WIPO Director General Launches 1st Edition of Master’s Degree in IP Business
August 16, 2023
WIPO Director General Daren Tang opened the inaugural edition of WIPO’s first Joint Master’s Degree Program on intellectual property (IP) and business on August 15, 2023 at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS). The new Master of IP and Innovation Management (IP Business) program is offered by WIPO in partnership with the SUSS School of Business.
Mr. Tang welcomed the first cohort of 15 students representing 11 countries, as they embark on their yearlong learning journey.
IP and Business Education
The IP Business graduate program includes a distance learning phase, followed by a residential phase at SUSS and the submission of an applied research project. Through interactive lessons taught by SUSS professors, industry professionals and WIPO experts, participants gain practical knowledge and skills on a range of topics such as:
- IP asset management;
- IP and business strategy;
- IP licensing; and
- Commercializing innovation.
The Global Landscape of IP Education
Following the launch of the IP Business graduate program, Mr. Tang took part in a fireside chat about the global challenges and opportunities facing IP, and IP education in particular. Over 260 participants attended the fireside chat in-person and remotely. He highlighted how the new Master of IP and Innovation Management (IP Business) will benefit the IP ecosystem through upskilling students in IP.
In officially launching this program today, we are taking yet another concrete step to make WIPO’s new vision of IP a reality. Under this new vision, we want to see IP transformed from a technical subject of interest only to IP experts and specialists into a powerful catalyst that drives job creation, investments, business growth, and ultimately economic development in all regions of the world. And, aligned with this, to transform IP education by focusing not just on its legal aspects, but also on its business, trade, economic, and financial aspects, and to bring IP skills and capabilities to a wider range of people who want to use it to translate an idea into reality.
Daren Tang, WIPO Director General