Ranked in Tier one of the CEO Magazine Global MBA Rankings 2024
The Lancaster University Master of Business Administration (MBA) programme will equip you with the language, tools, and techniques of business and management. Our curriculum is constantly evolving to ensure our graduates acquire the skills, knowledge and experiences they need to excel in contemporary business environments. Consistently remaining relevant and delivering excellence, the Lancaster MBA is built upon our expertise in responsible and sustainable management. Theory is contextualised through real examples and live cases, and learning is enhanced through practice.
Practice-based learning is integral to the Lancaster MBA. This focus is foregrounded in our four action-learning Challenge Modules, as well as our visits to companies and programme partners, guest lectures from our Entrepreneurs and Leaders in Residence, alumni networking, and business consulting opportunities in London and elsewhere. This approach enables students to make responsible decisions as business leaders; decisions that ensure the best outcomes, that consider our environment, wellbeing, opportunity, risk and more.
Our students are invited to challenge themselves, to develop their mindset and transform themselves into responsible and inclusive leaders. Our students graduate with a resilience that allows them to overcome challenges and identify opportunities, even in volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous environments. They are globally fluent and ready to shape businesses and organisations around the world. Our heritage and international community provide students with a global outlook through our diverse cohort, our collaboration with worldwide business, our extensive alumni network, and our international professors. Students are encouraged to embrace, connect with, and learn from the rich and varied cultures they experience.
Guided by the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals, we are working to establish stronger connections between business and local communities through hands-on projects driven by the purpose of achieving responsible, sustainable, and inclusive outcomes. The MBA programme will be filled with exciting and challenging opportunities to learn more about business, develop leadership and organisational skills, and establish a global professional network that expands employment opportunities. Join us!
Our MBA is globally recognised and highly ranked by QS and the Financial Times: Our rankings.
Lancaster MBA programmes have been accredited by the Association of MBAs since 1996. Although AMBA is UK-based in its origins, it is the only accreditation body that focuses on MBA programmes worldwide.
Lancaster students and alumni on AMBA-accredited programmes can benefit from complimentary AMBA student and graduate membership for life, giving access to networking opportunities and career development resources.
The Lancaster MBA, our flagship programme, enjoys a rich heritage and engaged community that is over 30 years in the making. Our committed MBA team make sure our programme curriculum is constantly evolving to ensure our graduates acquire the skills, knowledge, and experiences they need to excel in contemporary business environments. Consistently remaining relevant and delivering excellence, the Lancaster MBA is built upon our expertise in strategy, social sustainability, and responsibility.
Transcript for An introduction from your Programme Director
I'm Dr Mark Dawson, the Director of the MBA programme here at Lancaster University.
Today, I want to talk to you about something that goes beyond just a degree. I want to talk to you about transformation: your transformation.
Our MBA is not just about acquiring knowledge. It's about reshaping your approach to business, leadership, decision-making and innovation.
We believe that true leaders are made through a combination of rigorous academic learning, real-world experience and a community that challenges and supports you every step of the way.
Here, you will be exposed to cutting-edge research, global business strategies, and a network of professionals that spans the globe, but what truly sets us apart is our commitment to experiential learning. You won't just study case studies; you'll live them. You'll work on real projects with real companies, solving real problems.
We understand that the world of business is global, and so is our programme. With cross-cultural exchanges and a diverse cohort you will gain a global perspective that is crucial in today's interconnected economy.
Whether you're looking to climb the corporate ladder, start your own venture or pivot to a new industry, our MBA is designed to equip you with the skills, knowledge and mindset needed to excel, but more importantly, we're here to help you discover your potential, push your boundaries and lead with impact.
So, are you ready to take the next step in your journey?
Your future is waiting, and we are here to help you make it extraordinary.
Join us at Lancaster University, and let's build the future together.
Key facts
Discover why the Lancaster MBA stands out:
Your career
The Lancaster MBA embeds career advancement throughout the whole year, enabling you to draw on your learning and experiences as you progress through your studies.
Practical sessions
Participate in workshops focusing on success in the recruitment process, delivered by experienced professionals. Hone your performance through tailored interview scenarios, assessment centre group exercises and case study practice sessions.
Coaching and guidance
Receive continual support from our dedicated careers advisers and benefit from individual sessions with a careers coach. Address your goals, identify areas for development, and move towards your future career path.
Employer and alumni engagement
Enjoy business networking opportunities, both locally and in London, which enable you to engage with a wide range of SMEs, multinational companies and our alumni. Once you graduate, remain part of this network and benefit from our continued support.
