Regulations for the Master of Science HES-SO in Business Administration

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The Rector’s Office of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland (HES-SO)

having regard to the Intercantonal Convention on the HES-SO, of 26 May 2011, having regard to the Regulations relating to first-cycle and second-cycle degrees (Bachelor’s and Master’s) at the HES-SO, of 15 July 2014,

determines:

I. General provisions

Object Ar. 1 These regulations define the prescriptive provisions relating to the Master of Science HES-SO in Business Administration (hereinafter referred to as MSc BA).

Majors Art. 2 The MSc BA comprises three majors:

a) Entrepreneurship;

b) Management of Information Systems;

c) Service Management and Service Engineering.

Objective of the

MSc BA Art. 3 The objective of the MSc BA, which follows on from the Bachelor’s degrees in the field, is to provide an education in management based on scientific and methodological foundations, with a practice-related orientation.

This degree programme should convey:

 sector-related problem-solving skills and methods;

 scientific and analytical skills, as well as research skills;

 social skills;

 managerial skills with the ability to reflect and act, fundamentally oriented towards business strategies and towards national and international development dynamics.

Management and

organisation Art. 4 ¹The Business, Management and Services Faculty Council (hereinafter referred to as the Faculty Council) organises the MSc BA degree programme under the guidance of the Rector’s Office.

2The Faculty Council is responsible for the following activities in the running of the MSc BA degree programme:

a) Proposing the degree programme and the diploma titles to the Rector’s Office of the HES-SO (hereinafter referred to as the Rector’s Office), in particular providing preliminary advice on the submission requests for new courses and modifications to the designations of the majors;

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Regulations for the Master of Science HES-SO in Business Administration MSc BA Council Art. 5 ¹The MSc BA Council is made up of:

a) The head of the Business, Management and Services faculty;

b) A head of the degree programme;

c) The head of each major.

2The members of the MSc BA Council are appointed for two years. They can be re-appointed for a further term of office.

3The MSc BA Council is presided over by the head of the faculty.

4The MSc BA Council reports to the Faculty Council to which it is directly subordinate.

5It is responsible in particular for the following activities:

a) Proposing to the Faculty Council the study plans and any modifications to the designations of the majors in the MSc BA degree programme;

b) Proposing to the Faculty Council the appointment of the heads of the majors;

c) Providing preliminary advice on the financial plans;

d) Providing preliminary advice on the regulations and the study guidelines;

e) Proposing and applying the quality assurance measures, including in particular the educational and scientific management of the degree programme, the administrative, logistical and financial management of the degree programme, the quality and accreditation management and coordination of the degree programme;

f) Coordinating the participation of the academic staff and the support staff for the various majors.

6The MSc BA Council may delegate certain tasks to the Council Office, which ensures the day-to-day running of the Master’s programme. The Council Office is made up of:

a) The head of the MSc BA degree programme;

b) The head of each major.

Economic and

Scientific Council Art. 6 ¹The Economic and Scientific Council, which has a consultative status, advises on the educational policy for the MSc BA. In particular, its role is to ensure that the academic programme is satisfactorily in line with developments in the various markets. It also promotes the course in professional circles.

2The members of the Economic and Scientific Council represent:

a) Professional circles;

b) Academic staff;

c) MSc BA graduates.

3The Economic and Scientific Council generally meets once a year.

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II. Admission and registration

Ordinary admission Art. 7 ¹Students who hold a UAS bachelor's degree or UAS diploma resulting from a degree programme connected with the field of Business, Management and Services of a Swiss University of Applied Sciences may be admitted to the MSc BA.

2Holders of a bachelor’s degree awarded by a Swiss university in the field of economics and management may be admitted, provided they can prove professional experience of at least one year in the field of economics and the service industry.

Admission by

portfolio Art. 8 ¹Students with UAS or university qualifications that are outside the field of Business, Management and Services are subject to a procedure of admission by portfolio.

