The Master in Management (MiM) has swept Europe over in a never-ending wave.

It’s one of the most sought-after graduate business degrees, first gaining prominence from 2015 to 2018 when business schools witnessed a steady increase in applications. In 2023, the Financial Times ranked 19 European schools among the top 20 Master in Management programmes. It dates back to 1988, when four prestigious European schools established the first Master’s in International Management degree.

But what is a Master of Management?

An MiM degree equips fresh graduates, or people with up to two years of work experience with a theoretical expanse of management principles. Using statistics and case studies, the programme trains you with core business fundamentals to enhance your employability, edging you over a competitive workforce of bachelor’s holders. It’s a little more surface-level than an MBA, and is a better option for those who don’t have a set career trajectory yet.

Students who’ve graduated from an MiM programme go on to become management analysts, financial analysts, project managers, human resource specialists, and so much more through a variety of industries. The average salary for MiM graduates from top universities is between $50,000 to $100,000.

With the success that Europe has seen, many top schools in the US — the University of Chicago, Emory University, and University of California Davis, to name a few — are hopping on the bandwagon to create their own MiM programmes.

But like all things go, home always does it best. So if you’re interested in a Master in Management (MiM) degree and what it entails, these are three leading European business schools for MiM programmes.

EDHEC Business School

In Lille, Nice, and Paris, this is what EDHEC Business School Master in Management (MiM) students experience: a guaranteed path to career success, world-class faculty, an immersive curriculum, and real-world experience.

As a student of an MiM programme ranked 4^th worldwide in 2024 (Financial Times), you have excellent resources to strengthen your skills and knowledge. Your faculty members double as industry experts, delivering cutting-edge teaching that reflects the current state of business and research. They cover a wide range of topics like finance, business management, marketing, tech & data, sustainability and entrepreneurship, while developing your leadership, adaptability and soft skills necessary to succeed in managerial roles. TheMiM programme is also distinguished by EDHEC’s strong corporate partnerships, offering students direct access to top industry professionals and real-world business insights. All of this takes place within a dynamic community with over 100 associations, more than 350 events per year, and a connected alumni network all over the world.

But what truly sets EDHEC’s MIM apart are its specialised tracks and immersive experience. The programme offers four tracks from Master 1 to customise your MiM to your career goals: Finance , Business Management, Data Science and AI for Business, and .Global Master in Management -GETT ( Global Economic Transformation and Technology).

The MiM starts with a strong academic foundation, which is then reinforced during an employability-enhancing professional immersion year. This is when you get to apply all you’ve learned from lectures, case studies, workshops, and corporate challenges in real-world business settings. Your final year is focused on further honing your skills through one of 13 specialised Master of Science (MSc) programmes – edging you even closer towards realising your career goals.

As an MiM graduate from EDHEC, you’ll stand out with your globally recognised degree, industry experience, and the support of the #1 career services and alumni network in France (MiM FT 2024).

Click here to make your management dreams come true at the EDHEC Business School.

The MSc in Management at the University of Gothenburg places emphasis on sustainability. Source: University of Gothenburg / Facebook

University of Gothenburg

Sustainable companies thrive on effective management, and those companies influence and transform the way the world functions. A game-changing graduate degree in management grows the leaders who tackle such challenges with an open mind, and change the way the world works in a positive way.

In the Master of Science in Management at the University of Gothenburg, that’s what they aim to do. You undergo a rigorous two-year programme where students are confronted with real-world case studies that require strategic thinking, risk-taking, and a penchant for change. You will focus on developing leadership skills, and look at trends of sustainability, digitalisation, and globalisation. The curriculum reflects the latest developments in business, so you’re stepping out the other side well-prepared for the industry.

You will take on a diverse catalogue of mandatory courses, and hands-on projects. Through the first three topics, the topics covered include strategy and organisation, corporate governance and financial structures, research methods in management, and more. The fourth semester is dedicated to a master’s thesis, where you’ll collaborate with an actual company.

The School of Business, Economics and Law, where the programme is under, holds many corporate partnerships that give you opportunities to take your learning outside the classroom. This prepares you with real-world experience and an international outlook that’s important to enter the workforce with. The school offers cutting-edge research, business simulations, study abroad opportunities, and a multicultural setting so that you can build a strong network and get your foot in the door.

Learn more about the University of Gothenburg’s MSc in Management and start with change today.

Aside from the specialising masters, the Polimi School of Graduate Management offers the Management Academy for current professionals, entrepreneurs, and managers. Source: Politecnico di Milano / Facebook

Politecnico di Milano

In the oversaturation of business hopefuls, having a specialised master’s experience makes you an expert within your specified topic of choosing. So imagine being able to go to a school where there’s just about every single management specialisation under the sun, like the luxury industry, or cybersecurity.

That’s the wide span of opportunity you get at the Politecnico di Milano (Polimi) — the #1 university in Italy and the #111 in the world, according to the QS 2025 ranking. Students at the Polimi Graduate School of Management strive to create better futures for the world through a stronghold of business innovation, cutting-edge management programmes, and creativity.

There are plenty of routes you could endeavour as a student. One of them is a specialising masters, which are programmes tailored to a specific sector of business. Those related to management include niches like sports, global luxury goods and services, media and communication, project management, and many more. The programmes go from one to two years, require less than three years of work experience, and span a few types: online, on-campus, part-time, full-time, and international programmes where you can travel.

Close industry connections link you to real-world learning opportunities and a global network that you can use to jump start your own career. You’ll take on industry-based projects, meet the business moguls ready to impart their wisdom on your knowledge, participate in study tours with corporate partners, and more.

If you’re interested, then click here to learn more about the Polimi Graduate School of Management.

*Some of the institutions featured in this article are commercial partners of Study International.