Master of Industrial and Labor Relations (M.I.L.R.) Degree Program Policy
Note: As policies are occasionally updated, each individual's degree requirements are regulated by the policy in effect at the time of his or her matriculation.
- Objectives of the M.I.L.R. Degree Program
- Administration of the Program
- Admissions
- Advisors
- Credit and Registration Unit Requirements
- Course and Concentration Requirements
- Courses and Grades
- Language Requirements
- Teaching Requirements
- Thesis/Dissertation
- Examinations
- Recommendations for the Degree
- One-Year M.I.L.R. Degree Option
1. Objectives of the M.I.L.R. Degree Program
The Master of Industrial and Labor Relations (M.I.L.R.) Degree Program is designed to provide a graduate course of study for those with professional interests in industrial and labor relations, to gain a broad-based foundation in Human Resources and Labor Relations with a specific focus on the interaction between people, organizations and the workplace.
2. Administration of the Program
The Graduate Field of Industrial and Labor Relations administers the general requirements for the M.I.L.R. Degree through the ILR Graduate Committee. This Committee is composed of six elected faculty members, with the ILR Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and the ILR Director of Graduate Studies as ex officio members. This Committee reviews applications for admission, administers the program of study, and recommends the awarding of the degree for those who have satisfactorily met the requirements.
3. Admissions
Requirements for admission to the M.I.L.R. Degree Program include:
- A Bachelor's degree in the Social Sciences, Liberal Arts, Business Administration, Engineering, or other approved fields, with adequate preparation for graduate work in Industrial and Labor Relations.
- Aptitude for graduate work as demonstrated by the GRE or GMAT examination and other appropriate criteria, including undergraduate (and previous graduate level) success and academic recommendations. NOTE: there is no specific minimum test score or GPA; applications are considered on all relative merits.
- A demonstrated desire and goals appropriate to this field of study, especially as expressed in the statement of purpose.
Applicants are required to submit a completed Cornell Graduate Application (and application fee), a statement of purpose, complete transcripts from all institutions attended, GRE or GMAT Test scores* (TOEFL Scores from international applicants) and a minimum of 2 academic letters of recommendation, (up to 2 additional professional recommendations are allowed). A resume or CV is detailing work experience is encouraged but not required.
*Foreign graduate students are admitted with the same criteria as US citizens, including the results of the aptitude tests of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). Foreign students whose native language is other than English must submit the results of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the GRE analytical writing section.
4. Advisors
Each M.I.L.R. student studies under the immediate supervision of a faculty advisor. The ILR Graduate Committee selects advisors for incoming students. The candidate is encouraged to select an advisor consistent with his or her interests anytime after the end of instruction in the first semester. The advisor aids in the planning and development of the candidate's program. NOTE: The Advisor fills the role otherwise known as "Special Committee Chairperson" under Cornell Graduate School general policy. A Special Graduate Committee is not required for students in the M.I.L.R. degree program.
5. Credit and Registration Unit Requirements
Satisfactory completion of forty-eight credit hours and minimum of two registration units (16 approved courses - see below) are required. A registration unit is defined a semester of full time study completed successfully and approved by the student's advisor.
Registration beyond two years. The MILR is a two-year program and students are expected to complete it within that time period. Students who wish to continue in the MILR beyond four semesters must have a compelling academic reason, but do not need to petition for approval to stay for an additional semester. Teaching assistantships are limited, and MILRs who stay an additional semester typically will not be eligible to receive a teaching assistantship from the ILR School.
Minimum and Maximum credit hours. All MILR students must take at least 12 credit hours and cannot take more than 20 credit hours each semester.
6. Course and Concentration Requirements
All M.I.L.R. candidates must complete the following six basic courses:
- ILRCB5000 Collective Bargaining
- ILRCB5010 Labor Relations Law and Legislation
- ILRST5110 Statistical Methods for the Social Sciences
- ILROB5200 Organizational Behavior Analysis
- ILRLE5400 Labor Economics
- ILRHR5600 Human Resources Management
Students who can demonstrate, to the satisfaction of a faculty representative of the appropriate subject area, that they have met the requirements for a required course in the M.I.L.R. program may petition for a waiver of the requirement. Petitions for waiver must be endorsed by a department representative (preferably the faculty member offering the course), and approved by the student’s advisor. Department representatives should endorse petitions for waiver only if they have determined, by examination or by other appropriate means, that the student’s grasp of the subject matter is equivalent to that which he would obtain in the M.I.L.R. required course. A waiver does not exempt M.I.L.R. students from completing the total number of credit hours required for the degree, but may permit greater flexibility in the candidate's course selections to fill out the program credit requirements.
