Sustainability – Master of Management

Gain the skills to be an effective manager within a sustainable-focused industry, or bring an increasingly important perspective to any business.

Where you can study

Auckland campus
Distance and online

International students

International students are not New Zealand citizens or residents.

Definition of New Zealand citizens and residents

Open to international students on campus in New Zealand

Specialise in Sustainability for your Master of Management at Massey

Sustainability has been identified as a key future issue for businesses. This major has been designed to bring together learning around management skills and contemporary issues in sustainability including:

  • corporate social responsibility
  • ethics
  • the carbon-free economy
  • the UN Sustainable Development Goals
  • specific management applications such as the ethical behaviour of management within businesses and organisations.

Skills employers need

The Master of Management (Sustainability) has been developed in consultation with major industry bodies. This ensures that your learning is consistent with issues and current gaps in business process and knowledge.

Core skills

The Master of Management's unique core of courses focuses on key business skills like communication, leading and working in teams. Your teaching will cover current issues in business as well as in-depth sustainability insights.

You will learn from our business experts – Massey University has the largest and one of the most highly respected management schools in New Zealand. Our lecturers are active researchers.

The Master of Management is a rigorous programme, where you will be expected to achieve at a high level. The quality of our graduates reflects this, and contributes to the reputation of the qualification.

Interested in a PhD?

To progress to a PhD, choose Massey’s research-based Master of Business Studies.

A Master of Management in Sustainability is a good fit if you:

  • have an undergraduate degree (not necessarily in business)
  • would like to change or progress a career in sustainability
  • are interested in a qualification that is primarily taught and practice-based.

Planning information

If you study full-time, you’ll take 120 credits per year or 60 credits per semester.

For progression to Part Two of the Master of Management, you will need to achieve a B- grade average across the Part One courses.

If you have completed at least 60 credits of postgraduate study with a minimum grade average of C+ you will not need to complete the core courses in Schedule A (115758 and 115759, or 295700). However, this is not a credit and you must complete an approved alternative course/s totalling 30 credits in your subject, or an alternative course from Schedule B, or equivalent. You will need to add the course using the Special Permission function on the Course Enrolment page in your portal.

If you are admitted directly to Part Two of the Master of Management on the basis of credit for Part One, you will be awarded the qualification without a subject.

Official regulations

To understand what you need to study and must complete to graduate read the official rules and regulations for this qualification.

You should read these together with all other relevant Statutes and Regulations of the University including the General Regulations for Postgraduate Degrees, Postgraduate Diplomas, and Postgraduate Certificates.

Returning students

For returning students, there may be changes to the majors and minors available and the courses you need to take. Go to the section called ‘Transitional Provisions’ in the Regulations to find out more.

In some cases the qualification or specialisation you enrolled in may no longer be taking new enrolments, so may not appear on these web pages. To find information on the regulations for these qualifications go to the Massey University Calendar.

Please contact us through the Get advice button on this page if you have any questions.

Courses you can enrol in

Course planning key

Prerequisites
Courses that need to be completed before moving onto a course at the next level. For example, a lot of 200-level courses have 100-level prerequisite courses.
Corequisites
Courses that must be completed at the same time as another course are known as corequisite courses.
Restrictions
Some courses are restricted against each other because their content is similar. This means you can only choose one of the offered courses to study and credit to your qualification.

Part One

Compulsory course

Course code: 152704 Business and Sustainability 30 credits

An analysis of the relationships between the business community, the natural environment, and social and environmental sustainability. The course examines global debates on social and environmental issues, introduces theories of sustainability, and considers the implications of sustainability for business policy and management.

Restrictions: 115783

View full course details

Subject courses

Choose 60 credits from
Course code: 152728 Corporate Citizenship and Responsibility 30 credits

An advanced critique of the concepts of corporate social responsibility (CSR), business ethics, stakeholder management, and their implications for the management of business organisations.

View full course details
Course code: 152730 Advanced Contemporary Issues in Sustainability 30 credits

Students will critique the business case for sustainability and develop holistic sustainability strategies to address contemporary economic, ethical, environmental, and social concerns for business, including those relating to sustainable supply chain management, sustainable operations management, the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and ethical trade.

