Imperial College Business School
The Imperial College Business School is located in London, England, on the main campus of Imperial College London in South Kensington. In the heart of London’s museum district, Imperial is also a short walk from Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park. Additional facilities, which are dedicated to entrepreneurship and innovation, can be found on Imperial College London’s White City campus, just north of the main campus. The Imperial Full-Time MBA is a one-year program. Hallmarks of the MBA program include a balance of core learning, flexible personalization options, and global and leadership experiences. Additional degree offerings include an Executive MBA, a Weekend MBA, and a Global Online MBA.
FAQ
What is the tuition for Imperial’s MBA program?
The tuition for Imperial’s MBA program is £67,500.
What is the average GMAT score for admission to Imperial’s MBA program?
The average GMAT score for admission to Imperial’s MBA program is 663.
Does the Imperial MBA program accept the GRE?
Yes, the Imperial MBA program accepts the GRE.
What is the average GRE score for admission to Imperial’s MBA program?
The average GRE score for admission to Imperial’s MBA program is 154 Verbal and 162 Quant.
What is the minimum number of years of work experience required for admission to Imperial’s MBA program?
The minimum number of years of work experience required for admission to Imperial’s MBA program is 3.
What is the average number of years of work experience for admission to Imperial’s MBA program? (or, What is the average age of a Imperial MBA student?)
The average number of years of work experience for admission to Imperial’s MBA program is 6. The average age of Imperial MBA students is 29.
What is the average starting salary for graduates of the Imperial MBA program?
The average starting salary for graduates of the Imperial MBA program is £68,441.
How long is Imperial’s full-time MBA program?
Imperial’s full-time MBA program is one year in length.
What are the application deadlines for Imperial’s MBA program?
For the August 2024 intake of the Imperial MBA program, the Round 1 deadline is September 23, 2024; the Round 2 deadline is January 20, 2025; the Round 3 deadline is March 31, 2025; the Round 4 deadline is May 19, 2025.
What percent of Imperial MBA students are women?
Thirty-three percent of Imperial MBA students are women.
What type of interview does Imperial use for MBA admissions?
Imperial conducts interviews by invitation only. They are held online and last about 30 minutes.
Admissions
The Class Profile
The full-time MBA Class of 2024 is comprised of 54 students. Ninety-six percent of students are international, representing 21 nationalities. Women make up a third of the class.
During their undergraduate years, 41% percent had majored in engineering followed by 24% in business/management. Eleven percent studied finance/accounting and seven percent earned degrees in economics. Six percent each came from medicine/sciences or humanities.
Upon matriculation at Imperial, students averaged six years of full-time work experience at an average age of 29. Twenty-two percent had worked in consulting/professional services. Nineteen percent came from banking/finance followed by 11% from energy. Another 9% had worked in consumer products/retail.
When it came time to take the GMAT, the average score of incoming students landed at 663. Two-thirds of the cohort had taken the GMAT while 17% had taken the GRE. For those who took the GRE, they averaged scores of 154 Verbal and 162 Quant.
Application Procedures
Imperial College Business School has four admissions rounds for their MBA program. These deadlines tend to fall in late September, mid-January, mid-March and early May. Interview weeks then take place 2-5 weeks after the deadline, depending on the round. Decisions generally roll out within 2 months of a given deadline.
Applications to the MBA program require a current resume/CV, personal statement, complete degree transcripts with English translation if necessary, contact details of two professional referees (current line manager recommended), career planning questions, GMAT/GRE test scores (waivers available) and English language scores if required (i.e. TOEFL, IELTS). Each cycle, Imperial offers a small number of GMAT waivers to candidates. To be considered for a waiver, applicants need to demonstrate exceptional academic performance and evidence of strong quantitative skills. To request a waiver, they will need to provide 1) A copy of their transcripts detailing modules taken and grades achieved 2) An up-to-date CV.
Interviews are by invitation only. The adcom uses the interview to get a sense of candidates’ passion and drive, and why they want to study an MBA at Imperial. Interviews are held online and last approximately 30 minutes.
Imperial Q&A's
Imperial LiveWire and DecisionWire
Academics
Faculty
Imperial’s full-time MBA faculty consists of 18 members who are renowned as thought leaders in the field of business. They combine theoretical knowledge from their cutting-edge research with the latest practical insights from their extensive work with industry and government. All MBA faculty members are doctorate degree holders, many of whom have extensive industry experience at leading companies such as Accenture, BT, Bank of England, the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), McKinsey and UBS. They teach across five departments including Analytics & Operations, Economics & Public Policy, Finance, Management & Entrepreneurship and Marketing.
Curriculum
A pragmatic blend of case studies, discussion, problem exercises, projects, simulations, online learning and lectures are used as part of the teaching methods at Imperial. The Imperial MBA program takes a leading approach to learning by integrating the latest research on pedagogical best practice.
The curriculum is broken down into three terms (Autumn Term, Spring Term and Summer Term) and students must complete 90 credits to graduate (35 credits are from compulsory modules and the remainder are from electives).
While the academic year kicks off in September, Imperial MBA candidates are given online pre-study modules to complete ahead of matriculation. These primers cover accounting, careers, corporate sustainability, data analysis, finance, maths, plagiarism awareness, and social innovation and ethics. Some are required, others are just recommended. The full-time MBA induction begins in early September on the South Kensington campus in London, where new students meet with the rest of the cohort, faculty, and program staff, over the course of two weeks.
After induction, Imperial MBA students begin the core modules. The core modules are Business Analytics, Business Problem Solving, Corporate Finance 1, Financial and Management Accounting, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Managerial Economics, Marketing, Organisational Behaviour and Strategy. During this period, from September into February, students also participate in the Imperial Innovation Challenge, London Tech Trek, and Careers Week.
