Participants pay their tuition fee in three instalments – an initial payment of 10% of the total fee, followed by two subsequent instalments of 50% and 40% respectively. CEIBS has also entered into an agreement with the Shanghai branch of China Merchants Bank, which allows Chinese mainland Global EMBA participants to apply for bank loans.

If your original application is within the last two years, you do not need to submit another application package. The materials will simply be transferred to the current year's admission once you inform us that you wish to apply again. Though we may ask you to update us on any significant changes regarding your career/personal development that may have occurred between applications.

An organisation's sponsorship of a student is regarded as a demonstration of that student's ability to commit fully to the programme, with the active support of their employer. However, while we encourage this kind of sponsorship, it is not obligatory. Currently, around 40-50% of current GEMBA class participants have such a sponsorship arrangement. 

While sponsorship is not mandatory, we do require all candidates to obtain permission from their current employers to take two working days off each month to attend classes.

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 modest 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. You can learn more about the Executive Assessment by visiting gmac.com/ea.

Each year, the Global EMBA programme attracts a large, talented and diverse pool of applicants. With each successive round of admissions, the list of applicants grows and competition for places becomes more intense. Therefore, there is an advantage to applying early, as you will most likely find yourself competing against a smaller pool of candidates.

The overall assessment of candidates is made after the Admission Committee reviews their EA admission test or GMAT score, other application materials, and the results of their interview. While each of these elements influence the final decision, the interview part does carry additional weight, as it gives the committee a clearer understanding of the candidate’s personality and unique qualities beyond what is written on paper. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that each candidate takes the time to consider their interview style and technique beforehand, so they can exhibit their personal strengths and capabilities to the fullest.

Equally, it is strongly recommended that the applicant clearly describes his/her career path and vision in the essay part of the application package so that the Admission Committee can have a clear picture of the applicant's career development, which can then be addressed in more detail during the interview.

The CEIBS Global EMBA programme is a master's degree programme. Every applicant must take the Executive Assessment exam by GMAC. The Executive Assessment is specifically designed to evaluate the business school readiness of seasoned professionals. It focuses on the skills that are critical both at work and in an EMBA programme: higher order reasoning, critical thinking, analysis, and problem-solving. Fortunately, it only requires modest preparation, and candidates can take the assessment year-round at over 600 conveniently located test centres around the world.

However, there is an exception to this rule. We will allow candidates who already have a GMAT score to submit this as part of their application, instead of taking the Executive Assessment exam. Please note that this GMAT score must have been obtained within the past five years prior to the candidate’s application. Furthermore, candidates should be aware that if they do not take the EA exam, and instead submit their existing GMAT score, they will incur a 2,000 RMB application fee.

The Executive Assessment was specifically designed to evaluate the skills you have already acquired during your career. It focuses on the skills that are critical both at work and in an EMBA programme: higher order reasoning, critical thinking, analysis, and problem-solving. It is made up of just three 30-minute sections with a total of 40 questions. Extensive preparation is not necessary, but we do strongly suggest that you review the question formats and practice using the sample questions listed.

The CEIBS Admission Committee requires two letters of professional recommendation. It is preferred that one of these comes from the applicant's current supervisor. We also prefer recommendations from people who can speak directly about your aptitude for, or accomplishments in, management. Accordingly, work-related recommendations are more valuable than academic ones.

Each year, we admit a small number of candidates who hold only an associate degree but have outstanding experience in high-calibre managerial positions. Please submit a résumé to the Global EMBA office highlighting your career achievements. The Admission Committee will consider these achievements when assessing your application.

The Global EMBA programme starts in November every year.
You can review our latest Admission Deadlines here.

The CEIBS admissions office will arrange an interview for you within about two weeks of your application being received. You can arrange to take the Executive Assessment (the required test for admission) at your own convenience. Once these steps are complete, you will be notified of the admission result within roughly two weeks. As admission to the programme is highly competitive, applications that are submitted during the later admissions rounds tend to be assessed against a much larger and more competitive pool of candidates. Therefore, we encourage you to apply as early as possible, to secure your best chance of being successfully admitted to the programme.

Candidates should have a bachelor's degree or above, and at least ten years' working experience, including a minimum of seven years at a managerial level. After submitting your application with the required documents, we will arrange your interview, to be conducted either in person on CEIBS's main campus in Shanghai, or through Skype/Zoom. Candidates will also need to register and schedule to take the Executive Assessment by themselves, and have the score report sent to us. After the completion of these steps, you will be notified of the admission result within two weeks.

Our programme does not require participants to write a thesis; instead, they are tasked with completing a group research project – known as the Capstone Project – which will tackle a real-world business challenge or scenario. It is important to note that the Capstone Project represents a similar degree of difficulty as a thesis.

All CEIBS Global EMBA participants are conferred with a Master's degree in Business Administration upon graduation, which is recognised by the Academic Degree Committee of the State Council, People's Republic of China.

CEIBS was the first institution to offer a Global EMBA programme on the Chinese mainland. In 1995, CEIBS started to offer its Global EMBA programme in Shanghai.

There are many outstanding business schools and Global EMBA programmes in China. Each programme has its own unique characteristics. CEIBS is characterised as offering an exceptionally high quality of learning opportunities delivered by its world-class teaching staff. The quality of teaching is considered to be the lifeblood of our school. Over the past decade, CEIBS has maintained its high-standard entrance examinations and strict management practices overseeing the educational content across all its programmes. CEIBS professors are not only highly knowledgeable in their respective fields, they are also experts at teaching. Many of our faculty members have won prestigious teaching awards.

The Global EMBA maintains a strong commitment to diversity among its students, with executives from different nationalities, industries, functional backgrounds and company types, allowing each student to step outside their everyday work environment and see business challenges from a whole new perspective.

Personal and professional self-development is also one of the core pillars of the Global EMBA programme. Participants will be continually challenged and inspired through immersive, experiential leadership exercises, that will help them understand their own leadership style and blind spots.

The mission of CEIBS is to maintain and improve its standing as a China-focused, world-class business school. CEIBS differs from other domestic business schools in its global perspective; it differs from other world-class international business schools in its strategic focus on China. This combination of strengths allows CEIBS to cultivate the next generation of business leaders who are equally capable and comfortable in China and global-facing roles.

The Global EMBA programme is based on the full-time MBA programme, but tailored in its curriculum, course coverage, teaching methodology and schedule to meet the specific needs of senior executives. The programme allows senior business managers to pursue an MBA degree on a part-time basis.

Another major difference between the two programmes lies in their respective participants. At CEIBS, Global EMBA participants have average work experience of 15 years, while MBA students generally have 5-6 years of work experience. Therefore, even for the same course, the content taught in the Global EMBA classroom will be much higher than that for MBA students. Secondly, the intensive schedule for Global EMBA participants requires stronger learning and time management abilities. Lastly, as many Global EMBA participants have earned outstanding achievements in their careers, and may even have formulated a set of their own managerial methods, it may be necessary for them to 'unlearn' certain habits. Consequently, this requires a strong mentality and maturity from participants.