View full course details
Course code: 178719 Climate Change Economics and Policy 30 credits

An analysis of the economics of climate change and evaluation of the mitigation options used by policy makers globally.

View full course details

Part Two

Course code: 152894 Professional Practice 60 credits

Candidates will undertake a professional action investigation within the subject area in which the Master of Management is being completed. Investigations may be conducted either individually or in groups and assessment of the outcome of the investigation may be in a variety of ways including written and oral presentations.

Restrictions: 114895

View full course details

Entry requirements

Admission to Massey

All students must meet university entrance requirements to be admitted to the University.

Specific requirements

To enter the Master of Management (Sustainability) you will:

  • have been awarded or qualified for a relevant bachelor’s degree or equivalent qualification, having achieved a grade average of at least B- in the highest level courses, or
  • have been awarded or qualified for a Postgraduate Diploma in Business with a B- grade average, or equivalent.

If you have a Postgraduate Diploma in Business from Massey University as outlined above, you may apply for credit towards Part One of the qualification, in a single subject. If you are granted credit, the degree will be awarded without a subject.

You will need to provide copies of all official academic transcripts for studies taken at all universities other than Massey University.

English language requirements

To study this qualification you must meet Massey University's English language standards.

English language skills

If you need help with your English language skills before you start university, see our English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses.

Fees and scholarships

Fees, student loans and free fees scheme

Your tuition fees may be different depending on the courses you choose. Your exact fees will show once you have chosen your courses.

There will also be some compulsory non-tuition fees and for some courses, there may also be charges for things such as study resources, software, trips and contact workshops.

Already know which courses you're going to choose?

You can view fees for the courses that make up your qualification on the course details pages.

Student loans (StudyLink) and Fees Free scheme

You may be eligible for a student loan to help towards paying your fees.

The New Zealand Government offers fees-free tertiary study for eligible domestic students. Find out more about the scheme and your eligibility on the Fees Free website. To use the site's eligibility checking tool, you will need your National Student Number.

Current and returning Massey students can find their National Student Number in the student portal.

Fees disclaimer

This information is for estimation purposes only. Actual fees payable will be finalised on confirmation of enrolment. Unless otherwise stated, all fees shown are quoted in New Zealand dollars and include Goods and Services Tax, if any. Before relying on any information on these pages you should also read the University's Disclaimer Notice.

Careers and job opportunities

The Master of Management works to help you understand the issues, and gain the right skills to bring a sustainability perspective to management positions. This ultimately contributes to your employability.

There are a range of roles available for graduates from the Master of Management (Sustainability).

Roles could include representative entry/intermediate level positions such as:

  • graduate sustainability analyst
  • sustainability advisor
  • sustainability programme coordinator
  • associate sustainability consultant
  • environmental advisor
  • sustainability and risk management advisor

These positions may offer career progression to senior positions as sustainability / CSR managers.

With your skills you could also work in consultancy for:

  • business
  • central government
  • local government
  • NGOs (non-governmental organisations) etc.

Earn more

A 2017 Ministry of Education publication The post-study earnings and destinations of young domestic graduates, found that in New Zealand:

  • young master’s graduates earn more than one and a half times more than the national median (five years after study)
  • earnings and employment rates increase with the level of qualification completed
  • five years after completion, the median earnings of young master’s graduates are 15% higher than for those with a bachelor’s degree.

International students

New Zealand is a great place to study. Massey University’s reputation is supported by our international rankings, accreditations and associations. We are rated five star plus by the QS World University Rankings.

Massey University has small class sizes, and our lecturers and staff are friendly and approachable.

As an international student, there are entry requirements that will apply to you. We recommend that you apply at least three months before your anticipated start date so your application can be processed in time. There are additional steps you will need to take. These include obtaining a visa and travel bookings if your study is to be in New Zealand.

Accreditations and rankings

Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)

Massey Business School is rated in the top 5% of global business colleges by AACSB International.

Learn more

QS Ranking - Business Management Studies

Massey University is ranked by QS (Quacquarelli Symonds) as one of the top 350 universities for business and management.

Learn more

ShanghaiRanking – Business Administration

Massey University is ranked #2 in New Zealand for business administration by ShanghaiRanking.

Learn more

Related study options