Human Resources & Industrial Relations Curriculum
The Master of Human Resources & Industrial Relations (MHRIR) program at Minnesota Carlson prepares you to lead where people and business performance intersect
MHRIR Program Format
The MHRIR is a full-time, 40-credit program with a fall start. You complete three semesters, fall, spring, and the following fall, finishing in 16 months. Add a semester to reach 20 months if you study abroad or take additional Carlson coursework.
Note: This curriculum takes effect for students entering Fall 2027. Students who entered before Fall 2027 follow the previous curriculum through graduation.
How the Program Works
Your journey to HR mastery is built on a two-part framework that balances rigorous functional training with the ultimate flexibility to shape your career path.
The HR Pillar: An Immersive Cohort Experience
Over your first fall and spring semesters, you will complete a curated set of 10 sequenced courses alongside a cohort of your peers. Designed to purposefully build on one another, these core classes seamlessly transform foundational HR concepts into applied strategic practice.
Business Foundations: Tailored to Your Ambitions
The second half of your degree is entirely yours to shape. You will curate 18 credits from Carlson graduate courses to build cross-functional expertise across four strategic domains: Financial, Business, Analytical, and People Systems.
The HR Pillar (22 credits)
Your cohort year. 10 courses over fall and spring semesters, taken in person with the same group of students, sequenced to build from foundations to applied practice. Each semester splits into two seven-week sessions, so you take fewer courses at once and go deeper in each.
| Competency area | Fall A | Fall B | Spring A | Spring B |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HR strategy | HR as a Business Partner (2) | Strategic HRM (2) | HR Impact Lab (4) | Continue HR Impact Lab |
| People analytics | Statistics prerequisite, if applicable | People Analytics I (2) | N/A | N/A |
| Staffing | Talent Acquisition (2) | Talent Development (2) | N/A | N/A |
| Rewards | N/A | N/A | Compensation Architecture & Design (2) | Total Rewards & Talent Strategy (2) |
| Labor relations | N/A | N/A | Labor Relations (2) | N/A |
| Organizational behavior | N/A | Organizational Behavior (2) | N/A | N/A |
Business Foundations (18 credits)
You select 18 credits from existing Carlson graduate courses across four areas. You integrate them throughout the program, and your entire third semester is Business Foundations. Meet each area's minimum, then fill the rest where your goals point.
That third semester is where the flexibility lives. With choice across courses and, for many, evening or online formats, you can shape it around your life, extending an internship or starting full-time work while you finish the degree.
- ACCT 5161: Financial Statement Analysis
- MBA 6031: Financial Accounting
- MBA 6035: Managerial Accounting
- MBA 6231: Financial Management
- MBA 6220: Supply Chain and Operations
- SCO 6098: Operations Excellence via Lean Thinking
- SCO 6094: Responsible Supply Chain and Operations Management
- SCO 6041: Project Management
- MKTG 6088: Strategic Marketing
- MBA 6141: Managerial Economics
- MBA 6301: Strategic Management
- MGMT 6031: Industry Analysis and Competitive Strategy
- MABA 6121: Practical Statistics for Business Applications*
- MSBA 6121: Practical Statistics for Business Applications*
- MBA 6121: Data Analysis & Statistics for Managers*
- MBA 6241: Competing in a Data-Driven Age
- HRIR 6112: People Analytics II
- SCO 6191: Big Data Analytics in Supply Chains
- MABA 6321: Data Management & Big Data
- MABA 6341: Data Visualization
- MABA 6251: AI for Competitive Advantage
- MABA 6141: Responsible AI
- HRIR 5222: Managing Diversity
- HRIR 5443: Principles of Coaching
- HRIR 6444: Employee Engagement and Wellbeing
- HRIR 6112: People Analytics II
- HRIR/MGMT 6484: Management of Teams
- LAW 6632: Employment Law
- LAW 6203: Labor Law
- MCOM 5535: Business Presentation Skills for Leaders
- MGMT 5451: Leading Change in the Workplace
- MGMT 6004: Negotiation Strategy
- MGMT 6035: Complex and Cross-Cultural Negotiations
- MGMT 6071: Strategic Management of Technological Change
- MGMT 6311: Developing Cultural Agility: Leading and Collaborating in a Globalized Workplace
- MGMT 6465: Leadership & Personal Development
*Statistics prerequisite
People Analytics I requires prior statistics coursework. There are two ways to satisfy the Statistics prerequisite:
- Taking MSBA 6121, MABA 6121, or MBA 6121.
