Full Time MBA

Practical focus

At Leeds, we focus on practice-based learning. An integral part of your MBA experience is the opportunity to work with industry and put the knowledge and skills you learn into practice. You’ll work with a range of organisations, consider different business case studies, learn from guest speakers, and apply your skills through the completion of three live challenges.

Live Challenges

The live challenges have been designed to give you the skills needed to step up to a C-suite position, pursue a career in consulting or start your own business. The challenges are devised in collaboration with business practitioners and real organisations, allowing you to apply your knowledge to genuine, contemporary business challenges.

The New Venture Challenge, part of the Strategic and Entrepreneurial Management module, allows you to generate ideas for new commercial opportunities, often for a high-profile global organisation.

During the Leading in Practice module, the Consulting Challenge gives you the chance to provide consultancy support to an external business, usually a social enterprise or voluntary sector organisation.

At the culmination of your MBA experience, the capstone Innovation Challenge allows you to draw on everything you have learnt on the MBA to develop a new product or service as part of the Creative and Innovative Thinking module. Specialist services such as Spark, our on-campus business start-up incubator, can also help you develop your ideas further and take your new product or service to market.

Find out more about the MBA live challenges.

Professional connections

The Leeds MBA will connect you to a network of corporate partners, practitioners and alumni, with plenty of opportunities to build your own professional network through your practice-based work. We have existing relationships with Marks & Spencer, IBM, Yorkshire Bank, Asda, Lloyds Banking Group, Universal Music, KPMG and the NHS, as well as many small and medium-sized enterprises, charities and social enterprises.

You’ll meet prominent external speakers and connect with business professionals through networking opportunities, guest speaker events and alumni talks. Studying alongside MBA colleagues from a range of professional backgrounds will also broaden your perspective and provide you with a close support network that will extend beyond graduation.

Find out more about our MBA cohort

You’ll also have the opportunity to take part in an international study tour, enabling you to extend your global awareness and experience first-hand the challenges and opportunities facing organisations around the world. Find out more about our international study tours.

• We focus on applied, practice-based learning. Through our three live challenges, you’ll have the opportunity to test your knowledge in challenging, fast-paced, business scenarios, working with real, contemporary organisational problems.
• Personal and professional development support is woven into the course. You’ll benefit from specialist MBA careers coaching, both while you’re studying, and after you graduate.
• You’ll benefit from our extensive global industrial links. You’ll experience this through guest speaker events, networking opportunities, alumni talks and your live challenge partner organisations.
• You’ll become part of a diverse MBA cohort. We focus on bringing together driven business professionals from all over the world with a wide variety of industrial backgrounds and specialisms.
• You’ll study in the UK’s fastest growing city. Leeds is a leader in the digital, financial and tech sectors and boasts more than 32,000 VAT-registered businesses and 6,000 SMEs.

Find out more about studying your MBA at Leeds University Business School.

The Leeds MBA begins with an induction that will ensure you gain the most from your MBA experience. You are introduced to the learning culture and the study skills you’ll need to succeed. You’ll also have time to meet and network with the other professionals in your cohort.

Through a variety of taught modules, you’ll gain an understanding of the key components of business management – marketing, accounting, finance, operations and human resource management.

Alongside these subjects, we explore how to manage and lead people in organisations through modules in decision making, organisational behaviour, strategy, entrepreneurship and leading in practice.

You’ll learn how to solve problems and develop solutions through modules on creative and analytical thinking, as well as exploring emerging business trends and developments, such as Artificial Intelligence and digital transformation.

You’ll also deepen your understanding of the broader business landscape through modules such as International Management and the Economics of Strategy.

You’ll put your new skills and knowledge to the test by tackling three live challenges. The Creative and Innovative Thinking module will culminate in a live, capstone challenge – an opportunity to apply the skills and knowledge you’ve acquired to deliver a business plan for a new product or service.

Course structure

The list shown below represents typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our terms and conditions.

For more information and a full list of typical modules available on this course, please read Full Time MBA in the course catalogue

Modules

Year 1

Learning and teaching

We use a variety of teaching and learning methods to help you make the most of your studies. These will include lectures, seminars, workshops and tutorials. Your interactions with other students are also a key element of your learning experience.

Independent study is also vital for this course allowing you to prepare for taught classes and sharpen your own research and critical skills. Our Virtual Learning Environment will help to support your studies: it’s a central place where you can find all the information and resources for the school, your programme and modules.

As an MBA student, you’ll make use of specialist business facilities, including our two MBA boardrooms.

On this course, you’ll be taught by our expert academics, from lecturers through to professors. You may also be taught by industry professionals with years of experience, as well as trained postgraduate researchers, connecting you to some of the brightest minds on campus.

Assessment

Assessment methods emphasise not just knowledge, but essential skills development too. This may include formal exams, group projects, reports, simulation exercises, essays and written assignments, group and individual presentations and reflective logs.

This diversity enables you to develop a broad range of skills as preparation for professional life.