M.I.L.R. students must declare a major concentration no later than the end of the second semester of full time study. Students may change concentrations by notifying the ILR Graduate Committee (but must complete all requirements for the degree under the finally selected concentration). Students can choose to combine 2 concentrations but must have a committee member representing each concentration on the Special Graduate Committee. The five M.I.L.R. concentrations are:
- Human Resources and Organizations - Students gain both a strategic overview of the HR function in an organization and a thorough understanding of the traditional activities of a human resource professional. This two-prong approach provides students with theoretical and practical applications. Faculty and students actively engage in discussion with senior corporate HR executives and gain hands on understanding of challenges and problem solving in organizations. In addition to six core M.I.L.R. courses, students can choose among courses in staffing, training and development, compensation, organizational behavior (micro and macro), comparative and international human resource management, computer application, human resource metrics, on-line research and reports, semester in manufacturing, human resource management for growing companies, and strategic human resource management.
- Labor Market Policy - The M.I.L.R. policy concentration seeks to prepare students for careers in public policy directed toward labor markets. These careers analyze, develop, and administer public policy, and will often bridge government, private firms, and non-profit organizations. The curriculum provides students with skills that will enable them to evaluate government policies, and with knowledge of public and private institutions that is fundamental to the operation of the labor market. Students take six M.I.L.R. core courses in addition to six courses that explicitly provide preparation for public policy oriented careers. These include two courses in the principles of policy evaluation, two courses in public policy directed toward labor markets, and two general policy courses that are selected by students subject to advisor approval.
- Collective Representation - This collective representation concentration is designed to prepare M.I.L.R. students for careers in corporate industrial relations, trade unions, and governmental industrial relations roles. The curriculum can meet the needs of students who want to pursue a career in the United States or in an international setting. Recent graduates have taken positions as Director of Organizing for an industrial union, Labor Relations Specialist for the Federal Government, Corporate Director of Labor Relations, Field Examiner for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), Labor Negotiator for a state Civil Service Association and Researcher for the International Labor Organization (ILO). Given the diversity in these career options, the concentration is quite flexible and is intended to meet student needs and interests. Like the other M.I.L.R. concentrations this concentration requires that students complete the six core M.I.L.R. courses and an additional six "elective" concentration courses. There are no set requirements regarding the nature of the elective courses. Rather, students should design a course of study that suits their needs with the advice of their advisor. Students can choose as an advisor a faculty member in any one of the three core areas in the collective bargaining, labor law, and labor history department. Students are also permitted to choose as an advisor a faculty member in one of the other ILR departments.
- Dispute Resolution - This concentration is designed to prepare M.I.L.R. students for careers in conflict resolution (mediation, arbitration, and other neutral roles). The curriculum is designed for students who want to work in the United States for the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Services (FMCS) or the Department of Labor, in international agencies such as the International Labor Organization (ILO), or in other organizations dealing with conflict resolution. Given the diversity in these career options, the concentration is quite flexible and is intended to address student needs and interests.
- International and Comparative Labor - The "International" concentration seeks to provide MILR students the opportunity to increase their understanding of international and comparative industrial relations, human resources and organizations, and labor markets. Paticulary, it is expected that students will understand how different IR and HR policies and labor market institutions "work" in different national contexts.
Each concentration has a coordinator, and each concentration maintains and publishes its specific list of requirements and required courses. The concentrations are independent of the ILR Departments (which are Collective Bargaining, Labor Law, and Labor History; Human Resource Studies; International and Comparative Labor; Labor Economics; Organizational Behavior; and Social Statistics). Students who combine 2 concentrations must complete 6 courses in each concentration. A maximum of 3 courses which overlap both concentrations can be counted toward both areas.
