- Online
- On Campus
- Hybrid
Master of Science in Management Degree
Business Skills For People Who Didn’t Study Business
Duration
Graduate in as little as one year
Class schedule
Weeknight classes available
Format
Choose online, on campus (Thousand Oaks) or a hybrid option
Starts
Five starts throughout the year
Requirements
No GRE or GMAT needed
Next start date
October 26, 2026
The MSM is a one-year business foundation for people who built their careers outside of business. It covers the essentials of how a business runs — operations, finance, marketing, organizational behavior — and how they fit together in the day-to-day running of a team or department. You finish ready to move from doing the work to managing it.
Your Background Is an Advantage at Cal Lutheran
The MSM program draws people from genuinely different fields, with students in health care, education, the arts, government, tech and more. Nobody walks in as the business expert, and that levels the room in a way that makes it easier to ask the real questions in a discussion and absorb what you’re there to learn.
Your unique expertise is the starting point. The MSM adds the management skills that let you put it to work on a bigger scale.
Request Information
To learn more about the Graduate Degree Programs offered by the Cal Lutheran School of Management and download a brochure, please fill out the form. You can also get in touch with an enrollment specialist directly by calling us at 805-521-9856.
Why Choose the Cal Lutheran MS in Management?
Get Where You Want to Be in One Year
Weeknight classes, online and on-campus options and a mix of live and on-demand coursework make the MSM genuinely manageable alongside a full-time job. Most students finish in a year, and every graduate leaves with the business foundation to step into management and do the job well.
Learn Management Skills You Can Use Right Away
The MSM curriculum is built around what managers actually do, like running budgets, coordinating teams, and keeping operations on track. The coursework gives you a chance to work through those situations in a low-stakes, supportive environment that prepares you to take them on at work.
Choose a Capstone That Fits Your Goals
The MSM wraps up with a capstone experience you choose based on where you want to go. Write a full business plan for a new venture, take part in an executive roundtable, or complete an internship. You can also consult for a business through our Small Business Institute, working through a real operational problem with a Ventura County or Los Angeles company.
Small Classes Mean a Strong Community
We keep our classes intentionally small: under 15 people. You’ll be able to get to know your classmates and your instructors within just a few sessions. That closeness is part of why Cal Lutheran graduates stay connected. Alumni keep in touch, come back to campus and turn up when a former classmate needs them.
What Will You Learn in the MSM Program?
Students complete the MS in Management degree in ten courses. You’ll complete three foundation courses that build your quantitative and analytical base, then six core courses covering the essential disciplines of business management.
Core Courses Include
- Enterprise Management, Organization and Strategy
- Information Technology Management
- Organizational Behavior
- Business Ethics and Law
- Marketing Management
- Managerial Finance
See the full course list and curriculum info: Download our brochure or explore the curriculum page.
MSM Program Outcomes
- Read and interpret financial data with enough confidence to manage a budget
- Understand how organizations operate and how the pieces fit together
- Manage teams through operational updates and challenges
- Apply management concepts directly to the work in front of you
Talk To Someone Who Knows the MSM Program
Our enrollment specialists are some of the best people to talk to when you’re considering Cal Lutheran’s MS in Management. They know the program deeply, they ask good questions and they genuinely want to help you make the right call.
Call Us: 805-521-9856 or Request a Call
Who Is the MSM For?
Some people set out to move into management. Others got there by doing good work, taking on more and finding that running the work had quietly become the job. The MSM is built for both.
That plays out at every stage of a career. For example, this degree can help:
- A recent graduate from outside business who wants to understand how organizations operate before moving up.
- A strong individual contributor stepping into their first role managing people and a budget.
- An experienced manager who has led through what they’ve learned on the job, and now wants to put real structure behind it.
Not sure whether the MSM or the MBA is the better fit? We recommend reading “Master’s in Management vs. MBA: Which Degree Is Right for You?” or you can call 805-521-9856 to get one-on-one advising with an enrollment specialist.
