Credits
You will maintain a Journal of the time that you devote to each course. Your Journal will detail the time that you devoted to reading books for the course, researching collateral references, writing your course paper and revising your paper in response to comments from the Editor. You will submit your Journal to your reviewing Professor when you submit the paper for his or her review. You will earn one credit for each 20 hours that you devote to a course. For example, if you spend 60 hours on a course, you will receive three credits for the course.
We accept the transfer of earned credits from graduate degree programs or the equivalent, but only if the credits have not been applied toward earning a graduate degree. You may receive credits for major projects, such as books, articles and other written works that you have completed or are in the process of completing. For an assessment of the number of credits that you may receive for your relevant projects, please email accounting@rushmore.edu.
Master’s Programs
You may enroll in our Master's program without having a Bachelor's degree if we conclude that your previous educational studies or work experiences are a relevant complement to a Bachelor’s degree and that you have the potential to pursue an online Master's program.
Most Master’s of the following degrees:
- Master of Business Administration (MBA)
- Master of Practicing Management (MPM)
- Master of Science (MS)
- Master of Liberal Arts (MLA)
To earn a Master’s degree, you must complete 30 credits. Accordingly, you should expect to expend at least 600 hours of study on your Master's program.
In their Master’s programs, many students concentrate in a field of study, called a Major. Students may concentrate in any field that is relevant to their vocation and goals. Our most popular Majors include:
- Accounting
- Advertising
- Aviation Management
- Applied Management
- Brand Management
- Communications
- Computer Science
- Consulting
- E-commerce
- Economics
- Education
- Entrepreneurship
- Finance
- Financial Analysis
- Financial Planning
- General Management
- Government Administration
- Health Services Administration
- Hospitality Management
- Hotel Administration
- Human Resources
- Industrial Relations
- Information Technology
- Innovation Management
- Insurance and Risk Management
- International Business
- Investment Management
- Leadership
- Management
- Management Consulting
- Management Information Systems
- Manufacturing
- Marketing
- Mergers and Acquisitions
- Operations Research
- Organization Theory
- Portfolio Management
- Public Relations
- Risk Management
- Sales Management
- Small Business
- Statistics
- Strategic Planning
- Supply Chain Management
- Taxation
- Technology Management
- Training
You may also develop your own unique Major in an area that is not listed above. To concentrate in a Major, you must complete at least 40% of the credits required for the degree in that area. For a Master’s degree, this implies that at least 12 credits must be earned in courses devoted to the Major subject. When you finish your degree, your transcript will list your Majors.
Doctoral Programs
You may enroll in our Doctoral program without having a Master’s degree if we conclude that your previous educational studies or work experiences are a relevant substitute to a Master’s degree and that you have the potential to pursue an online Doctoral program.
Most Doctoral candidates pursue either a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) or a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA). To earn a Doctorate, you must complete 60 credits. You should expect to expend at least 1200 hours of study on your Doctoral program.
For a Doctoral degree, you must concentrate in a Major of your choice. At least 21 credits must be devoted to your area of concentration. You may also have dual Majors provided that 21 credits are derived from each area of concentration.
Additionally, for the PhD degree, you must complete a major project that is original, significant and relevant to your goals. The project can be a book, dissertation, business plan, seminar, published paper (in a professional, industry, trade or academic journal) or any other endeavor that is of comparable importance. With the permission of the Dean of Graduate Studies, you may collaborate on the project with a Rushmore Professor or student or an approved third party.
Rushmore also offers specialized Doctorates that are tailored to the needs of the student. Examples include:
- Doctor of Arts
- Doctor of Education
- Doctor of Health Administration
- Doctor of Leadership
- Doctor of Letters
- Doctor of Literature
- Doctor of Management
- Doctor of Research
- Doctor of Science
- Doctor of Studies
As with the PhD, all of the foregoing Doctorates require a significant project.