Information for prospective Master of Science in Business Administration students

The program begins in October (winter semester). There is only 1 admission per year. The application period runs from 1 May to 15 June of each year.

We offer around 165 study places per year. The capacities are recalculated every year.

You can apply to study part-time for the Master of Science in Business Administration if you meet certain requirements. In the case of part-time studies, the standard period of study is extended so that 1 subject semester corresponds to 2 university semesters. See the Campus Center website for more information.

Note that part-time study is not permitted for the semester in which you are writing your master’s thesis.

There is no provision for placement in a higher semester. You apply for the first semester in the normal way and have credits from your previous studies recognized after enrollment.

See the Campus Center website for more information about double degrees.

Confirmation of whether both degree programs can be properly conducted must be requested from the relevant academic offices. With us via studienbuero.bwl@uni-hamburg.de.

If you are not enrolled at the University of Hamburg, you are not entitled to take part in courses or examinations. It is not possible to attend courses or provide proof of performance before being admitted to the master’s degree program. The University of Hamburg Business School does not accept auditing students.

During your studies in the Master of Science in Business Administration you also have the opportunity to study abroad. Various information events are held after enrollment. More information is available on the International Office website.

We offer 2 tracks:

∎ Proof of German language skills is required for the general track. See the Campus Center website for more information. You must also provide evidence of sufficient proficiency in English to follow business administration courses, read specialist literature, and take oral and written examinations in English

∎ For the English track, applicants must demonstrate knowledge of the English language to a C1 level. The following evidence is accepted:

• a successfully completed course of study conducted wholly in English at a university or
•  one of the following certificates (not older than 3 years):
• TOEFL ≥95
• IELST ≥7.0
• Cambridge English Qualification ≥C1 Advanced
• UNIcert ≥III

Language skills are confirmed by ticking the appropriate box on the online application form. You do not need to provide additional proof.

You must have an undergraduate degree (bachelor’s degree), either

∎        in the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSc) at the University of Hamburg Business School or

an equivalent degree from a higher education institution in the field of business administration, economics, industrial engineering and management, business mathematics, information systems, or

∎        a closely related interdisciplinary degree program offered by a higher education institution.

Equivalent or closely related interdisciplinary degree programs must have a research- and method-oriented nature. A degree program is deemed to be research and method-oriented in nature when applicants have completed lectures, practical, or seminar modules amounting to at least 24 ECTS credits in mathematics, statistics, and microeconomics.

Interdisciplinary degree programs must also contain sufficient economic elements in their curriculum to be classified as closely related. The degree program in question is classified as closely related if the applicant has successfully completed at least 90 ECTS credits in traditional economics modules such as those in the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSc) in the University of Hamburg Business School.

• it is not relevant whether the 24 ECTS credits are covered by all 3 areas, by 2, or by only 1 area.

It is only relevant that you have taken and successfully completed a total of 24 ECTS credits in modules that provide relevant, fundamental research tools. These subject areas include mathematics, statistics, and microeconomics. Modules featuring only the application of mathematical, statistical, or microeconomic content are not considered, thus excluding modules such as macroeconomics.

• if your transcript of records/certificate does not explicitly state the required 24 ECTS credits in the fields of mathematics, statistics, and microeconomics (e.g., not explicitly stated in the module title), you should enclose corresponding course or module descriptions. Do not from upload a complete module handbook.
• if the required content is only partially included in a module, only proportionate shares of the ECTS credits are taken into account
• bachelor’s thesis, internships, or work experience are not considered
• a confirmation of enrollment or participation in a course does not fulfill the requirements.

The admission requirements must already be fulfilled at the time of application. It is not possible to later supplement coursework, nor is it sufficient to provide proof of registration for a module that may be lacking.

Therefore, you must complete the missing content at your current university or at a university of your choice before applying.

Note that the modules to be taken must be consecutive modules whose content builds on the modules already completed. This must be clearly recognizable from the module title (e.g., Mathematics I, II, and III) or clearly stated in the module descriptions.

You do not have to have completed your bachelor’s degree at the time of application. You can prove your current grade point average with a Transcript of Records. Your actual final grade will no longer be taken into account.

You must submit proof of your bachelor’s degree to the Campus Center by the end of the first semester (31 March), or your admission to the Master of Science in Business Administration must be withdrawn.

Degrees from universities of applied sciences are equivalent to those from universities and are accepted under the same conditions. Take note of the admission regulations and the information on the other questions.

We are unfortunately unable to provide preliminary checks due to the large number of applications for a place on our master’s degree programs. However, we suggest you use the application information to make your own assessment of whether you meet the admission requirements with your undergraduate degree.

The selection committee evaluates all applications after the application deadline.

If the number of applicants exceeds the number of places available in the master’s degree program, selection is based on the grade achieved in your undergraduate degree (or the average grade of previous academic achievements documented at the time of application) and the result of the subject-specific GTEBS (formerly TM-WISO) aptitude test.

The selection criteria are calculated as follows:

(bachelor’s degree points x 0.51) + (GTEBS points x 0.49) = selection criteria score

Rank in the selection process is determined in accordance with the selection criteria. Equal ranking is determined by lottery.

