MS in Management of Risk


 
The MS program in the Management of Risk has a special focus on insurance as a tool of risk management but the broader goal of the program is to enable its graduates to finance corporate risk, within the realities of the firm's environment, in a way that preserves/enhances firm value. Students are ultimately responsible for their own knowledge advances and are active and critical participants in learning. Rather than a program limited to passing a set of courses, students are encouraged to collaborate with their fellow graduate students and faculty advisors to gather and organize recorded knowledge, to analyze and synthesize information, to draw conclusions and make recommendations for industry practice or public policy.

The MS program requires completion of 30 credits plus a significant activity. Designed as a cohort program, students enter the program only in September. Full-time students can complete the MS degree in one year; part-time study is possible but requires two plus years of study. 

With three different ways through which to satisfy the requirements for the MS degree, students have an element of flexibility in completing program:
 
Option 1: Students who obtain a grade point average of 3.5 or better may pursue a thesis option and on the successful completion of their thesis will receive their MS degree with Honors. Students take the 5 curriculum courses, 3 elective courses, plus 6 credits of thesis writing. Students do not have to remain on campus to write their thesis but they have to be enrolled in BA901 and BA902 (Please see thesis procedures for details).
 
Option 2: Students take the 5 curriculum courses, 4 elective courses, plus complete a 3-credit applied project. Students complete their applied project while enrolled in RMI 621. An international student on a student visa may need to apply for the CPT (Curriculum Practical Training) if the student identifies a project requiring such an application.
 
Option 3: Students take 5 curriculum courses, 5 elective courses, plus pass a comprehensive written examination administered by the School of Risk Management.
The curriculum courses are RMI601, RMI602, RMI604, RMI614 and RMI611. Elective courses include all other 600 level courses (or higher) offered by The School of Risk Management, Insurance and Actuarial Science as well as by the rest of The Tobin College of Business as listed in the Graduate Bulletin.

Note that some courses have a prerequisite. Students work with their graduate advisor, and with faculty, to select electives and schedule courses that best meet the individual learning objectives of each student.

Entry Requirements:

Admission to the MS in the Management of Risk  is competitive. Students need a competitive score on the GMAT or GRE, an undergraduate degree and demonstrated adequate knowledge of corporate finance, microeconomics and applied statistics.

Students demonstrate adequate knowledge of corporate finance, microeconomics and applied statistics if they have competed at least two undergraduate courses from an AACSB accredited business school with a grade of at least a "B" in the respective discipline represented by corporate finance, microeconomics and decision sciences. Alternatively, students have three other options to demonstrate this knowledge.

Students may satisfy the prior knowledge requirement by taking and passing FIN507, ECO506 and DS504 before they take courses leading to the MS degree. This option is of limited usefulness because the timing of the preparation courses coupled with the cohort nature of the program makes it difficult for students to coordinate the semester-to-semester sequencing of courses. Alternatively, students may take and pass an accelerated preparation module (RMI500) provided by the School of Risk Management in conjunction with the first semester courses leading to the MS degree; or students take and pass a competency exam administered before they take courses leading to the MS degree.

For admission to graduate degree programs contact Rebekah L. Hanousek-Monge at hanouser@stjohns.edu.

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