The CEMS MIM program has five overarching learning objectives, reflecting the vision of CEMS to “prepare responsible leaders who contribute to a more open, sustainable, and inclusive world.” These objectives are:

1. Internationalism: Graduates are knowledgeable international business practitioners, capable of making effective business decisions and managing change in diverse cultural and organizational contexts.

2. Business-embeddedness: Graduates apply advanced management and leadership competencies developed through systematic engagement with the corporate world.

3. Responsible citizenship: Graduates embrace a holistic approach to responsible business decision-making, leadership, and citizenship, guided by ethical reasoning, personal integrity, and respect for social diversity.

4. Reflective critical thinking: Graduates are confident, agile, and reflective decision-makers and problem-solvers, capable of devising and applying innovative solutions to complex business challenges.

5. Comprehensive leadership: Graduates demonstrate full awareness of their personal responsibility and accountability, as well as the ethical and cultural frameworks within which leadership is exercised.

You may choose to complete your CEMS year during either the first or second year of your master’s program at NHH. To fulfill the CEMS degree requirements, students must complete 45 ECTS of CEMS coursework, a 15 ECTS Business Project, and various seminars totaling 6 ECTS, distributed across the home and exchange semesters. Students may undertake their exchange in either the first or second semester of the CEMS year.

Please consult the study plan to review the recommended progression for your master’s and CEMS coursework.

Study plan for CEMS MIM at NHH, year one or year two (PDF,140KB)

The CEMS MIM year begins with a week-long intensive Block Seminar. At NHH, the seminar is typically held off campus, allowing students to live and learn together with fellow CEMS participants. This format fosters a strong sense of community among students from the very start of the program. Seminar topics are selected from NHH’s academic focus areas and align with the overarching learning objectives of CEMS. In recent years, the NHH Block Seminar has focused on Design Thinking.

The Block Seminar is worth 3 ECTS. Due to the significant organizational and financial requirements of the seminar, participating students are generally asked to contribute €100–€300 each.

During your two CEMS study terms, you will complete both mandatory and elective CEMS courses.

The mandatory CEMS courses are exclusively for CEMS students and have been specially designed for the MIM program at the global level, in collaboration with other CEMS schools and representatives from corporate partners. In Term 1, you are required to successfully complete the CEMS Global Strategy course. In Term 2, you must successfully complete the CEMS Global Leadership course.

In addition, a wide range of elective courses is available, covering the major fields of specialization offered at NHH. A complete list of CEMS courses can be found on the course website.

Beginning with the 2021/22 CEMS year, it is mandatory for students to complete at least 5 ECTS in “hard skill” electives. Hard skills include courses in business analytics, financial analytics, data science, statistics and econometrics, and optimization and process planning. This requirement can be fulfilled at either your home or host university and must be included within the 45 ECTS of CEMS coursework. From the 2021/22 academic year onward, hard skill courses are clearly indicated in the course listings on nhh.no and cems.org.

Students may take up to 15 ECTS of elective CEMS courses outside their official CEMS MIM year, either in the year preceding or following their CEMS year, depending on when their CEMS year occurs. However, students must complete a minimum of 24 ECTS from the official CEMS portfolio during each semester of the CEMS year.

The CEMS Business Project allows you to apply your skills and knowledge to real-world business cases in an academic setting. This core component accounts for 15 ECTS during the second CEMS term. Students are assigned to projects based on their interests, company requirements, and CEMS guidelines, and collaborate closely with both home and incoming students over a three-month period.

The Business Project is supervised and evaluated by both a corporate mentor and an academic mentor. Cases are primarily provided by CEMS corporate and social partners. At NHH, you may also have the opportunity to work with alumni start-ups, enabling you to develop business plans and enhance your entrepreneurial skills.

NHH assists Business Project partners in designing cases that are valuable to the partner organization, relevant to NHH’s curriculum, and structured to strengthen your competencies and attractiveness to future employers.

Recent Business Project cases have included:

• Market and competition analysis
• Change and process management
• Communication and brand management
• Business and strategy development
• Commercialization of innovation
• Internationalization of new ventures

Students have collaborated with Business Project partners to optimize potential in areas such as technology, digitalization, e-commerce, supply chain management, and sustainable business practices.

Skill Seminars are a central component of the CEMS year, providing opportunities to learn from, apply your skills and knowledge with, and network alongside external trainers from CEMS corporate and social partner organizations, as well as alumni start-ups.

You are required to complete a total of 3 ECTS for the Skill Seminar component, consisting of 1 ECTS from mandatory skill seminars and 2 ECTS from elective skill seminars to satisfy CEMS degree requirements (equivalent to six full-day seminars).

The Global Citizenship Seminar, held at the beginning of Term 2, accounts for 1 ECTS and fulfills the mandatory skill seminar requirement. This seminar focuses on business topics aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Elective skill seminars, accounting for the remaining 2 ECTS, are offered during both terms.

The mandatory CEMS international internship provides an opportunity to apply your academic knowledge and business skills through professional work experience in an international environment.

Internships should offer an intercultural experience in a country other than that of your home school. Exceptions may be granted for international home school students who completed their bachelor’s degree abroad.

Internships must consist of a consecutive period of at least eight weeks full-time with the same company. A relevant eight-week period of full-time employment may also be accepted. Internships should allow students to assume responsibility for a project or a defined set of tasks.

Internships may take place at any time after completion of your bachelor’s degree and up to 18 months after graduation from NHH, but they cannot occur during study terms. Please consult the CEMS Corporate Relations Manager to ensure that your proposed internship or work experience can be provisionally approved as your CEMS internship.

Once provisionally approved, you may register your internship details in the CEMS online internship registration system. These details will be reviewed, and an evaluation form will be sent to your designated supervisor through the system.

Final approval of the internship toward your CEMS degree is granted once your supervisor completes an evaluation of your performance.

If your CEMS internship is completed in a European country (excluding Switzerland), you may be eligible for an Erasmus+ grant. Internships must be provisionally approved and grant funding applied for before the start of the internship. Further information is available on the Erasmus+ website.

For support regarding CEMS internships and Erasmus funding, please contact the CEMS Corporate Relations Manager.