UCLA-NUS Admissions Requirements

Application Deadline Extension 

Deadline Update: The application deadline to be considered for may 2023 start is extended until March 15, 2023 on a case-by-case basis. Please email UCLA-NUS EMBA admissions directly for next steps. 

Requirements

 
The UCLA and NUS admissions teams each take a holistic approach to evaluate each applicant by considering the strength of qualifications, including leadership, work experience, academic record, and quantitative background. We value students who bring an expertise in a specific industry or functional area, demonstrating a career journey with continuous growth and increased responsibility.

We’re interested in candidates who have a minimum of 8 years’ work experience, including 5 years managing people and/or large projects.
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Create Your Online Application

Applicants must apply to the NUS program online. There are two admission rounds with the following deadlines: December 1 and February 28. Please see corresponding deadlines and decision release dates.

The application fee is $200. The application is waived for round 1. Application fee waivers are available to all U.S. Military Personnel (active duty and veterans) and UCLA Staff. Please email Christina Marentes prior to submission.

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Required Educational Background

A candidate for admission must hold a 4-year bachelor's degree from a university of fully recognized standing. Applicants who have attended institutions outside the United States should have completed 16 years of study; 12 years must be completed at the elementary and secondary school levels and 4 years at the college level.

If you do not have a bachelor’s or graduate degree with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above, we highly encourage you to speak with an EMBA admissions representative via a one-on-one link here.

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Work Experience

We require a minimum of 8 years of professional experience from a wide range of industries, including government, law, media and entertainment, banking, consulting, aerospace, technology, medicine and communications.

Our candidates have earned degrees in many different fields of study and many hold advanced degrees. While some applicants lack formal business training and/or experience, they can thrive in our collaborative academic environment. We are most impressed by increasing levels of responsibility over time; those who advance faster than their peers are the prospects we admit first.

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Quantitative Preparation

The GMAT/GRE/EA score is optional. However, additional quantitative support may be required upon further review of your application after submission. If additional quantitative support is needed, the EMBA admissions team will reach out with further details and recommendations which can sometimes be completed after admission. Quantitative academic support to bolster your profile includes but is not limited to recent quantitative coursework (e.g. UC Extension or community college courses), additional education, CPA, CFA, GMAT/GRE/EA exam score. In addition, once admitted into the program, EMBA incoming students are all provided with online math, statistics, and Excel preparation courses and workshops specifically designed for incoming UCLA Anderson students.

If you have any questions about your quantitative preparation, please speak with an EMBA admissions representative via a one-on-one link here. In addition, once admitted into the program, EMBA incoming students are provided with online math, statistics, and Excel preparation courses.

The Executive Assessment (EA), Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) and Graduate Records Exam (GRE) are universal standardized entrance exams for graduate programs, which are optional for the UCLA EMBA application. See below for how to submit your official exam score to us.

The GMAT/GRE/EA exam are optional. No minimum test score is required, since the Admissions Committee has the flexibility to consider all scores in the context of your overall academic preparation and management potential.

EA:

For those taking the EA, you must arrange to have your official EA score sent electronically to UCLA Anderson School of Management EMBA Program when taking the exam.

The Executive Assessment is specifically designed to evaluate the business school readiness of seasoned professionals. The assessment focuses on skills that are critical both at work and in an EMBA program: higher order reasoning, critical thinking, analysis, and problem-solving. Because it was designed specifically for experienced professionals, it requires minimal preparation, takes only 90 minutes to complete, and includes flexible rescheduling options. The test is administered by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), creators of the GMAT exam.

For further information and testing arrangements, please visit the EA website HERE.

GMAT:

Official GMAT score reports are sent electronically upon your request from Pearson VUE to UCLA Anderson Executive MBA Admissions (with the School Code 2NZ-2F-87). We evaluate the test score that you indicate on your application and send officially to UCLA Anderson.

For further information and testing arrangements, please visit the GMAT website HERE.

GRE:

For those taking the GRE, you must have your official GRE score sent electronically to our code for UCLA Anderson School of Management EMBA Program: 7295.

For further information and testing arrangements, please visit the GRE website HERE.

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Official Documents - Transcripts, Diploma Certificates, and Degree Certificates

Official Transcripts:

All applicants are required to submit official records from each academic institution attended after secondary/high school. Transcripts from exchange programs and/or other courses are not required if the grades appear on the transcript from the school that awarded your degree.

All academic documents such as official mark sheets/transcripts, diploma certificates, and degree certificates must be directly sent to UCLA Anderson Executive MBA program from your educational institution. Digital e-transcripts are highly recommended and considered official as long as they are sent directly from your school(s) to us at emba.admissions@anderson.ucla.edu OR select “UCLA Anderson MBA Program” as the recipient if you are ordering through Parchment. This is our preferred way of receiving your official transcripts. If your school does not allow electronic transcript delivery, you may have your sealed official transcripts sent to:

Have sealed official transcripts sent to:
UCLA Anderson Executive MBA Admissions
ATTN: EMBA Admissions Manager
110 Westwood Plaza, Marion Anderson Hall G6.42
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1481

