

Arizona State University (Downtown Phoenix campus)
Global Management (Sustainability Solutions), MGM
Study detals
: Master's degree : Global Management (Sustainability Solutions), MGM TBGMSSMGM : Full time : 24 MonthRequirements
- Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and the Thunderbird School of Global Management.
- Applicants are eligible to apply to the program if they have earned a bachelor's or master's degree in any subject or related field from a regionally accredited institution.
- Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in the last 60 hours of their first bachelor's degree program, or applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in an applicable master's degree program.
Applicants are required to submit:
- graduate admission application and application fee
- official transcripts
- resume
- essay response to application question
- one professional or academic reference
- interview
- proof of English proficiency
Additional Application Information
An applicant whose native language is not English must provide proof of English proficiency (TOEFL 100 (no band below 20) (IELTS 7.0 at least 6.5 in all skills)) regardless of their current residency.
The resume should demonstrate the applicant's professional and academic history.
An interview is required. Final applicants may be asked to complete an additional interview.
Additional information
Program description
Degree awarded: MGM Global Management (Sustainability Solutions)
Solutions for the planet and industry
The Thunderbird MGM program with a concentration in sustainability solutions prepares students for the professions of the future. In this concentration, students earn a degree that benefits their career and the planet. There is an accelerating demand for leaders with a global mindset who possess expertise in sustainability, understand how to apply its principles and technology in approaching problems, and know how to work with and draw from different disciplines to develop practical solutions to the world's most urgent sustainability challenges.
The World Economic Forum reports that empathy and collaboration are two critical abilities for global manager success. These are equally critical for those seeking careers in sustainability solutions. These abilities rely on the development of social capital. This program is designed to develop a student's social capital through field-based action learning, team-based projects and stretch assignments. Students gain the ability to build sustainable trusting relationships --- the basis of social capital --- with others from diverse parts of the world by learning techniques and methods of developing intercultural empathy, how to have interpersonal impact, and ways to act with diplomacy when influencing others.
This concentration is offered in collaboration with ASU's School of Sustainability.
Thunderbird School of Global Management has produced unique leaders for over 75 years --- leaders in every sector capable of tackling the world's greatest challenges. The alumni network comprises 45,000 graduates and 170 chapters around the globe.
Accelerated program options
This program allows students to obtain both a bachelor's and master's degree in as little as five years. It is offered as an accelerated bachelor's plus master's degree with:
- Asia Studies (East Asia), BA
- Asia Studies (South Asia), BA
- Asia Studies (Southeast Asia), BA
- Biological Sciences, BS
- Biological Sciences (Biology and Society), BS
- Biological Sciences (Genetics, Cell and Developmental Biology), BS
- Biological Sciences (Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior), BS
- Business (Agribusiness Innovation and Technology), BA
- Business (Business Administration), BA
- Business (Communication), BA
- Business (Food Industry Management), BA
- Business (Global Logistics Management), BA
- Business (Global Politics), BA
- Business (Health Care), BA
- Business (Information Security), BA
- Business (Language and Culture), BA
- Business (Law), BA
- Business (Public Service and Public Policy), BA
- Business (Sports Business), BA
- Business (Statistics), BA
- Business (Sustainability), BA
- Business (Technology), BA
- Business (Tourism), BA
- Business Data Analytics, BS
- Business Entrepreneurship, BS
- Economics, BS
- Engineering Management, BSE
- Finance, BS
- Global Health, BA
- Global Management, BGM
- History, BA
- Industrial Design, BSD
- Industrial Engineering, BSE
- Informatics, BS
- International Trade, BS
- Jewish Studies, BA
- Liberal Studies, BA
- Management, BS
- Marketing, BS
- Marketing (Digital and Integrated Marketing Communications), BS
- Marketing (Professional Sales), BS
- Microbiology, BS
- Philosophy, BA
- Philosophy (Morality, Politics and Law), BA
- Religious Studies (Religion, Culture and Public Life), BA
- Religious Studies (Religion, Politics and Global Affairs), BA
- Supply Chain Management, BS
Acceptance to the graduate program requires a separate application. Students typically receive approval to pursue the accelerated master’s during the junior year of their bachelor's degree program.
Program learning outcomes identify what a student will learn or be able to do upon completion of their program. This program has the following program outcomes:
- Develop the ability to build sustainable and trusting relationships with others from diverse parts of the world.
- Develop the ability to effectively analyze a sustainability problem in an organization or community.
- Develop the ability to inspire others in a global world.
Global opportunities
Global experience
Students in Thunderbird's Master of Global Management program have unique opportunities to apply and hone their learning in international settings. Experiential learning exposes students to actual problems faced by leaders of multinational businesses and governmental or nonprofit organizations that operate on an international level. Working with Thunderbird professors, their fellow students, alumni and corporate partners, students master and apply global management principles and concepts to meet real business challenges through special courses, labs and projects. Thunderbird offers a wide variety of experiential learning engagements, giving students the ability to solve real-world challenges by collaborating with the school's corporate partners around the world. Some options include:
Global Field Seminars
This one- or two-week seminar exposes students to the dynamics and nuances of doing business in a focused region of the world. Teams of students go on company site visits and attend high-level meetings and presentations with business, government and cultural leaders as well as with Thunderbird alumni. Students gain invaluable hands-on experience while expanding their global business skills, enabling them to become major assets to any organization they join after graduating.
Doing well by doing good with a specialized master's degree
Research conducted by McKinsey in 2021 indicates that one of the top five priorities for CEOs in the next normal is to center strategy on sustainability. In a 2021 survey, McKinsey found that 40% of respondents expect their companies to generate value from sustainability, and 57% indicated that sustainability is part of their corporate culture.
Governments are also increasingly recognizing the importance of sustainability. This has led the United Nations to outline sustainable development goals for 2030, an effort that many multinational corporations, nonprofit organizations and state entities have pledged to join.
As sustainability gains more traction, knowledge and management expertise in this area will become increasingly attractive to employers. Graduates of the sustainability solutions concentration are prepared for these new organizational norms and to capitalize on the need for expert leadership in this rapidly growing profession.
Career examples include:
- business continuity planner
- environmental economist
- environmental restoration planner
- quality control systems manager
- sustainability specialist
- urban and regional planner
- water resource specialist