Additional courses, seminars, or equivalent programs of study, are chosen by the candidate, which added to the required courses must total forty-eight (48) credit hours and no fewer than sixteen (16) courses.
7. Courses and Grades
All courses taken toward fulfillment of the M.I.L.R. degree requirements must meet all of the following criteria:
- The course number must be 400 level or above.
- The course must be taken for a letter grade - pass/fail or S/U grade option courses do not count toward M.I.L.R. degree requirements.
- The final course grade must be C or above.
- The course must be for a full semester and carry 3 or more credit hours
- Independent Study Projects (ILR 799) may be applied toward MILR degree requirements if they contain substantial academic merit on subject material not covered in scheduled courses. A formal proposal must be submitted to the Graduate Committee for approval prior to undertaking the project. A maximum of 2 Independent Study Projects, and not more than 8 credit hours total, will be counted toward degree requirements.
- No course credit is allowed for internships and Independent Study Project credit will not be granted for internships.
Preapproved exceptions to above course policies:
- ILRCB 301 is allowed for degree credit.
- Semester in Manufacturing (SIM or SSO) at the Johnson School may be counted toward HR concentration or elective credit with advisors approval, if all Core course requirements are fulfilled.
- ILRHR 266 is not allowed for degree credit under any circumstances.
- 1 or 2 credit, or partial semester courses, meeting all other criteria, may count toward the 48 credit hours but not the 16 courses. Certain courses have been pre-approved to be counted toward MILR degree credit, under the following conditions:
Separately, the courses may count toward the 48 credits but not toward the 16 courses. However, two (or more) of these courses may be combined or added together for MILR degree credit. If they are both (all) taken for a letter grade, and the sum of the credits is at least 3, then the sum of the credits will count toward the 48 credits, and the two (or more) courses together will count as 1 of the 16 courses. See list of pre-approved courses. - Foreign language courses, under the 400 level, may be taken for MILR Degree credit, up to a maximum of 8 credit hours. "English as a Second Language" courses do not qualify for this policy exemption.
For any other exceptions or deviations from policy: The student must petition the Director of Graduate Studies, for other exceptions, prior to taking the course in question.
A minimum grade of C is required for credit toward the degree, and students must maintain a grade average of not less than B. Failure to maintain these standards may be grounds for termination of assistantships or fellowships and/or dismissal from the program. At the end of each term, the ILR Graduate Committee or the Director of Graduate Studies will review the grade records and issue warning notices or recommendations for dismissal, as appropriate.
8. Language Requirements
There are no language requirements for M.I.L.R. degree candidates.
9. Teaching Requirements
There are no teaching requirements for M.I.L.R. degree candidates.
10. Thesis/Dissertation
There are no final thesis or dissertation requirements for M.I.L.R. degree candidates.
11. Examinations
Admission to Candidacy exams and Final Thesis Defense exams are not required by this degree program.
12. Recommendations for the Degree
Recommendations for the M.IL.R. Degree are made by the ILR Graduate Committee to the Faculty of the Field of Industrial and Labor Relations on the basis of satisfactory completion of all course and residence requirements. The Cornell University Graduate Faculty approves the awarding of all degrees.
13. One-Year M.I.L.R. Degree Program
A student who holds a J.D. , M.B.A. from a US Institution or a Cornell B.S. ILR may apply for the one-year M.I.L.R. degree program. Not all applicants with these degrees will be permitted to enroll in the one year option. The Graduate Committee will make the determination based each student's background and instituitions where the degrees were earned. General M.I.L.R. Degree Program policies stated above are the same for students approved to complete the program with a One Year Option except for the following. Students in the one-year M.I.L.R. program must
- Take a total of thirty credits
- Take, or successfully petition to waive, all six of the required M.I.L.R. core courses
- Take, or successfully waive, four of the six concentration courses (with advisors having the same flexibility here that they have for other M.I.L.R.s)
- Take as many relevant and appropriate electives as needed to fulfill the thirty credit requirement.
- Students with the BS ILR will be expected to participate in a 6-12 month extended co-op internship experience, before the completion of the MILR Degree.