Business schools in St. Louis, South Korea launch global finance program

Graduates will earn a Master of Finance from Washington University and a Global MBA from Yonsei University

Watch to learn more about the Global Master of Finance dual-degree program offered by Washington University in St. Louis and Yonsei University.

Washington University in St. Louis and Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, are partnering to offer a unique learning experience to master the complex world of business by earning two degrees on two continents in their new Global Master of Finance dual-degree program. Graduates of this fast-paced, 14-month comprehensive program will earn a master’s degree in finance from WUSTL and a global master’s in business administration from Yonsei.

Mahendra R. Gupta, PhD, dean of Olin Business School (left), and Young-Ryeol Park, PhD, dean of Yonsei School of Business, hold their schools’ official agreement, singed in December 2013, creating the Global Master of Finance Dual Degree Program.

“Specialized knowledge and training are mandatory for today’s business professionals,” said Mahendra R. Gupta, PhD, dean of WUSTL’s Olin Business School and the Geraldine J. and Robert L. Virgil Professor of Accounting and Management. “This program will emphasize both academic rigor and practical applications. Our partnership with Yonsei doubles the benefits for students in terms of faculty, alumni and industry networks in Asia and the U.S.”

Two top-ranked business schools

The Economist ranks Yonsei University’s Global MBA as the best in Korea and fourth in Asia. The Financial Times ranks Olin Business School’s Master of Finance program No. 1 in the U.S. and in the top 25 globally.

“Yonsei University is excited to further our longstanding partnership with Washington University in St. Louis by launching the dual-degree program,” said Young-Ryeol Park, PhD, dean of Yonsei School of Business. “This program will provide students the opportunity to gain real global experience through both academic and practical education in the world’s leading business schools.”

Faculty members from both universities and industry experts from around the world will teach in the dual-degree program. Courses will cover emerging markets, business strategy, entrepreneurship, negotiation, international finance and risk management. Each student cohort will be diverse and international. Students will spend the first and final semesters at Olin Business School in St. Louis and three semesters in Seoul at Yonsei University.

Curriculum includes immersion courses in New York and Washington, D.C., that explore U.S. financial markets, policymaking, legislative processes, enforcement agencies and the Federal Reserve.

The courses in Washington, D.C., are offered in collaboration with Brookings Executive Education, part of The Brookings Institution, a nonprofit public policy organization. WUSTL successfully launched a similar dual-degree program with Singapore Management University in 2013.

A half-century of partnership

The business schools at WUSTL and Yonsei have a long history of partnership that began more than 50 years ago. Between 1958 and 1962, Washington University’s business school, under the auspices of the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Overseas Mission, worked with Yonsei and two other Korean universities to bring together experienced businessmen, academic authorities and advanced graduate students to modernize Korean business practices.

Student-exchange programs also were established at that time. Ja Song was one of the first Korean exchange students in 1958. He became a professor, dean of Yonsei business school, and then president of the university in 1992. Song was named minister of education in South Korea in 2000.

To learn more about the Global Master of Finance dual-degree program, visit here.