Two years into Duke, I frankly had no idea what I wanted to study. I was overwhelmed by the hundreds of courses offered and found myself drawn to really anything that had something to do with business administration, consulting, and marketing. The main reason why I decided to pursue the MMS certificate was the program’s interdisciplinary offering, which allowed me to take classes from a variety of disciplines ranging from Public Policy to Psychology, over to Computer Science, Economics, and Political Science. No other Duke certificate spans such a broad business curriculum and given the MMS’ liberal arts approach to business education it almost felt like I created my own major. What I love most about the MMS certificate is that you have the opportunity to take courses tailored to your interest, to design your individual curriculum, and to have all of that work in partnership with your major.
Compared to my theoretical Political Economy major concentration, I always appreciated that my MMS classes were interactive, required both creative and analytical skills, and allowed me to apply my knowledge to real-world examples. The combination of class discussions, team projects, guest speakers, business simulations, and case-studies makes MMS courses unique, and I am confident in saying that the soft & hard skills from pursuing the MMS certificate allowed me to succeed inside and outside of the classroom. I felt confident going into the interview process because my MMS courses provided me with valuable hands-on experience, and MMS made me realize that if I really wanted to stand out my knowledge can’t be restricted to one discipline but needs to be applicable to as many different business areas as possible.
Reflecting back on my time at Duke, pursuing the MMS certificate was the best decision I could have made, and I am grateful that my MMS professors challenged me to think outside of the box and taught me how to analyze and approach complex problems from several different perspectives. The MMS certificate has opened many doors for me – whether it be to potential employers or Duke’s Fuqua School of Business – and for that, I will forever be thankful.
Over the past few days, I had the chance to connect with some of my friends & teammates and asked them to share some of their thoughts and opinions on their MMS experience:
Jack Doran (Trinity ’20)
“I chose to pursue the MMS certificate because the curriculum covered so many interesting business topics that can be applied to real world situations. All of my professors were passionate and engaging, having worked at some of the best companies in the world before coming to Duke to pass on their knowledge. I loved my capstone course with Professor Reeves most. We had the chance to work in pairs conducting in depth research and analysis on large publicly traded companies. This was one of the most worthwhile projects I undertook during my time at Duke. If you want to learn from some of the most successful and dedicated professors at Duke while getting the opportunity to participate in fascinating group work with your classmates which will help you understand the way that markets work, then the MMS program is for you”.
Nicolas Macri Badessich (Trinity ´20)
“The MMS program gives you valuable experience in various areas such as marketing, management and finance that you would not otherwise find at Duke University. As a Political Science major and Economics minor, the MMS program introduced me to the world of business through fun and interactive classes. MMS professors are valuable contacts and really care about their students, and I am confident in saying that my top 3 classes at Duke were all MMS courses.”
Max Feldman (Trinity ’20)
“At Duke I have had the opportunity to pair my International Comparative Studies Major with the Markets and Management Studies Certificate. The MMS courses I have been able to take have really given me the opportunity to learn hands on skills about business that you don’t get the chance to learn elsewhere at Duke. One thing that I loved about the MMS courses were that a lot of them were hands on. Doing business simulations and having classes that mimic a business environment have been invaluable to my development as a person and a student. These courses are great to supplement a lot of the theoretical classes that I took for ICS and gave me lots of skills that I was able to take with me to my internships and succeed. I can’t wait to see where these skills take me in the future.”
Matthias Frick (Trinity ´21)
“Unlike many other universities, Duke does not offer a business degree for undergraduates. The MMS certificate offered the perfect alternative and allowed me to get exposed to important business-related topics. The program allowed me to apply the theoretical knowledge, that I have acquired in other classes, to real life examples and has taught me a great deal about strategic management. I hope to be working as a consultant after graduation, so the MMS certificate played perfectly into that”.
If you happen to have any other questions related to the MMS certificate, please feel free to reach out to me at maximilian.moser@duke.edu
Markets Management Studies