Entry requirements

Work experience

More than three years of postgraduate work experience is required before you apply. Five years minimum of postgraduate work experience is usually desirable. All work experience must include at least three years of appropriate management responsibility (projects, teams, divisions, business units etc.) and show significant career progression.

If you don't have the required amount of work experience, you might like to consider our MSc Management.

Academic

A good Bachelor degree (equivalent of a UK 2:1 hons degree), or an acceptable professional qualification.

A GMAT score is not a mandatory requirement in most cases; however, if your degree qualification is below a 2:1 (hons) or overseas equivalent, or you don’t have a formal or professional qualification, you may be asked to complete a Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) with a minimum score of 600 (GMAT scores should be valid for the year of entry). These applications are considered at the discretion of the Programme Director.

We do encourage candidates who have undertaken the GMAT examination to submit their scores to enhance their application. Please upload a copy of your official GMAT score report in the qualifications section of your online application – we do not accept paper copies by post.

International qualifications

We accept a range of international equivalent qualifications.

English language requirements

IELTS 6.5 overall, with no less than 6.0 in any component. For other English qualifications, read English language equivalent qualifications.

Improve your English

International students who do not meet the English language requirements for this programme may be able to study our postgraduate pre-sessional English course, to help improve your English language level.

This pre-sessional course is designed with a progression route to your degree programme and you’ll learn academic English in the context of your subject area. To find out more, read Language for Business Management and Enterprise (6 weeks) and Language for Business: Business Management and Enterprise (10 weeks).

We also offer online pre-sessionals alongside our on-campus pre-sessionals. Find out more about our six week online pre-sessional.

You can also study pre-sessionals for longer periods – read about our postgraduate pre-sessional English courses.

How to apply

Application deadlines

Applicants are encouraged to apply as early as possible; our deadlines are as follows:

International applicants: Thursday 26 June 2025

UK applicants: Friday 15 August 2025

Find out more about how to apply for the Leeds MBA.

Apply

The ‘Apply’ link at the top of this page will take you to information on applying for taught programmes and to the University's online application system.

If you're unsure about the application process, contact the admissions team for help.

Documents and information you need

As part of your application you will need to submit:

• A completed application form
• An up-to-date CV, showing evidence of the required amount of work experience (More than three years of postgraduate work experience is required before you apply. Five years of postgraduate work experience is desirable. All work experience must include at least three years appropriate management responsibility and show significant career progression)
• Original academic qualification transcripts, certificates and certified translations (if your documents are not in English)
• Evidence of your English language qualifications, if English is not your first language. You can apply for the MBA before you take an approved English language test
• Personal statement - please see guidance on our How to apply page
• Contact details of two references, one academic and one professional.It may be appropriate to select referees from your professional area of work if you have been out of education for more than 5 years or are applying with evidence of work experience.
• If you have a GMAT result, please upload a copy of your official score report as part of your online application
• A copy of your passport showing passport number and expiry date
• If you have previously studied in the UK on a student visa then you need to provide official evidence of this including CAS, visas and BRP

Read about visas, immigration and other information in International students. We recommend that international students apply as early as possible to ensure that they have time to apply for their visa.

Admissions policy

University of Leeds Admissions Policy 2025

Fees

• UK: £38,750 (Total)
• International: £38,750 (Total)

Read more about paying fees and charges.

For fees information for international taught postgraduate students, read Masters fees.

Additional cost information

The basic course fees do not cover visa and flight expenses for your International Study Tour. Prices for these may vary depending on the location of the tour.

There may be additional costs related to your course or programme of study, or related to being a student at the University of Leeds. Read more on our living costs and budgeting page.

Scholarships and financial support

We award a range of scholarships to particularly deserving candidates.

Leeds University Business School is pleased to offer up to £500,000 of MBA Excellence Scholarships to applicants for 2025 entry. Scholarships will be awarded to candidates who can demonstrate outstanding academic achievement, career progression and potential to contribute to the MBA programme, the school, business and society.

You do not need to submit a separate scholarship application, your suitability for the scholarship will be assessed on your application for the course, and at interview with the MBA Director.

Read more about scholarships and funding for the Leeds MBA.

Whether you want to progress in your current role, move into senior management or change direction, the Leeds MBA is a decisive step in your career.

You are an individual with your own career aspirations and goals, so we take a person-centred approach. We encourage you to develop your self-awareness, understand your strengths and weaknesses, refine your career objectives and grow as an individual.

Away from the day-to-day pressures of work, you’ll be supported to reflect upon and refocus your career. We work with you to consider your career preferences and goals, developing strategies to help you achieve them. Enhance your career through:

• one-to-one career coaching from our specialist career coach, during your studies and for one year after you graduate
• career development workshops
• the benefits of AMBA membership
• a range of networking opportunities
• talks from leading practitioners
• working on real consultancy projects
• joining our global alumni network.

Read more about Career Development on The Leeds MBA.

If you’re thinking of starting your own business, you’ll also benefit from the support of Spark – our specialist team will be there to support and encourage you in turning your business idea into a reality.