Transition Management (M.Sc.)

Shape economic and political change in emerging economies: The Master's in Transition Management at JLU links economics, law, politics and environmental studies.

This course of study is taught in English.

Top-down view of several people working with documents, charts, and digital devices around a wooden table with colorful intersecting arrows pointing in different directions in the center — Foto: rawpixel/123rf.com

Overview

How can we guide rapid economic and political change in transition and emerging economies worldwide? In the Master's programme Transition Management, you combine economics, law, politics and agricultural and environmental sciences across five faculties. Practical strategies and international teamwork prepare you for global leadership roles.

Applying for admission

Start of studies

Winter semester

Mode of admission

No admission restriction

Duration of studies

4 semesters

Workload

120 credit points (CP)

Degree

Master of Science (M.Sc.)

Language of instruction

English

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Composition of the Study Programme

What can I expect from this programme?

Transition Management addresses the enormous economic and political transformations we observe in many transition and emerging economies worldwide. Their societies are moving from state management to a market economy, from autocracy to democracy, often at a rapid pace and at higher income and technology levels than in a typical developing country. The group of transition countries includes the successor states of the former Soviet Union, the countries of Eastern and South Eastern Europe, as well as transition economies in Asia, such as China and Vietnam. The programme also provides relevant insight on emerging economies in Latin America and Africa.

The English-language Master’s Programme "Transition Management" is an interdisciplinary study programme established by five faculties of Justus Liebig University Giessen, led by the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Nutritional Sciences and Environmental Management (Faculty 09). The Center for International Development and Environmental Research (ZEU) at the University of Giessen contributes topical input and teaching modules specifically tailored to the needs of the programme.

Justus Liebig University Giessen has been the first university in Germany to address the specific problems of transition countries in an international, interdisciplinary programme that combines theory and practice.

What will I learn?

The Master's Programme Transition Management enables Students to

understand the complex processes and specific demands of transition and emerging economies,
comprehend the different areas of transition, including economic, legal, political, social, agricultural and environmental aspects and their interrelationships,
gain knowledge as well as practical skills in methods and strategies to enhance the transition process,
train their soft skills by learning and working in international and interdisciplinary teams.

Target Group

The Master's programme is designed for students who are interested in learning about the complex problems of transition countries and in developing approaches to overcome these problems by linking economic, political and environmental aspects.
A background in related academic disciplines of economics, law, and/or the social sciences is required.

Graduates of Transition Management qualify for senior positions in private and public sector management, public administration, academia, and international technical and economic cooperation.

How is the programme structured?

The study programme is organized in modules (courses). Each module comprises four semester hours per week and is completed with a final examination as given in the module description. The final grade of the study programme is calculated from the achieved module grades.

The course consists of 8 mandatory modules (core modules), 6 optional modules (profile modules), an industrial internship (or 2 more profile modules) and the Master‘s thesis. Having completed the core modules, the students are well equipped with a solid scientific education and ready to deepen their knowledge in specific research areas. By individually choosing their profile modules from a diverse range of study areas, students shape their individual competence profile.

Structure of the Master's Degree Course

The Master’s degree course consists of 16 modules (120 credits):

Modules
Core Competence (mandatory modules)	8 modules	48 credits
Profile Competence (optional modules)	8 modules or 6 modules + industrial intership	48 credits
Master’s thesis		24 credits
Total	16 modules	120 credits

Core Modules (Mandatory Courses)

Empirical Research Methods (6 CP)
Theory and Practice of Economic Development (6 CP)
International Law (6 CP)
Global Food Markets (6 CP)
Transition and Integration Economics (6CP)
Business Administration and Sustainability Management (6 CP)
Planetary Thinking (6 CP)
Power and Democracy (6 CP)
Transition and Integration Economics (6 CP)

Profile Modules (6 CP each)

Students tailor their individual profile by selecting 6 modules and the internship or 8 modules from the entire profile module catalogue of the faculty. For example, you can choose profile modules from the following subject areas:

Agricultural, Food and Environmental Policy
Organic Farming with Focus on Sustainable Soil Use
Landscape, Water and Biogeochemical Cycles
Food Sociology
Communication and Engagement in Agricultural, Nutritional and Environmental Sciences
Agricultural and Food Market Analysis
Landscape Ecology and Landscape Planning
Insect Biotechnology
Biometry and Population Genetics
Crop Biomass and Bioresources
Political Science
Industrial Organization, Regulation and Antitrust
International Economics
Statistics and Exonometrics

Work Placement (optional) (6 or 12 CP)

The programme offers a voluntary work placement that enables our students to gain an initial insight into the various areas of professional activity in which they hope to pursue in the future. The work placement also enables them to collect hands-on professional experience and establish contacts with potential employers. The variety of contacts that our faculty possesses allows us to provide expert support to students seeking a work placement.

The work placement module replaces one (6 CP) or two (12 CP) profile modules.

Master's Thesis (24 CP)

Students dedicate the major part of the 4th semester to writing the Master's thesis. With the thesis, they prove their capability to investigate a given topic independently and scientifically within a given timeframe.

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Career Options

What career paths can I pursue after graduation?

Globally, there is a high need for qualified people who can scientifically address and shape social transformation processes in a sustainable way.

This study programme qualifies students to work in areas closely related to sustainable transition processes in agricultural and food systems, i.e. work towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Our graduates work in leading positions such as executive managers and consultants in the private sector, public authorities, governmental and non-governmental organizations.

