Freeman announces new 4+1 degree programs

Beginning this year, students at Tulane University’s Freeman School of Business will be able to fast-track their education, earning both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in just five years. 

The new 4+1 program enables students to add a master’s degree in finance, energy management or business analytics to their bachelor’s degree in business with just one additional year of study. The program reduces the time it ordinarily takes to earn both degrees by enabling students to complete up to 12 hours of graduate-level coursework during their junior and senior years. Undergraduate financial aid can be applied to this graduate coursework, saving students graduate school tuition, and in the fifth year, students will be eligible for graduate financial aid and fellowships. 

“Students are increasingly seeking advanced business study at earlier stages in their careers,” said Paulo Goes, dean of the Freeman School. “The new 4+1 program meets that demand, enabling students with well-defined career goals to combine the Freeman School’s Bachelor of Science in Management program with a Master of Finance, a Master of Management in Energy or a Master of Business Analytics.”

The Freeman School previously offered two five-year programs: The Baccalaureate/MBA, which enables students to earn a bachelor’s degree from Newcomb-Tulane College and an MBA from the Freeman School, and the BSM/MACCT, which enables students to earn a Bachelor of Science in Management (BSM) and a Master of Accounting. The new 4+1 options dramatically expand the range of professional master’s degrees available to undergraduates.

In addition to savings of cost and time, the 4+1 program also enables students to enter the workplace with advanced skills at an earlier age, giving them a leg up on the competition and making them eligible for more senior positions and higher salaries.

“For students with well-defined professional goals and a desire to jumpstart their careers, the 4+1 programs are an ideal option,” said Melissa Lightell, assistant dean of graduate admissions. “Not only can they enhance their salary potential and shorten the timeline to receiving a promotion, they can also leverage their undergraduate financial aid, resulting in savings of potentially thousands of dollars.” 

For more information about the Freeman 4+1 program, visit http://freeman.tulane.edu/4plus1.