Cambridge Business Administration

The Cambridge MBA programme, ranked amongst the best in the world, is innovative, international and based on our strong ethos of collaborative learning and diversity.

Cambridge University has set the standards for learning around the world, a name recognised in every country as a mould-breaker, blazing trails in innovation, science, technology, law and business. Judge Business School, a world-leader in business education, stands at the heart of the University's relationship with the commercial world - it is where business and academia connect, producing one of the most exciting, challenging and innovative environments in the world to learn about business and management.

The Cambridge MBA is academically vigorous, and enables you to participate in lectures, workshops, seminars, forums, group discussions, and team and individual projects. You will interact with academic staff, business leaders and entrepreneurs, Cambridge students, and Cambridge alumni. This an opportunity of a lifetime, which will help you learn about management, yourself, and the importance of lifelong learning in helping you meet your long-term career goals.

Your Career

The Cambridge MBA is designed to accelerate the career of experienced professionals in the global marketplace. Our distinctive, innovative and collaborative programme, with an emphasis on team working and real-life projects, produces leaders who can work across disciplines and cultures to manage change, develop creative solutions to problems and improve performance. These attributes are highly valued by global employers.

The Cambridge MBA is academically rigorous and has its own distinct learning style. Inspired by the University's tradition of tutorial discussion and lively debate, our programme is taught through workshops, seminars, lectures, discussion groups, and team and individual projects. We bring together a dynamic class of more than 47 nationalities from a wide range of sectors and our class sizes are small, allowing you to interact directly with our faculty.

The Cambridge MBA consists of:

• core courses
• electives
• concentrations
• summer activity
• up to four consulting projects
• a flagship distinguished speaker series created exclusively for the Cambridge MBA

Core Courses

The core MBA courses start at the beginning of October with our Foundation module. Working with faculty and business practitioners, you will build a solid core of knowledge and enrich your personal understanding of management issues.

• Orientation (September)

• Foundation (October-December)

• Business Models (January-March)

• Boardroom (April-June)

• Summer Activity (July and August)

Electives

You will be able to choose five electives over the course of the year; two in Lent Term (Spring) and three in Easter Term (Summer). We bring in experts from both Cambridge University and the wider business and academic worlds to teach our extensive portfolio of advanced specialist courses. This is the ideal opportunity to broaden your experience, focus on subjects in which you are particularly interested, and make it your Cambridge MBA.

Concentrations

The Cambridge MBA Concentrations are run over the final part of the programme and are designed to allow you to customise your MBA and and consolidate your learning over the programme in your particular area of interest. Concentrations focus on specific sectors and bring together core and elective courses, academic coaching, careers development, wider University networking and individual summer activities.

We want people who have:

• excelled in previous academic achievements (top 25 per cent of class in undergraduate degree)
• are highly motivated and ambitious, thrive under pressure, and have already exhibited clear progression within their career
• have had some international experiences through their work and have a global outlook
• are confident, creative, innovative, with strong interpersonal and collaborative skills
• an interesting and varied life outside their work

Please note: there is an application fee payable of £150.

Our requirements

• Work experience. You must have a minimum of three years' work experience by the start of the intake you are applying for. The current class average is six years' of work experience.
• A GMAT/GRE score. You have to take either the GMAT or GRE to apply to Cambridge. We do not request a specific score range, but our average GMAT score in each cohort is c.690.
• A reference. You'll need one reference from a supervisor. We cannot accept an academic reference, or a reference from a relative. Decide who you would like them to be and ask them now. Applications are often held up because of references failing to be submitted. An automated reference request will be sent to your referee once you have entered their contact details into our online application system.
• The ability to finance your MBA. You need to think carefully now about how you plan to fund your MBA - do not wait until later. See our funding pages for more information.
• A visa. If you are a non-EU national, you will have to apply for a student visa in order to study in the UK. You should refer to the UK Visas & Immigration website for the latest information regarding student visas to ascertain if you require a visa and the criteria that you will have to fulfil. For more information, visit the Admissions Process section of our FAQs page.
• A completed application form. All applications must be submitted via our online application system. Candidates should submit their application by 17:00 GMT on the day of their chosen deadline.
• Essay questions on the form. 
• English language skills. You are required to show English language proficiency to apply for the Cambridge MBA. To demonstrate this, English must be your native language, or you must have a TOEFL score of at least 110, or an IELTS score of at least 7.5. Further details can be found in our English Language Policy.

Essay questions on the form

The following are the main essay questions on the Cambridge MBA application:

1. Please provide a personal statement. It should not exceed 500 words and must address the following questions:

• What are your short and long term career objectives and what skills/characteristics do you already have that will help you achieve them?
  • What actions will you take before and during the MBA to contribute to your career outcome?
  • If you are unsure of your post-MBA career path, how will the MBA equip you for the future?

1. What did you learn from your most spectacular failure? (200 words) 
2. Describe a situation where you had to work jointly with others to achieve a common goal. What did you learn from the experience? (up to 200 words)