The College of Business and Administration (COBA) and ABE offer the M.B.A./ABE M.S. concurrent degree program. The M.S. with a major in ABE requires the completion of 30 semester hours (thesis option) or 36 hours (non-thesis option). In the concurrent M.B.A./M.S. degree program, COBA accepts six semester hours of ABE approved coursework, and ABE accepts six semester hours of COBA approved coursework. The end result is that the concurrent degree requires completion of 26 semester hours of College of Business and Administration approved courses and 24 semester hours of ABE approved courses (thesis option) or 30 semester hours of ABE approved courses including a minimum of 6 semester hours of ABE courses at the 400 level (non-thesis option), or a decrease of 12 semester hours from pursuing both degrees separately.

The ABE M.S. as a part of this option requires satisfactory completion of ABE 500A, 500B, 551, 552, and 581 and additional elective hours. A research component of a thesis (thesis option) or research paper (non-thesis option) as specified for the Agribusiness Economics concentration must be completed for award of the ABE M.S.

Students interested in enrolling in the concurrent program must apply to and be accepted by both the graduate programs. Students enrolled in either the M.B.A. or ABE M.S. may subsequently seek permission to pursue the concurrent degree. Admission to the concurrent degree must be completed at least one semester before the last semester of registration at SIUC.