Shaping tomorrow’s leaders for a sustainable global future

Empowering global leaders for over 75 years

Thunderbird School of Global Management is the world’s premier leadership, management, and business school. For more than 75 years, Thunderbird has empowered leaders to tackle the world’s greatest challenges. Ranked No. 1 by QS for International Trade in 2023 and 2024, Thunderbird is part of Arizona State University, which has been ranked the No. 1 “Most Innovative School” in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for ten consecutive years.


Drawing on a vast spectrum of disciplines, Thunderbird's graduate degrees equips aspiring change-makers and executives with the skills needed to thrive in today’s global business environment. The school advances inclusive and sustainable prosperity worldwide by educating and influencing global leaders and managers who maximize the benefits of the Fourth Industrial Revolution for business, government, society, and the environment.

Graduate degrees

Master of Global Management (MGM)

The world's #1-ranked MGM offers over 16 transdisciplinary concentrations ranging from global affairs and public administration, to data science and healthcare delivery. Our graduates emerge from the program prepared to work across borders, cultures, industries, and sectors anywhere in the world.

Degree information

Format: Monday-Friday

Duration: 18-24 months

Location: Phoenix, AZ

Experience: 0-7 years

Executive Master of Global Management (EMGM)

Thunderbird’s EMGM program offers a flexible way for full-time working professionals to obtain this international business graduate degree in only one year. Attend in-person classes once a month with your cohort and faculty members and collaborate on team assignments and coursework virtually to achieve the curriculum milestones together.

Degree information

Format: One weekend a month

Duration: 12 months

Location: Phoenix, AZ

Experience: 8+ years

Master of Leadership and Management (MLM)

The MLM program focuses on cross-cultural communication, finance, data analytics, marketing and working in diverse, global teams. The program is delivered 100% online, but also offers in-person opportunities through global field seminars and challenge labs abroad, plus a 4-day on-campus course.  

Degree information

Format: Online

Duration: 12 - 24 months

Location: Online

Experience: 2+ years

Executive Master of Arts in Global Affairs and Management (EMAGAM)

Based in Washington, D.C., the EMAGAM program is tailored for mid-career professionals in all sectors, offering specializations in global business or global public policy.

Degree information

Format: One weekend a month

Duration: 12 months

Location: Washington, D.C.

Experience: 5+ years

Thunderbird Executive Master of Global Management

Doctor of Professional Practice in Global Leadership and Management (DPP)

Thunderbird's DPP in Global Leadership and Management program prepares practitioners who are responsive to the opportunities and challenges presented by this unprecedented time of rapid disruption, this program prepares leaders global and digital mindsets and skillsets for the 21st century.

Degree information

Format: ASU Sync

Duration: 36-48 months

Location: Online

Experience: 8+ years

Based in Washington, D.C.

International experience

Students at Thunderbird have the unique opportunity to enhance their global education by participating in one of the school's immersive Global Field Seminars or Global Challenge Labs. These weeklong programs allow students to travel abroad and engage directly with international businesses, communities, and organizations.

Global Field Seminar

During this course, students experience an intensive one-week immersion in-country. Students enjoy a hands-on learning experience in a focused region of the world, comprising company site visits, high-level meetings and presentations with business, government and cultural leaders, as well as Thunderbird alumni. Through these interactions, students learn the challenges and opportunities that make doing business in the region unique.

Global Challenge Laboratories

Outside of the classroom, Thunderbird students take their coursework global, learning by doing and embarking on interactive capstone projects with businesses and nonprofit organizations around the world. Teams of five to six program candidates spend a semester working on the lab in a hybrid approach, where students work both from campus and spend three weeks on-site with a client in an advanced or emerging market.

Our global network

Thunderbird is the world’s premier leadership and management school. With more than 45,000 distinguished alumni in 145 countries and a rapidly expanding network of regional Centers of Excellence in all regions, Thunderbird delivers cutting-edge and fit-for-purpose programs across the globe.


Our regional of Centers of Excellence from Los Angeles to Tokyo, and Amsterdam to Nairobi provides a truly global presence that sets Thunderbird apart by facilitating academic offerings in major commercial centers around the world, connecting and engaging our worldwide alumni network and partner organizations around the globe.

Meet our faculty

Lena Booth
Deputy Dean, Thunderbird Academic Enterprise and Finance Professor
Lena Booth serves as the Deputy Dean of the Thunderbird Academic Enterprise and professor of finance at Thunderbird. She currently teaches courses in strategic financial analysis, corporate financial management, global financial management, and advanced topics in finance, including global private equity.
Kanan
Kannan Ramaswamy
William D. Hacker Chair of Management Strategy
Professor Kannan Ramaswamy serves as the William D. Hacker Chair at Thunderbird. His global reputation stems from his profound expertise in global strategy, emerging markets, the energy sector, corporate governance, corporate diversification, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and global management.
Christine
Christine Pearson
Professor of Global Leadership
Christine Pearson, professor of global leadership at Thunderbird, is recognized for her expertise in mitigating and addressing dysfunctional behavior in the workplace. Her research spans from the challenges of organizational crises to the impact of issues escalating from low-intensity incivility and aggression in professional environments.
Denis-Leclerc
Denis Leclerc
Clinical Professor of Cross-Cultural Communication and Global Negotiations
Denis Leclerc, clinical associate professor at Thunderbird, currently teaches cross-cultural communication and global negotiations. His research is centered around intercultural communication competence and global negotiation. He is also an instructor for Thunderbird Executive Education, teaching cross-cultural communication and in custom programs, among others.
Harris
G.L.A. Harris
Professor
Professor G.L.A. Harris is renowned for her research on the U.S. military and international communities, she twice held the position of Fulbright distinguished chair, notably as NATO Chair in Security Studies. Her research on student veterans not only inspired state and federal legislation but also served as the prototype for present-day Veterans Resource Centers on college campuses.
Mansour
Mansour Javidan
Najafi Chair Professor in Global Mindset and Digital Transformation and Executive Director of Najafi Global Mindset Institute
Mansour Javidan serves as the Garvin Distinguished Professor and executive director of the Najafi Global Mindset Institute at Thunderbird, where he leads the Global Digital Mindset Inventory (GDMI). The World Bank and the United Nations Development Program have designated him an expert advisor on global leadership, and NASA has designated him an expert on managing diversity, among other distinctions.

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