Executive MBA

Boost your performance as a leader and a manager with a broad-based business programme you can study while you work.

Elevate your leadership skills with an executive qualification that strengthens your analytical rigour and strategic acumen. Choose to complete your Executive Master of Business Administration (Executive MBA) intensively or part time, with structures that are designed to help you balance study, work, and life.

Elevate your leadership skills with an executive qualification that strengthens your analytical rigour and strategic acumen. Complete your Executive Master of Business Administration (Executive MBA) through intensive study, with structures that are designed to help you balance study, work, and life.

Take your career to the next level

An Executive MBA is an internationally recognised management qualification that sends a message to your professional peers and future employers—about your intellectual ability, professional experience, and executive problem-solving skills to take on leading roles in business and government.

You’ll master tools and models that improve strategic thinking, decision making, and leadership and build powerful professional networks with leading academics, fellow students, and other members of the business community. Develop practical skills that you can immediately put to use in your professional life, and build a bank of knowledge that will maximise your career potential.

Experience our Executive MBA

Join Associate Professor Rebecca Bednarek for a short taster lecture on Strategy as Practice.

Scholarships for international students

We are currently offering a NZ$10,000 VUW Postgraduate International Scholarship to all eligible international students enrolling in a Master’s degree or Postgraduate Diploma programme. Your scholarship will be processed automatically when your programme application is accepted, and the amount will be deducted from your tuition fees.

Work experience requirement

The work experience is usually expected to be in a leadership role, enabling students to contribute to class discussions based on practical experience.

Professional development

You will complete professional development activities as part of each core course in the Executive MBA programme. These include workshops, seminars, panel sessions, and guest lectures which build on in-class learning and are delivered by business experts from across Aotearoa New Zealand. You’ll have presenters from both industry and academia, who are experienced executive coaches, economists, designers, and more. The activities you will undertake vary widely and could include:

• full-day workshops
• individual coaching sessions
• consultancy projects with not-for-profit organisations
• guest lectures from industry experts
• possible international study tour (dependent upon border restrictions).

Download the latest prospectus

Find out more about your study options. Fill in a form to download our professional and postgraduate programme prospectus.

Get the prospectus

International recognition

Our business administration programme is accredited to the British-based Association of MBAs (AMBA), an internationally recognised global standard for all MBA programmes.

Wellington School of Business and Government is among a small group of business schools worldwide that hold the ‘Triple Crown’ of international business education accreditations. You can be confident your qualification will stand up against the best around the world. Find out more about accreditations and what they mean for you.

Study while you work

Study part time while working. Core classes are held on Fridays and Saturdays across all three trimesters. You’ll be able to apply what you’re learning to your professional life right away. There are a wide range of electives to choose from across our professional Master’s programmes—you’ll be able to tailor your studies to your own needs. Timetables vary for elective options depending on the subject matter and the Master's programme they are taken from.

Study while you work

Core classes are held on Fridays and Saturdays across all three trimesters. If you are balancing work and study, you’ll be able to apply what you’re learning to your professional life right away.

There are a wide range of electives to choose from across our professional Master’s programmes. Tailor your studies to meet your specific needs. Timetables vary for elective options, depending on the subject matter and the Master’s programme they are taken from.

Community

You'll kick off your study with a detailed programme orientation.

You'll also have opportunities to attend events, workshops, social functions, and seminars. The Postgraduate Students' Association can give you information and provides a voice for you on campus.

Careers

Set your sights on roles like chief executive, chief operating officer, chief financial officer, chief marketing officer, chief information officer, and general manager.

Many Victoria University of Wellington business administration graduates are now C-suite business and public sector executives, both in New Zealand and overseas.

The performance lift and opportunities for promotion that the MBA qualifications offer can significantly increase your earning power. To find out more about career opportunities with these qualifications, see What can I do with my degree?.

Scholarships

You can look for scholarships based on your level of study, subject area, and background.

Find out about your options for Executive MBA qualifications and discover what and how you’ll study.

Find out what’s in the Executive MBA programme and how you’ll study it.

Qualification family structure

The Executive MBA has a tiered family of qualifications. These are ‘staircased’, so that [courses] completed for each qualification can count towards the next step.

• Postgraduate Certificate in Business Administration (PGCertBusAdmin)
• Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration (PGDipBusAdmin)
• Executive MBA.

As a domestic student, you can enrol in the Executive MBA, PGDipBusAdmin, or PGCertBusAdmin. If you start with the Diploma or Certificate, you can apply to transfer to the Executive MBA at a later stage.

Choose the qualification with the entry requirements, time commitment, and career benefits that suit you best.

What you’ll study

Core courses

You’ll complete eight core courses that will give you a solid grounding in key business opportunities and issues. These include topics like executive leadership, culture and change, corporate financial management, strategic marketing, and digital transformation.

Elective courses

You’ll complete four elective courses from a range of topics including innovation and entrepreneurship, negotiation and dispute resolution, and strategic management.

Professional development

You will attend professional development activities as part of each core course. These include a wide variety of subject areas related to personal development, leadership, business, and technology. Typically, your core course timetable will be split equally between professional development and class time.

Postgraduate Diploma and Certificate

PGDipBusAdmin

For the PGDipBusAdmin, you’ll study eight courses from the Executive MBA programme. If you complete the Diploma and decide you’d like to continue studying for the Executive MBA, these eight courses will count towards your final degree.

PGCertBusAdmin

For the PGCertBusAdmin, you’ll study four courses from the Executive MBA programme. If you complete the Certificate and decide you’d like to continue studying for the Executive MBA, these four courses will count towards your final degree.