The degreee also enables them to start a career as (junior) scientists in universities and non-university research institutions.

Can I do a PhD after my Master’s degree?

After completing your Master's degree, you will have the opportunity to pursue a doctorate at JLU. Doctoral studies take place in a professorship at Faculty 09, to which you must apply. If you are interested in pursuing a doctorate at JLU, please contact the institute or professor in your area of interest directly. Open positions for various professorships can be found on the JLU job market.

The International Office also provides information for international students interested in pursuing a doctorate at JLU Giessen.

If you would like intensive support during your doctoral studies, you can apply to the Giessen Graduate Centre for the Life Sciences (GGL) or the International PhD Program for Agricultural Economics, Bioeconomy and Sustainable Food Systems (IPPAE), see below.

Graduate Centre for the Life Sciences (GGL)

Prospective doctoral students have the opportunity to apply as a member of the International Giessen Graduate Centre for the Life Sciences (GGL) to receive intensive support during their doctorate (in the form of seminars, internships, workshops, etc.). Information on the GGL and its internationally oriented doctoral programme, the requirements and the application procedure can be found here.

International PhD Program for Agricultural Economics, Bioeconomy and Sustainable Food Systems (IPPAE)

The IPPAE at JLU Giessen is a great opportunity for prospective doctoral students. This PhD programme/ scholarship is offered to candidates from developing countries (DAC) from all over the world and includes a German language course, subject courses, proposal design for the dissertation, data collection in the country of origin, data analysis as well as the writing of the dissertation.

The IPPAE lays its thematic focus on empirical, problem-solving research at the crossroads between agricultural economics, agricultural sociology, farm economics and sustainable resource use. Information on the IPPAE can be found here.

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Application and Enrolment

No study fees are charged for this programme. However, students have to pay a semester contribution.

Requirements

In general, students can apply for this Master's programme if they hold a Bachelor's degree with a duration of at least three years (180 Credits) or a comparable degree. The Bachelor's degree must be completed in a closely related scientific field. For example:

Agrarwissenschaften (Agricultural Science)
Ernährungswissenschaften (Nutrition)
Nachwachsende Rohstoffe und Bioressourcen (Crop Biomass and Bioresources)
Ökotrophologie (Nutritional Sciences and Home Economics)
Umwelt und globaler Wandel (Environment and Global Change)
Umweltmanagement (Environmental Management)
Wirtschaftswissenschaften (Economics)
Rechtswissenschaften (Law)
Sozial- und Politikwissenschaften (Political Science)

Applications with a Bachelor’s degree in another scientific field or with a Bachelor’s degree from abroad will be examined individually as to whether the study requirements are fulfilled. For the Master’s programme Transition Management sufficient knowledge in the fields of economics, law and/or social sciences must be demonstrated, at least 60 CP in one of these fields. A specialist commission at JLU will then finally decide on the admission. Any information on the status of acceptance without having completed the application process is not possible.

Language requirements

As the entire degree course is taught in English, applicants must provide proof of sufficient knowledge of written and spoken English at level C1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Accepted proofs of language proficiency:

either: TOEFL test, IELTS test, Cambridge English Language Assessment, Pearson PTE Academic, TOEIC, telc, UNIcert, IGSCE;
or: Proof of having obtained the local higher education entrance qualification in one of the following countries: Australia, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand, USA, United Kingdom, South Africa;
or: Proof of having completed an English-taught Bachelor’s degree program in one of the following countries: Australia, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand, USA, United Kingdom, South Africa.

Application Procedure

Depending on where you obtained either your university entrance certificate or your Bachelor degree, we differentiate several application procedures. Please find out here which procedure applies to you:

Application Process

Application Deadline

Winter semester 2027/28

The application deadlines for the winter semester 2027/28 are currently being prepared and are expected to be published here in spring 2027.

International applicants can find further information on the International Office website.

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Applying for admission

Further Information

Where can I find official documents about the programme?

Examination and study regulations

Special Regulations (with module descriptions and module plans)
Examination Committee and Regulations (Information in English)
General Regulations for Bachelor's and Master's programmes

Please note that only the German version of the regulation is official and legally binding. The English version is for informative purposes only.

Courses offered in the course catalogue

Electronical course catalogue (eVV) (in German)
List module (Information in English)

Where can I find more information about the faculty?

Links

Faculty 09 – Agricultural Sciences, Nutritional Sciences, and Environmental Management
Faculty's Deanery
Examinations Office
Student representatives

Master's Degree Programmes of Faculty 09

Taught in English

Agrobioinformatics
Agrobiotechnology
Insect Biotechnology and Bioresources
One Health
Sustainable Transition (digital degree programme)
Transition Management

Taught in German

Agrar- und Ressourcenökonomie / Agricultural and Resource Economics
Bioinformatik und Systembiologie / Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
Ernährungswissenschaften / Nutritional Sciences
Getränketechnologie / Beverage Technology (offered in cooperation with Geisenheim University)
Nachhaltige Ernährungswirtschaft / Food Economics
Nutzpflanzenwissenschaften / Crop Science
Nutztierwissenschaften / Livestock Sciences
Ökotrophologie / Nutritional Sciences and Home Economics (Ecotrophology)
Umweltwissenschaften / Environmental Sciences
Weinwirtschaft / Wine Economics (offered in cooperation with Geisenheim University)

How do I have a successful start at JLU?

To help you get off to a good start with your studies, we warmly invite you to attend our orientation events. Here you will learn
everything you need to know about starting your studies: