MBA Admission Requirements

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Admission Criteria

• Hold a baccalaureate degree from an accredited four-year university.
• Have at least a 2.75, on a 4.0 scale, undergraduate GPA (overall or last 60 semester units).
• Complete/Satisfy the five pre-requisite courses before the start of your first semester (see below).
• Meet one of the following five criteria:
  1. Undergraduate GPA: A business degree from an AACSB-accredited school with a minimum GPA of 3.0 (cumulative or last 60 units) or a non-business degree with a minimum GPA of 3.2 (cumulative or last 60 units).
  2. Professional Experience: At least five years of full-time professional work experience, with internal promotion above entry-level and/or managerial role over people and/or budgets.
    • This work experience requires a bachelor’s degree.
    • This work experience must be attained after completing a bachelor’s degree.
    • An interview with the MBA admission committee and a letter from the supervisor/Manager attesting to the level of work responsibilities will be required.
  3. National Certification: Hold a current national certification.
    • Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
    • Certified Financial Accountant (CFA)
    • Chartered (or Certified) Property and Casualty Underwriters (CPCU)
    • Certified Liability Underwriter (CLU)
    • Professional in Human Resource Management (PHR)
    • Senior Professional in Human Resource Management (SPHR)
    • Other national certifications may be considered
  4. Business Owner: For business owners and operators: provision of documents establishing significant involvement in a multi-employee business and other qualifications.
    • An interview with the MBA admission committee will be required.
  5. Ph.D./Terminal degree from an accredited institution.
If you do not meet one of the five criteria above, the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) or the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) may be required.

Program Pre-Requisite Courses

All MBA applicants will be expected to demonstrate competency in the following topic areas identified as program prerequisites. Competency can be established by any one of the following:

  1. Proof of appropriate coursework at the undergraduate level;
  2. Taking a foundation knowledge course as recommended by the MBA Director;
  3. Completing an online review course and passing the appropriate competency exam.

For applicants with baccalaureate degrees not in business administration or those persons needing review, courses are available.

It is incumbent upon the student to provide such evidence to the BPA Graduate Programs office. Applicants should consult with the MBA Director regarding which course(s) might be appropriate.

  1. Business Math & Statistics (Equivalent to BA 3010 Data Analysis and Decision Making)
  2. Financial Accounting (Equivalent to ACCT 2200 Financial Reporting and Accounting)
  3. Understanding Corporate Finance (Equivalent to FIN 3000 Financial Management)
  4. Fundamentals of Economics (Equivalent to ECON 2018 Essentials of Microeconomics)
  5. Principles of Management (Equivalent to MGMT 3000 Organizational Behavior)

Competency can be established by any one of the following:

  1. Proof of appropriate coursework at the undergraduate level
    • Transcripts are evaluated to decide what pre-requisite courses have been satisfied.
  2. The CSUB MBA program has introduced low-cost and self-paced foundation knowledge courses that will satisfy the foundation requirements.
    • These will need to be completed by registration for your first semester.
    • The online self-guided classes are $100.00 each.
Self-Register