2Candidates who have failed to complete a UAS or university Master’s degree course in relevant subjects will be subject to a procedure of admission by portfolio within a period of 2 years from exmatriculation from the university or college.

3In the case of a provisional positive assessment, candidates may be obliged to follow a supplementary course prior to the MSc BA course, giving up to 30 ECTS credits. In the case of insufficient professional experience a prior or concurrent additional condition may be specified.

Foreign

qualifications Art. 9 ¹Holders of foreign qualifications are admitted unconditionally to the MSc BA degree programme if the teaching leading to the award of their qualification is comparable to that of a Swiss bachelor’s degree in the field of economics and management, and if they can prove professional experience of at least one year in the field of economics and the service industry.

2They must be able to prove that they have the right language skills to be able to follow the course.

Equivalence Art. 10 ¹A student admitted to the MSc BA who has previously gained a recognised maîtrise-level university qualification (4-year degree) in a field of study related to the MSc BA course programme, or who holds an equivalent university degree obtained in a different field of study, may be entitled to equivalence.

2In all cases, at least 60 ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) credits of the 90 required to obtain the MSc BA must be obtained as part of this MSc BA degree programme.

3All applications for equivalence must be submitted by the start of the course.

4The provisions relating to the process of validation of experience gained (VAE)

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Registration and

fees Art. 12 ¹All students are registered with the MSc BA degree programme. They must pay the fees and contributions to the study costs due, as specified by the HES-SO.

2Registration becomes effective on the first day of the academic year. The student is then entitled to a student card which states the period of validity.

Auditors Art. 13 ¹The status of auditors is defined in the Regulations relating to first- cycle and second-cycle degrees (Bachelor’s and Master’s) at the HES-SO.

2The decision to admit auditors is taken by the Head of the MSc BA degree programme.

III. Organisation of the degree programme

Duration of studies

and ECTS credits Art. 14 ¹Each year of full-time study corresponds to 60 ECTS credits.

2In order to obtain the MSc BA, students must acquire a total of 90 ECTS credits as specified in the study plan, corresponding to a duration of 4 semesters. The maximum duration of studies is 6 semesters. Exceeding this period will lead to permanent exclusion from the programme.

3The maximum duration of studies is reduced proportionally for students benefitting from equivalence.

4If a student submits a request in writing, and if the reasons are justified and acceptable, the President of the MSc BA Council may as an exception grant an extension to the maximum duration of studies.

Leave Art. 15 ¹Students who wish for a temporary break in their studies may apply to the President of the MSc BA Council for leave.

2Leave of absence may be granted for a period of one semester or one year.

3The grant of leave of absence may be renewed. The total cumulative length of a leave period may not exceed two years.

Organisation of

studies Art. 16 ¹The degree programme comprises a core curriculum (equivalent to 27 ECTS credits) and a major (63 ECTS credits).

2The study plan specifies the form in which the modules are delivered, whether they are compulsory or optional, their timescale, their evaluation method and the allocation of the associated ECTS credits. It also specifies the duration and the terms of the master’s thesis.

Languages of

teaching Art. 17 The languages (French, German or English) used in the various modules, and for the assessments, are specified in the module descriptions.

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IV. Evaluation, graduation, certification, Master’s thesis

General

information Art. 18 ¹Each module is evaluated in accordance with the specifications set out in the study plan, more specifically in the descriptions of the modules.

2Examination sessions may be organised at the end of the autumn and the spring semesters. Registration for a module automatically includes registration for the evaluations of that module.

3A reassessment session is organised under the same terms and conditions, in the autumn and the spring, for those students who fail, but not definitively, or who have been absent with just cause from the aforementioned evaluations.

4The aspects subject to a graded evaluation carry a grade ranging, in fractions of 1/10, from 1 to 6. The minimum grade required to pass is 4 and the top grade is 6.

5The conditions for passing the modules are set out in the module descriptions.

Reassessment Art. 19 ¹Students who are awarded a module grade of between 3.5 and 3.9 may be eligible as appropriate for a reassessment, the conditions of which are set out in the module description.