  • I have the original transcripts and degree certificates with me. Can I submit them to you?  
    • No, any documents provided by the applicant are considered unofficial. Please reach out to your school to have the documents sent directly to our office.
  • What if my school can't provide electronic transcripts?
    • Many schools have adjusted their transcript delivery service methods due to COVID-19. Please try contacting your school to see if they can email me your official documents. What has worked for many of our other applicants is that you can email your scans to your school and ask them to forward that to me directly to verify the documents. The email sender should have an official email signature, an official title, the name of the office sending this transcript, and the name of the institution/address of the institution. If they can't email your documents to me, you can have them mail them to the following address. Please give me a heads-up if your school is mailing your hard-copy transcripts so I can check in the office for your documents.  
      Vanessa Esguerra  
      Executive MBA Admissions Manager  
      UCLA Anderson School of Management  
      110 Westwood Plaza, Marion Anderson Hall (MAH), G6.42  
      Los Angeles, CA 90095
  • My school can provide the documents in the original language, but they can't provide the translated version. What should I do?
    • You can either email your own translated version to your school and have them forward that over to emba.admissions@anderson.ucla.edu, or you can request a certified translating service to directly send us an official translation.
  • My school only issues documents in English. What should I do?  
    • If they only issue documents in English, please have them email us directly, confirming they only issue documents in English only and do not issue documents in the native language.
  • My school can provide the transcripts, but they don't have my degree certificate/diploma certificate on file. Can I send you my own degree certificate/diploma certificate scan? 
    • If your school doesn't have your diploma/degree certificate on file, please send your school your own diploma/degree certificate scan and have your school email me those documents.
  • I have a transcript evaluation. Do you accept outside evaluations from companies such as WES? 
    • No. Since we have our own internal evaluation system for each country, we do not accept outside evaluations such as WES. Any evaluations would not be considered an equivalent copy.
  • Will I be notified once my school sends you the required documents?
    • Yes, we will email you once we receive the documents from your school.
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2 Recommendations

Within your application, provide contact information for two recommenders who can complete the confidential online recommendation form that will be emailed to them. Letters of recommendation need to come from individuals who are well-acquainted with your performance in a work setting. Typically, current or former supervisors are best equipped to provide examples of performance and impact on the organization.

Recommendations must be submitted online. Hard-copy responses will not be accepted. Your recommenders have the option to upload an additional document if desired. Only two recommendations are accepted per application. If you are unable to ask a current supervisor for a recommendation, you can ask a manager from another department or a consultant/client who knows you well enough to answer the questions insightfully. Academic contacts are not usually able to provide information on management potential. Similarly, family members, peers and friends are not appropriate as recommenders.

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Essays

Essays are the primary means for you to share your perspective and career plans. The best personal statements are introspective, genuine, and succinct in directly answering the questions and responding to the topics.

ESSAY 1. How have people, events, and/or situations in your life influenced who you are today? (500 words maximum)

ESSAY 2. Why have you decided to enter the Executive MBA Program? Why is this the appropriate time for you to begin? (500 words maximum)

ESSAY 3. Share with us a book (or any other forms of literature) that you have read in the last 5 years and how it has influenced your thinking. (500 words maximum)

REAPPLICATION: Please describe your career progress since you last applied and how you have strengthened your candidacy. Include updates on your short-term and long-term career goals. (500 words maximum)

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International Applicants

Additional requirements are necessary for international applicants educated outside of the United States.

More Information

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Meeting the English Language Requirement

UCLA requires that applicants holding degrees from countries where the official language is not English take an English proficiency exam.

Unsure if you need to take the TOEFL or IELTS exam?

You are eligible for an exemption if you have a completed conferred degree from an institution based in the United States, Australia, Canada (provinces other than Quebec), New Zealand, Great Britain/United Kingdom (England, Wales, Northern Ireland, or Scotland) or Singapore (NUS, SMU or NTU). Candidates with awarded degrees from all other countries must take the TOEFL or IELTS. Please note that more than half of the UCLA-NUS applicants are required to take the TOEFL/IELTS exam. If you need clarification, please email us. 

English Requirements for Graduate Studies

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Interviews

An interview must be completed to be admitted to the program. Interviews are conducted online via Zoom on an invitation basis only after the admissions committee evaluates the submitted application. Instructions on setting up an interview are provided at the time of invitation. Interview appointments are available in Pacific Time and Singapore Time and candidates only need to sign up for one interview.

Interviews last approximately 30-45 minutes. Questions generally cover topics already addressed in the application, such as reasons for getting an MBA, short-term and long-term career goals, fit with UCLA and NUS and personal interests. The interview is a two-way street, also serving as an opportunity for you to explore UCLA and NUS and our culture.

Interviews are rarely the deciding factor in an admissions decision. Instead, they typically mirror or round out information already provided in the application. We are interested in getting to know you as an individual and understanding how you'll fit into the next class. We assess your communication skills, social skills, and readiness for our program.

Most importantly, be genuine and enjoy the opportunity for us to get to know each other.

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Reapplicants

Reapplicants are those who submitted a completed MBA application within the previous two years (that is, who applied for the MBA program starting in 2022 or 2023) and received a final decision. The Admissions Committee will refer to your previous application when considering your admission, but a completely new application must be submitted online. The process to reapply is streamlined:

  • Create a new application.
  • Indicate on the Program page of the application that you are a reapplicant.
  • Submit only one new recommendation (can be the same recommender as the previous application).
  • Watch for decision notifications according to the standard release schedule.

Please Note: Applicants who applied for the MBA program within the previous two application years are asked to indicate updates on test scores, career, academics, activities, and/or other changes since their last application (under the Reapplicants section on the Program page of the application.) Highlighting the progress made since the prior application is the best way to get a different result this time. If you applied three years or more prior, please answer the Essay questions.

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Acknowledgment of Application

We acknowledge the receipt of applications for admission with an email confirmation. Applicants will be notified if any necessary documents are missing from the application packet. Admission offers will be communicated via phone along with instructions on how to accept the offer. The admission deposit is 14,750 SGD paid to NUS. The admission deposit is non-refundable and is deducted from your first quarter tuition. Admission offers not accepted within the communicated timeframe will be revoked and the seat will be offered to another qualified applicant.