We do not have a cut-off grade, as our selection criteria relies on the bachelor’s grade and the GTEBS result. Thus, selection depends both on the composition of the application cohort and the first 2 subcriteria mentioned above.

The GTEBS (Graduate Test for Economics, Business and Social Sciences) is offered by ITB Consulting. All information about the study aptitude test, including practice tests and registration deadlines, can be found on the ITB website. The test can be taken in both German and English. The test is carried out online in test centers, on campus, or from home with supervision.

You cannot take part in the test if you do not register by the deadline.

Important: The registration deadline for the test ends a few weeks before the test date and well before the application deadline for the degree program.

You can continue to use the test and upload your results feedback letter to the application portal. However, the test result must not be older than 3 years at the time of application.

If you have taken the GTEBS more than once, we will use the most recent test result for the selection procedure, unless you submit an older test result for consideration in the selection procedure with your application.

You can also apply without taking the test, but then you have a lower chance of admission, as the bachelor’s degree grade counts for 51% and the GTEBS test for 49%.

If you have not taken the GTEBS, 0 GTEBS points will be awarded. A poor GTEBS result is therefore better than none.

If you have consented to ITB sending the GTEBS results to us, these will be passed to us directly for consideration.

If you have not consented to your test results being sent to the University of Hamburg, you must submit them yourself via the application portal as soon as you receive them. Submission of documents after the application deadline (15 June) is not permitted.

We only accept the results of the GTEBS (formerly TM-WISO) test.

This test is aimed at cognitive abilities rather than specific knowledge or skills. You therefore do not have to study for the test.

The test provider ITB offers information on preparing for the test as well as a tutorial and a preparation test.

The application takes place online via STiNE (not via uni-assist). STiNE is an internet-based information and communication platform for degree programs and teaching at the University of Hamburg.

If you do not yet have an application account or STiNE account, you must create an account after the start of the application phase.

For more information, visit the STiNE FAQ.

If you have a question about the application form, need to make changes, or want to submit documents within the application deadline, contact the Campus Center.

Important: If you request to re-open your submitted application, remember to resubmit it before the application deadline. Open applications are deemed not submitted and will not be considered in the selection process.

Unfortunately, documents sent by email cannot be considered for the application process.

If you have technical problems with the application portal, contact STiNE support.

You can only apply for 1 degree program per semester at the University of Hamburg. Multiple applications are not permitted.

There is only 1 exception: If you unsuccessfully applied to an international master’s degree program in the period 15 February–31 March, you can apply from 1 May for another master’s degree program starting in the winter semester as long as you withdraw your previous application to the international master’s degree program. To do this, contact the Campus Center.

Be aware that withdrawing from the admission procedure for international master’s degree programs also constitutes a waiver of a placement offered as part of subsequent succession procedure. You must therefore explicitly state that you wish to take this step. Without withdrawing from an incomplete application procedure, the general ban on multiple applications applies.

Wait semesters can increase your chances of being admitted to degree programs with admission restrictions. The wait period is the period between obtaining your first undergraduate degree (e.g., bachelor’s degree) and the start of your master’s degree program. Periods of study at universities in Germany or abroad are deducted from this wait period.

Note that a maximum limit of 10 wait semesters can be recognized.

The application deadline for our Master of Science in Business Administration is open to all applicants from 1 May to 15 June.

Note that a number of international master’s degree programs at the University of Hamburg are also offered wholly or partially in English. For these special programs, an early application deadline applies from 15 February to 31 March. See the Campus Center website for more information.

Note that special regulations apply to applicants from non-EU countries. Contact the Department of International Affairs and Services for Students at the University of Hamburg for more information.

If your certificates are not issued in German or English, a sworn translation must also be uploaded. Make sure you also submit your documents in the original language.

To check the admission requirements, all we need from you are simple copies of the officially certified translations.

According to the admission regulations, no distinction is made between qualified foreign nationals with German higher education entrance qualifications and foreign students in the application process.

Information on special applications for the master’s application can be found on the Campus Center page.

ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) is the standardized credit point system in Europe. A 3-year bachelor’s degree usually comprises 180 ECTS credits.

Each ECTS credit corresponds to 30 hours. A typical course in the University of Hamburg Business School has 6 ECTS credits, which corresponds to 180 hours of class time and self-study.

To increase your chances of a successful application, you should submit all official documents from your institution regarding the ECTS conversion or the total number of hours (not just teaching hours) associated with each credit . In addition, it can be helpful to provide information on the total credits required for the degree.

Your foreign final grade will be converted into the German grading system according to the Bayerische Formel (Bavarian formula). The University of Hamburg provides a grade calculator as a guide.

For the conversion, we need information about the grading system used at your institution, in particular the best possible grade and the lowest grade with which a subject is passed. Details on the grading system and conversion can often be found in the Transcript of Records.

You can find more information on the grading scale in your country in the anabin database operated by the German federal government, which evaluates foreign educational certificates. To access the information, click on “Bildungswesen,” enter the country in which the degree was obtained and then select “Notensystem der Hochschulen.” The website is available in German only.

There are no tuition fees at the University of Hamburg, only a semester contribution. See the Campus Center website for more information.