- Earn a B+ or better in prior coursework covering means, variance, correlations, bivariate regression, multivariable regression, interaction effects (moderators), statistical inference, and hypothesis testing, along with practice interpreting insights from data in applied data.
If you satisfy the prerequisite with prior coursework, you'll take two credits from the Analytical systems list instead. If you don't, plan to take MABA 6121, MSBA 6121, or MBA 6121, or seek permission to take another course to fulfill this requirement.
Meet Your Faculty
You'll learn from Work and Organizations faculty who research the exact problems you'll study, staffing, rewards, labor relations, analytics, and how people behave at work, and who are regularly asked to weigh in on them in the press. A sample of their recent work:
Professor and Academic Director of the MHRIR program
Professor Benson studies the economics of human resources: hiring, promotions, performance evaluation, and compensation. Teaches Compensation and Benefits in the program. His research on why strong performers don't always make strong managers has been covered by the NY Times, WSJ, NPR, and The Economist.
In the News: What Makes a Good Manager? The Economist
Industrial Relations Land Grant Chair and Professor
Professor Budd studies labor relations, collective bargaining, and labor policy. Author of Labor Relations: Striking a Balance and past president of the Labor and Employment Relations Association.
In the News: Union workers score big pay gains as labour action sweeps US, Financial Times
Associate Professor
Professor Campbell studies teams, high performers, and how a standout performer shapes the people around them. Teaches leadership development in the MBA and master's programs.
In the News: Listen up: This is the leadership skill that businesses underestimate, Star Tribune
Professor
Professor Ben-Ner studies how organizations are designed and how they perform, along with the behavioral economics of trust, cooperation, and social preferences at work. His current work examines how new technologies like robotics and AI reshape employment and skills.
A Sample of Their Recent Work: Sharing Is Caring: Employee Stock Ownership Plans and Employee Satisfaction in US Manufacturing, ILR Review
Professor and Board of Overseers Professorship; Faculty Director of CHRLS Department of Work and Organizations
Professor Manchester Studies workplace benefits and policies, including flexible work, retirement savings, and how caregiving shapes careers.
A Sample of Their Recent Work: HQ Economy: Twin Cities Talent Retention Strong, Headwinds on Horizon
Curtis L. Carlson Professor of Industrial Relations Chair, Department of Work and Organizations
Professor Kammeyer-Mueller studies how employees adjust to new jobs, how careers develop, and what drives employee turnover. Co-author of the widely used textbook Staffing Organizations and a past faculty director of the MHRIR program.
A Sample of Their Recent Work: The Ear of the Beholder: Does Listener Introversion Predict Perceptions of Being Heard?, Journal of Vocational Behavior
Senior Lecturer
Professor Luke brings HR leadership experience from IBM, 3M and Thomson Reuters to the classroom. An ICF Certified Coach, he teaches with an emphasis on active engagement and hands-on learning.
Professor, The Toro Company-David M. Lilly Chair in Organizational Behavior
Professor Glomb studies workplace well-being, emotions at work, and job attitudes, including how small changes improve both performance and how people feel doing the work.
In the News: How to manage your time so you don't feel overwhelmed, MPR News
Customize Your Path
Shape the degree around where you want to go.
Specialization in People Analytics
Want to go deeper on the data side of HR? The optional People Analytics specialization builds on Minnesota Carlson's strength in business analytics and the growing role of data, technology, and AI in how HR gets done.
You complete the MHRIR core plus the specialization requirements across four semesters, and you graduate with integrated skills across HR, business, and analytics.
Study Abroad
Complete Business Foundations credits with a semester in Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, or Switzerland. Or take a 4-credit, two-week program during January or May term in Australia, Ghana, Morocco, Poland, or Sweden. Explore study abroad options.
Explore HR & IR Courses
SHRM Aligned
Minnesota Carlson’s Master of Human Resources & Industrial Relations program is proudly recognized by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), ensuring alignment with industry standards and best practices.
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