Career Outcomes: What Can You Do With a Management Master’s?
A management credential changes what’s available to you and what you earn. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, master’s graduates in business management and related fields earn an average starting salary nearly 40% higher than those with a bachelor’s in the same area.
Management skills also transfer across industries, which is part of what makes this program worth considering regardless of where your career has been so far.
Cal Lutheran MSM graduates work across Southern California in fields like financial services, health-care administration, government and technology — industries where management credentials provide access to opportunities that experience may not.
Here’s a look at where MSM graduates land:
Find out more by downloading the program brochure or exploring our article, “What Can You Do With an MS in Management Degree?”
Events That Build Your Business Readiness
The School of Management runs a full calendar of events that put students in the room with entrepreneurs, investors and business leaders. Here are three signature events:
- Entrepreneur Speaker Series — hear directly from experienced entrepreneurs and leave with contacts worth keeping.
- New Venture Fair — pitch your business ideas to a panel of expert entrepreneurs.
- PRiME Competition — present projects tied to global sustainable development goals in a competitive showcase.
See all of our upcoming School of Management events →
“The Master of Science in Management program provides graduates from any discipline with skills that help them build on their passions, be productive and add value for their companies and communities.”
Frequently Asked Questions: MS in Management
Program Information
The MS in Management is a one-year program that builds a foundation in core business disciplines — strategy, finance, operations, organizational behavior. It’s designed for people who want to understand how organizations work and move into or advance in management roles, regardless of their undergraduate background.
A Master of Business Administration (MBA), by contrast, covers a broader range of business topics. Most MBA programs take two years to complete and are designed for people who want a comprehensive business credential, either because they’re changing careers into business, or because they already work in business and want a formal qualification and deeper knowledge.
Both programs are offered through Cal Lutheran’s School of Management, so you get the same small classes, accessible faculty and supportive community either way.
You can find out more in our article “Business Management vs. Business Administration: Which Degree Is Right for Me?” You can also call an enrollment specialist at 805-521-9856 to get personalized guidance.
No, students are not required to hold a business degree. We welcome students who have completed any undergraduate degree from an accredited institution, who graduated with at least a 3.0 GPA.
You can find out more about our application requirements on our admissions page.
You can complete the master’s in management in as little as one year. You’ll take 10 courses. See more about the curriculum here.
You have the choice of three formats: online, on campus or hybrid. The on-campus classes are held at our Thousand Oaks location.
Most students devote, on average, 10 hours per week to each course. Students usually take one or two courses per term.
Cal Lutheran MSM students have access to our university-wide Career Services office, which includes career counseling, workshops, interview prep and a job and internship board with over 200 weekly listings from a network of 20,000-plus employer contacts. These resources are available to current students and stay open to alumni.
The School of Management also runs its own networking programs, including the Entrepreneur Speaker Series, the New Venture Fair, the PRiME Competition and Business School on Rails. Beyond formal programs, professors actively introduce students to executives for jobs, internships and advice, and the Steven Dorfman Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship supports students with business ideas they want to develop alongside their coursework.
You can browse our Career Services page or see what events are coming up on our events page.
Yes, Cal Lutheran offers a variety of funding options from internal and external sources. These include:
- Scholarships
- Grants
- Credit reductions
- Veterans benefits
- Employer discounts
Visit our financial aid page for detailed information. You can also talk with an enrollment specialist at 805-521-9856 to discuss funding your education.
If the Cal Lutheran MS in Management is a good fit for you, here’s what to do next:
Explore on your own: Download a brochure or review admissions requirements.
Talk with someone who knows the program: An enrollment specialist can answer questions and help you figure out if this is the right fit. Call 805-521-9856 to talk one-on-one.
Request Information
To learn more about the Graduate Degree Programs offered by the Cal Lutheran School of Management and download a brochure, please fill out the form. You can also get in touch with an enrollment specialist directly by calling us at 805-521-9856.
