Learning and Teaching (about) Research Methods in Graduate Management Education

Abstract

This paper describes and assesses a research curriculum for management students that uses a learning-centered course design. The curriculum was developed for a two-year master’s program in Business Administration at a mid-size university of applied sciences in Switzerland. A considerable portion of the curriculum (42 out of 90 credits) is devoted to the development of students’ research methods competencies and skills. We argue that the complexities of management practice require managerial practitioners to make wise context-driven decisions by utilizing relevant management research to inform their practice and by managing the responsible production of new knowledge in their organizations. In this paper, we briefly discuss pedagogical challenges in teaching research methods to management students. We then lay out three constructively aligned design elements of our research curriculum that address these challenges. Based on results of evaluation surveys administered to faculty and students and on our own nearly decade-long experiences as instructors in this program, we discuss students’ and instructors’ perceptions of the research curriculum design and course outcomes. Finally, we provide recommendations for educators in graduate management education based on our findings and experiences.