The program is organised around three core subject areas: International Development Management, International Sustainability Management, and Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Together they provide an interdisciplinary foundation for addressing global social and environmental challenges, blending policy and development perspectives with practical business and innovation approaches.
Throughout the degree you will gain both conceptual and applied skills: understanding the complexity of international development relations, using contemporary sustainability-management tools, and designing viable, impact-focused business models. Emphasis is placed on systems thinking and identifying opportunities for social innovation in diverse contexts.
You’ll study alongside an international cohort and learn from experts with practical experience, which supports collaborative problem solving and the development of your own innovation projects. The curriculum prepares you to work across sectors—NGOs, social enterprises, public institutions, or sustainable business units—where interdisciplinary knowledge and networked thinking are essential.
You will learn to:
Curriculum overview
This MA program combines social entrepreneurship, development studies, and sustainable business practice across three semesters, finishing with a research-based master’s thesis. The first semester builds foundational knowledge in development economics, planetary and resource challenges, sustainable finance, and research methods, while also introducing practical innovation approaches such as design thinking. The second semester shifts toward applied skills in project and development management, ethical and geographical perspectives on development, and the core tools of social enterprise creation and impact measurement. The third semester deepens critical perspectives on development alternatives, tackles sustainable supply chain issues, and culminates in an Innovation Project Lab and the master’s thesis.
Key modules and learning outcomes
Students will study modules including Development Economics; Circular Economy and Resource Management; State of the Planet – Tools and Cases; Sustainable Finance Management; and Research Lab: Qualitative and Quantitative Research Methods, gaining the ability to analyze economic, ecological, and financial dimensions of development problems and to conduct empirical research. Practical and design-focused modules — Design Thinking for Social Entrepreneurship; Project Management in Development Cooperations; Entrepreneurship and Development Management; Social Entrepreneurship and Impact; and Business Model Generation for Social Businesses — train learners to conceptualize, validate and manage social ventures and development projects. In the final phase, Post-Development and Alternatives to Development, Sustainable Supply Chain Management, and the Innovation Project Lab emphasize critical, systems-level thinking and the operational skills needed to design sustainable value chains and implement innovations in real-world settings.
Why this curriculum matters
The program’s blend of theory, research labs and project work prepares graduates to work across NGOs, impact-driven startups, development agencies, sustainability teams in the private sector, and policy-oriented organizations. Expected outcomes include: robust qualitative and quantitative research skills; capability to design and finance socially oriented business models; competence in managing development projects and sustainable supply chains; and the capacity to critically evaluate mainstream development paradigms and propose alternative, context-sensitive approaches.
Program components (requirements)
To be considered for this master's you must hold a completed university degree that is equivalent to at least 210 ECTS and meet the minimum academic grade requirement. If your prior degree does not reach 210 ECTS, there is a specific guidance route you should consult. International applicants should ensure their qualification is recognized as comparable to the ECTS threshold used here.
There is a subject-specific prerequisite and a couple of optional/administrative items to note: you must have basic economics coverage (or take an online oral exam in place of it), and you may optionally take a voluntary admission test (TM‑WISO) to improve your effective degree ranking. The programme is described as “approval-free.” For detailed submission steps, deadlines and technical requirements, follow the application portal and the programme FAQ.
Requirements (bullet points)
Winter Semester (International)
15 July 2026
Winter Semester (EU/EEA)
31 August 2026
Graduates are prepared for roles in social enterprises, NGOs, development agencies, sustainability departments of companies, impact investing and consulting where skills in designing and managing sustainable, impact-oriented projects are required. The programme’s mix of project management, business model development and research methods also supports entrepreneurial graduates who wish to found or scale social ventures.
Practical labs and international case work give students experience that is directly transferable to roles focused on program design, impact measurement, sustainable supply chain and development cooperation management.
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