2The maximum grade that may be awarded on reassessment is 4.0.

3A repeated module may not be reassessed.

Repetition Art. 20 ¹A student who does not obtain the credits for a compulsory module must repeat the module as soon as possible.

2No compulsory module may be repeated more than once. If a module is not completed it is deemed to have been failed.

Examination registration, withdrawal, absence and cheating

Art. 21 ¹Registration for a module may not be withdrawn except on the grounds of force majeure.

2Students who do not attend, in accordance with the stipulations, the evaluations of the modules for which they have registered in accordance with the study plan shall be awarded grade 1, unless a case of force majeure, as provided in paragraph 3, is accepted. This is without prejudice to the application of the provisions of Article 21.

3 Students who rely on a case of force majeure to justify their absence must submit a written request, accompanied by the relevant proof, to the President of the MSc BA Council within three days of commencement of the case of force majeure. The President of the MSc BA Council will accept or reject the request in writing. If the request is accepted, the results of any assessments already carried out will remain valid.

4Any cheating or attempt to cheat will lead to the perpetrator being awarded

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Master's thesis Art. 22 ¹Students may only submit anapplication to undertake their Master’s thesis once they have acquired at least 60 ECTS credits as part of the MSc BA.

2The Master’s thesis is supervised by a relevant member of teaching staff and leads to the writing and defence of a dissertation.

3 The duration and conditions of the Master’s thesis are fixed in the relevant module description. In order to record the constituent elements precisely, the Master’s thesis is covered by a separate agreement signed by the three parties involved: the head of the major, the student and the enterprise/institute.

4The Master’s thesis and its defence are evaluated together. The conditions of the evaluation, of the time schedule and of the defence are set out in the module description.

5Only students who have already acquired all their ECTS credits, apart from those in respect of the Master’s thesis, are authorised to defend their Master’s thesis.

Exclusion Art. 23 ¹Students will be considered definitively to have failed, and will be excluded from the MSc BA degree programme if they:

a) are registered for one or more of the compulsory examinations but withdraw or do not attend, without a dispensation;

b) fail at the second attempt of a module for which they are registered;

c) do not obtain the 90 ECTS credits for the programme, as provided in the study plan, within the maximum period described in Article 12, paragraph 2.

2The decision to exclude a student is taken by the President of the MSc BA Council.

Award of the

diploma Art. 24 ¹Students who have obtained the 90 ECTS credits required for the MSc BA programme will be awarded the diploma Master of Science HES-SO in Business Administration, major in [Title of major].

2The diploma is signed by the Rector of the HES-SO and by the Dean of the Faculty of Business, Management and Services.

V. Disciplinary aspects

Duties and

penalties Art. 25 ¹Students must undertake to respect the rules of the schools in which their teaching takes place and to comply with the directives and procedures that affect them.

2In the case of indiscipline, irregular attendance or abuse, students are liable to penalties as decreed by the MSc BA Council, which may extend to exclusion.

3Before a penalty is announced, students have the right to be heard.

VI. Transitional and final provisions

Complaints and

appeals Art. 26 Candidates for HES-SO Master's programmes and students registered with the HES-SO (HES-SO Master office) have access to complaints and appeals procedures as set out in the regulations governing the HES-SO Master's complaints and appeals procedure.

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Transitional

provisions Art. 27 ¹The provisions of Article 22, first paragraph, only apply to those students who started the MSc BA course in the semester beginning in September 2014.

2Students who started their MSc BA studies before the semester beginning in September 2014 may submit a request to commence their Master’s thesis once they have acquired 40 ECTS credits.

Repeal and coming

into force Art. 28 ¹These regulations supersede the directives concerning the Master of Science HES-SO in Business Administration, of 7 May 2009.

2They came into force on 15 September 2014.

These regulations were adopted by decision “R 2013/23/79” of the Rector’s Office of the HES-SO at the meeting of 15 July 2014.