HELVET'S
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF GOVERNANCE, GENEVA
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
You’ve Got Questions. We’ve Got Answers.
HOW VALUABLE IS AN ISGG DEGREE IN TERMS OF CAREER PROSPECTS ?
ISGG caters for the needs of students who wish to pursue international careers in the public, private or third sectors. The mix of degree subject-matter offered has been conceived after careful consideration of major trends affecting today’s world and its foreseeable future. While such topics may be singly dealt with elsewhere, they are seldom found together in the curricula of conventional universities : this is what makes ISGG unique – not to mention its core academic team’s high concentration of renowned senior academics, former cabinet ministers, senior international civil servants, and business leaders. Accreditation through the French National Registry of Professional Certifications guarantees the value of ISGG’s Master’s and Executive Master’s degree offerings.
WHAT DOES ISGG’S BILINGUALISM AMOUNT TO, AND WHAT EXPECTATIONS DOES IT INVOLVE ?
ISGG is a bilingual (English/ French) school : however, the balance between the two teaching languages is uneven. Though theses can use either language at whatever level, only a minority among Master’s courses are offered in French annually. Full command of English is thus required, while fair mastery of French is only recommended (it is not mandatory at the time of enrolment). But English-speaking applicants should note that taking at least one course in French is considered a plus in that it manifests a will and effort on the student’s part to gain fluency in two international languages.
WHAT STUDY LOAD CAN I EXPECT AS PART OF MY DEGREE PROGRAMME ?
That depends on your chosen pace of learning. At doctoral level, experience suggests that 20 to 25 hours a week throughout the year is the standard to sustain over three to five years if your dissertation is to be brought to a successful conclusion. At Master’s level, online multimedia lectures and written documents for each and every course in the programme are delivered over three terms of 12 weeks each per year of enrolment. If you choose to restrict your annual study periods to those 36 weeks, and if (as strongly recommended) you devote 2 hours of personal study for each online tuition hour, the load comes to some 22 hours a week. If, however, your preferred option is to spread the load over the entire year (of, say, 48 weeks – thus allowing time for a decent vacation), it comes down to 17 hours a week, i.e. slightly over three hours a day on average. This seems compatible with full-time employment besides studying for the degree pursued.
Yet, that is not the full story. Do not forget that, apart from coursework, Master’s students also have an initiation-to-research thesis to submit before completion of the programme, and that (notably the research and thinking that go into it) certainly requires a lot of attention. So that, while perfectly manageable for motivated students, the ISGG curriculum implies a robust determination to succeed on their part.
DOES ISGG REQUIRE APPLICANTS TO SUBMIT SCORES FROM A STANDARDIZED TEST ?
No : GRE (Graduate Record Examination) or GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test) scores are not required of applicants. ISGG’s standard application screening procedure only involves qualitative evaluation of the candidate’s academic record on the basis of the documents he or she submits. (See “Admissions/ Application Procedure”). Its general inspiration is to determine whether his or her profile and past achievements augur well for their chances of success at post-graduate level.
Nonetheless, if an applicant has previously taken a GRE or GMAT test and obtained a medium-to-high score, he or she can mention it (and attach the transcript to the documents required for admission) in order to improve his/her chances of acceptance. Note, however, that the position may be different as regards language skills.
IS PROOF OF PROFICIENCY IN EITHER ENGLISH OR FRENCH REQUIRED ?
Yes – but only if you are not a native speaker of English, or unless your previous track record includes (educational or work) experience of English as a working language for at least one year. If such is not the case, your command of English needs to be tested to ensure that you will derive maximum benefits from the knowledge imparted and training delivered. Note that the same rule applies to French only if it is the language chosen to write your dissertation or thesis.
Such proof assumes the form of minimum test score levels achieved prior to submitting the application : TOEFL (computer-based : 240/ paper-based : 587/ Internet-based : 95) ; TOEIC (800) ; or IELTS (6.5) for English ; DAFL (C1) for French.
HOW MUCH GUIDANCE AND PERFORMANCE MONITORING WILL I RECEIVE ?
Distance-learning students have a special need to receive feedback on how well they make sense of and absorb tuition material. ISGG lecturers answer questions that the students taking their course may have : they do so by electronic means. They also monitor (as well as moderate) the forum where students exchange their experiences as regards the said course. Should the number of students attending it be too large for the lecturer to manage the flow of queries, assistants step in to ensure that no need for clarification or help is left unmet.
MAY I MIX PROGRAMMES AND MAKE UP MY OWN COURSE MENU ?
You may indeed “borrow” a course from another programme either in lieu of one you are supposed to take as part of your own chosen programme, or as an addition to your “normal” list of courses. If limited to one course, this possibility is opened free of charge. Any supplementary “borrowed” course will be charged 1,300 Swiss francs. Note that it is inadvisable, for pedagogical reasons, to “borrow” more than three courses.