• Strategic Design for Global Leadership (MS)

    GEMS Curriculum

  • Take the Next Step

  • Contact Us

    [email protected] 
    212.229.5150 (U.S. only) 

    Melissa Rancourt
    Senior Director
    [email protected]

  • Developed specifically for seasoned executives and entrepreneurs, the 18-month, 36-credit Master of Science in Strategic Design for Global Leadership at Parsons, a globally top-ranked design school, provides innovative professionals with the tools they need to elevate their business leadership skills. The program helps them develop the vision and expertise necessary for mastering the ever-evolving challenges of the global business economy while continuing to work at their jobs.

    Bringing together strategic design thinking, leadership, and applied social sciences, the program exposes students to sophisticated real-world perspectives on business, operations, sustainability, leadership, entrepreneurship, design innovation, and design research. Over the course of 18 months, a select group of diverse professionals engage in both on-site weekend residencies at Parsons Paris,  week-long residencies in New York City and Asia and virtual collaborative learning that accommodates busy professionals living anywhere around the world. Graduates emerge as creative leaders who are ready to employ design as a key business and problem-solving tool.

    Over the course of 18 months, a select group of diverse professionals engage in both on-site weekend residencies at Parsons Paris and in New York City and Asia and virtual collaborative learning that accommodates busy professionals living anywhere around the world. 

    Program Highlights

    • New Business Strategies

      Understand the complexities of the new global economy and develop groundbreaking business strategy, guided by the principles of innovation, creativity, and collaboration

    • Immersive and Flexible Format

      Develop skills while meeting your professional responsibilities with a combination of virtual and on-campus intensive learning sessions requiring just 18 days away from the office

    • Strategic Design Thinking

      Use empathy, experimentation, observation, and ethnographic research to assess problems, uncover hidden needs, and design groundbreaking solutions for organizations of all sizes

    • Global Campus and International Experience

      Create a lifelong professional network and cultivate global perspectives as you travel to Parsons’ Paris campus for three-day seminars and to New York and Asia for week-long intensives

    • Industry Focus

      Develop expertise in business model development, creative team management, and entrepreneurship through coursework that replicates real-world industry scenarios

    • Applicant Profile

      Requiring a minimum of five years’ work experience in any industry, members of recent cohorts have had an average of 10 to 12 years’ experience and come from many backgrounds

    • Degree Master of Science (MS)
    • Format Hybrid
    • Credits 36
    • Duration 18 months
    • Next Start Date July 2026. Application priority deadline is January 4, 2026. Applications received after January 4 will be reviewed on a rolling basis as long as space is available.

  • Curriculum

    This 18-month, 36-credit program has an innovative curriculum that combines business, leadership, and leadership coursework with design-centered studio work. The studio courses are two week-long studios in which students integrate what they have learned in the seminars to develop new business models and organizational designs for real-world business scenarios.

    Students have the opportunity to start every course with weekend intensives held on the Parsons Paris campus, followed by immersive virtual learning. Furthermore, the program includes two week-long residencies in NYC and in Asia, in which students work on real company issues in integrative design studios.

    Learn more

  • Career Paths

    Graduates of the MS in Strategic Design for Global Leadership program return to their companies with new solutions to challenging problems and help advance intrapreneurial efforts within their organizations. Many go on to higher-level and global positions; some launch their own start-ups and develop entrepreneurial initiatives.

    Faculty

    Our programs are developed and taught by a diverse community of academics and industry leaders with hands-on, real-world experience in a range of industries.

    Learn more

  • Beyond the Classroom

    Deepen your studies and prepare for a career while still in school through internships, study abroad courses, and industry engagements with our extensive network of partners from a range of organizations and businesses.
    • TNS_Website-20170629_Internships_Yu-93.jpg

      Internships

      New York City’s thriving creative industry and cultural institutions are part of your Parsons education. Our Career Services Office is enmeshed in the art and design industries and can help you advance your career with industry-oriented internships.

      Learn More
    • TNS_Website-20170712_Cuba_IFP_041.jpg

      Funded Opportunities

      Funds earmarked for graduate travel, research, and work support your study. Opportunities include paid teaching assistantships, research fellowships and assistantships (including ones offered throughout The New School), ample student employment, and other grants available to U.S. domestic and international students alike.

      Learn More
    • TNS_Website-20191211_Specialized_Collection_029.jpg

      Industry Engagement

      Connect to the organizations, businesses, and entrepreneurs driving global creativity and commerce. In classes, internships, and extracurricular projects, you gain marketable problem solving skills in sectors ranging from government and nonprofits to tech and creative industries.

      Learn More
    • TNS_Website-011116_Healthy_Materials_Lab_033.jpg

      Research Labs

      Research is integral to the Parsons learning experience, and students and faculty work together to challenge existing paradigms and advance emerging scholarship and practice. Explore the thematic research laboratories housed at Parsons and throughout The New School.

      Learn More
    • TNS_Website-20200302_Kellen_Archives_005.jpg

      Making & Academic Resources

      As a Parsons student, you enjoy access to extensive resources including New School libraries, computer labs, archives, and studios, along with Parsons’ state-of-the-art Making Center, facilities offering a broad array of tools to support your creative and academic growth.

      Learn More

  • Take The Next Step

Submit your application

Undergraduates

To apply to any of our undergraduate programs (except the Bachelor's Program for Adults and Transfer Students and Parsons Associate of Applied Science programs) complete and submit the Common App online.

Undergraduate Adult Learners

To apply to any of our Bachelor's Program for Adults and Transfer Students and Parsons Associate of Applied Science programs, complete and submit the New School Online Application.

Graduates

To apply to any of our Master's, Doctoral, Professional Studies Diploma, and Graduate Certificate programs, complete and submit the New School Online Application.