The Master Double Diploma Programme between Warsaw School of Economics and Mercator School of Management, University of Duisburg-Essen has been established in 2012 and is offered for students of both universities studying at either "Finanse i rachunkowość (finance and accounting)" [degree in Polish] at SGH or "Accounting and Finance" at MSM.

Programme structure

1. The intended period of study for the double degree programme shall be two years (4 semesters). Double degree students will spend their first year at MSM the second year at SGH. Full information should be provided to the host institution on the courses that the participants have taken at their home institution and vice versa. The grades of the different grading systems will be converted according to the table displayed in Annex I. In case of failure in an exam at MSM, an (oral) exam re-take will be decided on a case-by-case basis in the same semester. If applicable, the exam may also be re-taken at SGH in close coordination with the respective professor or department at MSM. In any case, a second chance will be offered in the subsequent semester.
2. Double degree students shall have access to courses and enjoy the same rights and privileges and – with the exception of the course requirements specific to the double degree programme that are detailed in this agreement – be subject to the same rules and regulations as the regular graduate students in the corresponding Masters study track of the host institution.
3. In addition, Students admitted for the double degree programme shall complete the modules offered at SGH and MSM following a scheme laid out in Annex II for students of Major Finance and Accounting at SGH and Accounting and Finance at MSM.

Master Thesis

1. In addition to the mandatory coursework at both institutions, as set forth in the agreement, the double degree student is required to write a Master’s Thesis. The Master’s Thesis is worth 20 ECTS at SGH. The Master’s Thesis – combined with a colloquium – is worth 30 ECTS at MSM. The partner institutions assure the legal and organisational pre-conditions required for enabling the double degree students to start with the Master’s Thesis in their second study year.
2. The Master’s Thesis shall be supervised by one supervisor and marked (graded) by a reviewer. The double degree students shall choose one supervisor from either institution, the reviewer will be selected from the partner institution respectively. The language of the Master Thesis is English or German.
3. Part of the completion of the Master’s Thesis is a defence of the thesis (at the MSM called: Research Colloquium). Members of the host institution are invited to attend the defence. In preparation of the defence the double degree student has to write a thesis summary in English. The defence will be conducted in English or in German.
4. The management process of the preparation of the Master’s Thesis should meet all the legal and academic constraints of the institution at which a student writes and defends the Masters Thesis.

Conditions for obtaining the double degree

The double degree shall only be awarded after the student has completed the programme by fulfilling the following requirements:

DD students from MSM and SGH:

• 1st year at MSM: the award of at least 62 ECTS credit points equivalent to the regulations constituted in this agreement,
• 2nd year at SGH: the award of at least 49,5 ECTS for the courses in the Finance and Accounting field of study, equivalent to the regulations constituted in this agreement and completion of Master’s Thesis (25 ECTS) and Colloquium (5 ECTS) at MSM or Master Thesis at SGH (20 ECTS).
• The double degree student shall be awarded both the academic degree: of the home institution and the corresponding academic degree of the host institution. Upon completion of the double degree programme requirements, the student shall receive:
  • diplomas of both universities,
  • two grade transcripts and,
  • two diploma supplements.

Each institution shall issue only one diploma and corresponding transcripts of grades for the part of the double degree it is accountable for. The diploma supplement shall provide detailed information on the nature, regulations, grades and credit transfer mechanisms of the double degree programme.

Selection and documents

1. Candidates for the double degree programme are to be selected by their home institution according to the selection criteria jointly defined and agreed upon by SGH and MSM. Due to the higher workload compared to the ordinary Masters study tracks at the partner institutions, only highly qualified students shall be selected for the double degree programme. Each institution has the right to admit up to 5 students per year to the double degree programme (balanced each three years), unless this number is varied by a mutual and written attachment to this agreement.
2. The double degree candidates must satisfy all admission requirements of the host institution, including language proficiency requirements and good knowledge on Bachelor level of Microeconomics, Macroeconomics and Statistics. All double degree candidates must provide evidence of a satisfactory level of language proficiency according to the requirements of the Common European Framework (CEF):
   • students from SGH as their home institution – English B2 (or higher) and German minimum B1,
   • students from MSM as their home institution – English B2 (or higher).
3. Each institution reserves the right to require double degree candidates to complete the standard enrolment documents and to provide the results of any required entrance examinations.
4. The host institution has the right to not accept a double degree candidate from the home institution for academic rationales or any other substantial reasons.

Documents required from SGH students include:

• Application form - filled in on computer not by hand
• Copy of the BA diploma
• Official course transcript (issued by the Dean's Office) with grades received incl. the courses not yet finished
• Document certifying fluency in English (either competence test or commercial language certificate or diploma of graduating from secondary school or studies in foreign language)
• CV of the Applicant in the Europass format (document available at the following website http://europass.frse.org.pl/europass-cv in English)
• Passport photo (electronic version)
• Motivation letter (in English)
• First draft of the study programme (preferred field of study/study path, list of academic interests, etc.)

Application procedures to apply to MSM are described on the website of the partner.