independent career”, says Krusekopf.

For more information about the MBA program or any of the RRU Graduate Certificates, please contact an Enrolment Advisor email, or call 1.877.778.6227. If you are an international student, please contact our international enrolment team.