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Bridge Program
Overview
Many countries require their students to complete three years of study to receive an undergraduate degree in business. However, Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs in the United State that are accredited by the Association to Advance the Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International require that students have completed a four-year degree.
Since Duquesne is accredited by AACSB International, students must have what is comparable to a four-year undergraduate degree to be considered for graduate programs in business.
Duquesne offers a unique opportunity to individuals who were not required to complete four years of university education in their own countries but wish to obtain an MBA at Duquesne. The Bridge Program will provide one year of classes at the undergraduate level, and a special benefit, these classes can be counted towards an eventual MBA degree.
You must meet all admission requirements, including a minimum 90 on the IBT, Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), taken within the past year, and a minimum of 550 on the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) to be considered for the Bridge Program. All TOEFL accepted students must take an English diagnostic test upon arrival to the University for appropriate placement. Based on placement testing, students may or may not be required to take English courses to improve their proficiency skills for the program.
Curriculum and Advisement
The following is a list of courses required for the one-year Bridge Program. All courses are taken at the undergraduate level through Duquesne University's School of Leadership and Professional Advancement but can be applied to the core curriculum of the MBA program. This list does not include any English as a Second Language (ESL) courses that may be required as a result of the diagnostic test. Should you require ESL classes, an ESL advisor will be assigned to you. The graduate business course equivalents are listed below:| Undergraduate (Bridging) Classes | Graduate (MBA) Equivalent | ||
| 281 Quantitative Analysis I | 3 | 504 Statistical Thinking | 3 |
| 284 Quantitative Analysis II | 3 | No equivalent | 0 |
| 214 Financial Accounting | 3 | 512 External Financial Reporting | 3 |
| 215 Managerial Accounting | 3 | 516 Strategic Uses of Acctg Info | 3 |
| 251 Business Law | 3 | 518 Law for the Executive | 2 |
| 361 Introduction to Management | 3 | No equivalent | 0 |
| 371 Introduction to Marketing | 3 | No equivalent | 0 |
| 367 Total Quality/Operation Mgt | 3 | 523 Managing Operations | 3 |
| 182 Information Systems I | 3 | No equivalent | 0 |
| 183 Information Systems II | 3 | No equivalent | 0 |
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| Total Credits | 30 | 14 | |
Special Considerations
- You are required to supply grades and course content descriptions from courses taken in your home country if you wish to waive any of the above requirements. Waived courses will be substituted with other courses in the same discipline at a higher level.
- You must receive a grade of B or better in order to transfer these courses to the MBA program. If a grade of C is received, you will receive undergraduate credit only.
- You will be automatically admitted into the MBA program once you complete the 30-credit Bridge Program and all the necessary requirements for admission.
Note: If you receive below a C in any Bridge program course, you will be disqualified for automatic admission into the MBA program. However, you may reapply to the MBA program independent of the Bridge program.
MBA Core (26 credits)
Once you meet all the requirements and are admitted to the Donahue Graduate School of Business, you will then be required to complete the following courses that are part of the MBA Core curriculum and only offered at the graduate level.
505 Communications-Written (1 credits)
507 Communications-Presentation (1 credits)
508 Applied Ethics (2 credits)
510 Understanding the Value Chain (2 credits)
513 Economics for Decision Making (3 credits)
514 Assessing the Financial Health of the Organization (3 credits)
515 Information Systems for Managers (2 credits)
520 Managing a Diverse Work Force (2 credits)
530 The Global Economy (2 credits)
537 Public Affairs Management (2 credits)
538 Strategy Formulation and Implementation (3 credits)
630 Leading Change in Organizations (3 credits)
Note: Students must complete 16 credits in the MBA core before taking Strategy Formulation and Implementation and elective courses. Exceptions must be approved by a Donahue Graduate School advisor.
Business programs at Duquesne also require that you complete an additional 15 credits of business electives to receive a graduate degree.
Pre-MBA Certificate
If you complete the 30-credit, one-year Bridge Program but do not continue to the graduate level, you will be awarded a Pre-MBA certificate through our School of Leadership and Professional Advancement. A certificate will not be granted to students who do not complete 30 credits.
Application Procedure
If you wish to apply to our Pre-MBA Bridge Program, please submit the following:
- A Donahue Graduate School of Business Pre-MBA Bridge Program application
- Official Transcript
- Two letters of recommendation from past instructors and/or employers
- Official GMAT and TOEFL scores
- Essay (as specified in the Bridge Program application)