Flexcore modules, along with optional specializations, begin in February. Students may then begin taking electives in April through August, during which time they also partake in a Global Experience Week, internships/individual projects, or entrepreneurship/strategic consulting/other projects.
Flexcore modules are a deep dive into a specialist area, such as data analytics, corporate finance, operations, etc. MBA students may take two or more, depending on their choice of electives. The flexcore modules are Data Analytics and Visualisation for Business, Design Thinking: Solving Complex Problems Through a Disruptive Mindset, Corporate Finance II, Macroeconomics and Operations. Imperial offers over 40 elective modules, of which MBA students choose six. Students may opt to take electives as part of a Global Exchange with Esade, Fudan University, or HEC Paris in the Summer Term. Students may also study abroad as part of the optional Glocal Electives, which entail a 4-day on-site visit in conjunction with classroom studies.
Imperial also offers optional concentrations to give MBA students the chance to hone their studies to gain an edge in the job market. The concentrations include Analytics, Digital Strategy and Transformation, Entrepreneurship, Finance or Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and Stakeholder Impact.
Other MBA Degree Options
In addition to the full-time MBA program, Imperial College Business School also offers an Executive MBA, a Weekend MBA, and a Global Online MBA.
The Executive MBA is designed for senior professionals. It runs for 22 months on a part-time basis and is conducted in a hybrid manner, with a mix of online and in-person learning. The Weekend MBA is designed for working professionals. It is hosted on campus on a part-time basis for a duration of 21 months. The Global Online MBA can be completed in 21, 24 or 32 months on a part-time basis. It’s also designed for working professionals who want to study around their personal and professional commitments.
Degree Offerings at Imperial
Full-Time MBA
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/business-school/mba/full-time-mba/
Global Online MBA
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/business-school/mba/global-online-mba/
Weekend MBA
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/business-school/mba/weekend-mba/
Executive MBA
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/business-school/mba/executive-mba/
Campus Life
Clubs & Events
Imperial College Business School supports 16 student-led career clubs that bring together like-minded students with similar areas of professional interest such as finance, consulting, luxury and retail, energy, healthcare, FMCG and more. MBA students have access to over 360 clubs, societies and projects offered by Imperial College Union, providing an opportunity to connect with students from the wider Imperial community.
Each club runs a number of events throughout the year, giving students the opportunity to build relationships with leading companies, learn from alumni and network with other students. Major organizations that have presented at student-led events recently include BCG, EY, McKinsey & Company, HSBC, Microsoft, Google, Mitsubishi, Shell, Moët Hennessy, NFL, Visa and NHS England. The Venture Catalyst Challenge (VCC) is Imperial’s annual flagship entrepreneurial competition. The winning team/company receives a £100,000 prize to help bring their idea to commercial reality.
MBA students may bid and host their own conference for students and industry professionals.
Campus Spaces
The Imperial College Business School is located on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, a lively and vibrant part of London. The Business School hosts a cafe and reception area, in addition to career services offices. Students learn in theatre-style classrooms and have access to Bloomberg terminals as well as a computer lab.
Regarding housing, students may find shared houses, flats or studio flats in the private sector. Popular websites to find private accommodation include SpareRoom and Roomgo. Popular areas close to South Kensington for those looking for private accommodation include Battersea, Clapham Junction, Earl’s Court, Fulham, Knightsbridge, Putney, Shepherd’s Bush and White City.
Once students confirm they will be attending Imperial, they gain access to GradPad, which is accommodation tailored to postgraduate students at Griffon Studios or Woodlane Studios. Options include self-contained studio flats and private ensuite bedrooms in cluster flats with shared kitchens. Benefits include communal areas shared with postgraduate students from other universities in London, an on-site gym, common room, games area and designated quiet study spaces.
MBA Careers
Career Services
Imperial College Business School Careers provide a number of personalized services before students matriculate and throughout their time at the Business School. These include working with a dedicated career consultant before, during and after the program to develop career strategy, networking opportunities, events, workshops, alumni mentoring, interview preparation, CV enhancement and more. Entrepreneurial students can also access specialist support from the Imperial Enterprise Lab – Imperial’s dedicated entrepreneurship training center.
Careers also offer the following events and networking opportunities:
- Careers Week – Focus on career goals through a series of workshops and activities.
- MBA World Cafe – Meet with MBA alumni working in industry.
- Employer events – MBA-specific company presentations and networking opportunities.
- Career workshops – Develop valuable soft skills and have the opportunity to meet with the MBA advisory board.
Career Statistics
Ninety-three percent of those seeking employment out of the 73-member Class of 2022 were employed within three months of graduation. The average starting salary landed at £68,441.
A third of Imperial’s b-school graduates pursued roles in financial services. Consulting followed at 28%. Another 23% joined the tech industry while 16% took on other roles. Regarding location, 77% stayed in the United Kingdom. Fourteen percent headed to Asia for work post-MBA followed by 8% settling in Latin America/the Caribbean. Five percent landed work in North America and 3% settled in the rest of Europe.
Financing
The tuition for Imperial’s one-year MBA program is £67,500. Tuition fees cover the length of the program, flights and accommodation for the Global Experience Week, and core reading and study materials.
Imperial offers significant scholarship funding to exceptional applicants and in support of diversity. There are scholarships and awards for all MBA program as well as program-specific awards. Additional funding options include the US Federal Loans Scheme, employer sponsorship, externally funded scholarships, and the Postgraduate Master’s Loan from the UK government (eligible to EU students).
Recent News
Contact
Address of main campus:
Imperial College London
South Kensington Campus
London, SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom
Phone: +44 (0)20 7589 5111
Fax: +44 (0)20 7823 7685
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/business-school
Blog: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/business-school/blogs/
X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/ImperialBiz
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/imperialbiz/