Online MBA Entry Requirements – UK Universities

Unsure if you could get a place at a top business school or if you have the right career experience for an MBA? This article will cover the key admissions criteria required by UK business School online MBA programmes.

UK Online MBA Entry Requirements: What You Need to Know

Securing a place on an MBA can be competitive. University admissions are looking at two main areas when considering applications; career experience and academic ability. To benefit from an MBA you need to have real world, work experience. If you do not have enough career experience an MBA is not the right course for you. Conversely, if you have a solid career background and progression but do not have an undergraduate degree you can still secure a place at a top business school.

Work Experience: How Much is Needed for an Online MBA in the UK?

To join an MBA, applicants are required to have a minimum of three years’ qualifying work experience. For the majority of universities qualifying work experience means working in one of the following roles.

+Managerial

+Professional

+Technical

For online MBAs the average work experience of students 5 to 10 plus years. The flexible, part-time format is ideal for people who are already established in their career and can’t take a year out of work to study full-time.

If you lack three years of qualifying experience, are not in a specific profession, or don’t have management experience, an MBA might not be the right master’s degree for the stage you are at in your career. If you are at the beginning of your working life you should be open to exploring MA or MSc qualifications in business administration that don’t require work experience or working for another few years before applying to an MBA.

Our guide on MBA work experience requirements  has more information and advice on how to present your career experience in your application. 

Academic Qualifications for UK Online MBAs

Firstly, standard entry requirements require an undergraduate degree. Top UK business schools often ask for a 2:1 or above, but for the vast majority of MBAs, a 2:2 is sufficient.

If you graduated with less than a 2:2, you may still be able to gain a place on a competitive MBA if you have strong career experience and exposure.

Likewise, if your undergraduate degree is not business-related, but your career experience demonstrates that you would benefit from an MBA, and the admissions team will factor this in when assessing your application.

For MBA applicants, having strong work or management experience is important. Management experience can make up for having an unrelated bachelor’s degree or average grades when applying to leading business schools

Do You Need Maths For a Master’s in Business Administration?

The short answer is yes. Basic math skills are vital for an MBA, but the level of maths required varies greatly between programmes. At a minimum, you should have basic number sense and be confident working with percentages and basic statistics.

For programmes with a focus on finance, for example, it is good to demonstrate that you have experience, either from education or in work of any of the following.

+Algebra

+Calculus

+Statistics

+Probability

On some MBAs, the maths can be intense, and without prior maths experience, it would be a struggle for students to keep up with the pace of study. Other MBAs have much lighter quantitative content and are suitable for people without a maths-heavy background. You should be able to get a feel for the quantitative content of an MBA by looking at the modules and entry requirements.

Non-Degree Certificates and Qualifications

Some business schools will accepts certain professional body qualifications and memberships in place of an undergraduate degree. These are some of the most commonly accepted finance and accounting professional qualifications.

+Full membership of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in the UK or Ireland (ICAEW, ICAS or Chartered Accountants Ireland)

+Full membership of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accounting (CIPFA)

+Associateship or Fellowship of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA)

+Full membership of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)

Other level 6 and above qualifications can be accepted by business schools as long as they are in a relevant subject and hold enough credits.

+Level 6/ 7 Award

+Level 6/ 7 Certificate

+Level 6/ 7 Diploma

+Level 6/ 7 NVQ

If you have a non-degree qualification at level 6 or higher, it’s a good idea to contact the admissions teams of the programmes you’re interested in. Different schools have their own rules about which qualifications they accept

No Degree? You Might Still Have Options to Join a Top MBA.

Some business schools accept applicants with strong carer experience without an undergraduate degree. Universities use a formal process called Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning, or APEL for short. APEL is a way of mapping career experience against the UK qualifications framework. Not all universities offer this entry route and due to the amount of work required by university staff there is often a fee pre-payable to apply using this route.

Other universities may ask candidates to sit a special qualifying exam in place of a degree. Some business schools are open about this pathway on to their MBA and Msc programmes while others do not openly promote the option, but offer it to strong candidates who have the career experience they are looking for in their students.

Please be aware that these routes are for strong candidates, who have demonstrated through career achievements and progression that they are capable and will benefit from taking a postgraduate business qualification. APEL or other routes are not an option if a candidate does not have enough work experience or the work experience is not at the right level.

GMAT and GRE Scores: Are They Required for UK Online MBAs?

GMAT or GRE scores are not normally required for UK university MBA applications. However, there are some situation where taking one of these tests can increase the chances of getting on to your chosen MBA.

Remember, the admission teams look at an application as a whole and if you have a weakness in one area you can make up for it in others to make your application competitive. So if you only just meet the work experience requirements, cannot demonstrate your quantitative skills or are planning on requesting APEL, then having a good score on either of these test can have a positive impact.

English Language Requirements for Non-Native Speakers

International students will need to take a Secure English Language Test (SELT) to demonstrate they are suitable to study at postgraduate level in English.

You can apply for MBAs before you take a test and receive conditional offer letter dependent on getting a certain score in one of the following commonly accepted english language tests.

The scores below are general guidelines for postgraduate english language requirements. Some MBAs will accept lower or require higher grades. It is always best to check with each university you are applying to for their exact requirements.