Workplace engagement
Students work as consultants with businesses on the Consultancy and Corporate Challenges. Working as a team, students will engage with their clients from a wide variety of industries and sectors to solve real problems and challenges. Alternatively, you may choose to complete an individual internship in place of the Corporate Challenge.
Success after the Lancaster MBA
The Lancaster MBA is the catalyst to career progress.
2:1 Hons degree (UK or equivalent) in any subject.
We may also consider non-standard applicants; please contact us for information.
If you have studied outside of the UK, we would advise you to check our list of international qualifications before submitting your application.
Additional requirements
As part of your application, you also need to provide/have:
A minimum of three years' professional work experience since graduation. This should be evidenced by providing a copy of your current CV detailing your professional experience and achievements to date. Preference will be given to those who can demonstrate that they have strong business experience and have held significant managerial responsibilities. Please ensure that you include dates of employment and job titles on your CV.
Two good references - one from your current employer and, ideally the other from someone who can comment on your academic ability
A detailed personal statement (minimum 500 words)
An interview with a member of Lancaster's admissions team
English language requirements
We may ask you to provide a recognised English language qualification, dependent upon your nationality and where you have studied previously.
We normally require an IELTS (Academic) Test with an overall score of at least 6.5, and a minimum of 6.0 in each element of the test. We also consider other English language qualifications.
Delivered in partnership with INTO Lancaster University, our one-year tailored pre-master’s pathways are designed to improve your subject knowledge and English language skills to the level required by a range of Lancaster University master’s degrees. Visit the INTO Lancaster University website for more details and a list of eligible degrees you can progress onto.
Course structure
You will study a range of modules as part of your course, some examples of which are listed below.
Information contained on the website with respect to modules is correct at the time of publication, but changes may be necessary, for example as a result of student feedback, Professional Statutory and Regulatory Bodies' (PSRB) requirements, staff changes, and new research. Not all optional modules are available every year.
Core
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In the competitive world of informational efficiency, how do financial markets value bond and stock prices? You will explore accounting conceptual frameworks, financial reporting, and investment appraisals for using financial data to improve decision-making and interpretation. This course curriculum is designed to give non-specialists a solid grasp of theoretical and practical financial concerns and provide them with the tools they need to make sound financial decisions.
This finance module uses an integrative assessment approach to teach you how to estimate cash flows and rates in order to evaluate investment opportunities. Non-traded factors that are sustainable are also taken into account.
Groupwork presentational pitches, individual formative quiz tests, and a final summative exam quiz are all part of the learning process. Practice provides the required preparation for discussion and pitching to investors. It equips future managers with sufficient financial knowledge, helping managers understand how to 'read' accounts and make profit and value accounting judgments. Among the other things learned are processes for analysing investment opportunities, the impact of diversity on an investment portfolio, systematic hazards, and strategies for obtaining funds to compute expenses.
You will finish with an understanding and appreciation of accounting and finance in order to sustain organisational strategy, governance challenges in business, and the fundamental characteristics of stocks and bonds.
Business Economics introduces a framework for beginning to understand some of the behaviour observed in firms, markets, and industries. A range of models and concepts, both at the micro and macro level, for the analysis of business activity are introduced.
The first of the four ‘Challenges’ on the Lancaster MBA, the Business Management Challenge is a multi-day simulation in which, working in small teams, you manage a business through an eighteen-month period. It addresses the complex organisational issues involved in developing and deploying a ‘go-to-market’ strategy. As in the real world, each team is given the initial investment capital required, which you can use, for example, to build a factory. At the end of your ‘simulated’ first year of trading, your team prepares an investment pitch to present a convincing case to the holding company board to acquire further funding to grow the business. You then continue trading for two further quarters, giving you time to act upon the funding decisions and make any additional changes. This learning experience is invaluable as you can apply what you have learned from the programme to a ‘real life’ situation of business management in an integrative way. This action-learning challenge stress tests your cognitive and collaborative conduct, requires you to use many of the skills you have already acquired and generates a substantial opportunity for powerful experiential learning.
The Corporate Challenge is the fourth of the Lancaster MBA’s action-learning challenges and builds on the Business Management Challenge, the Entrepreneurial Challenge, and the Consultancy Challenge. The Corporate Challenge gives you the chance to undertake a consultancy assignment for a global company.
Students can also choose other forms of final projects such as an internship.
The Consultancy Challenge is the third challenge on the Lancaster MBA, designed to increase your effectiveness in a consultancy context. The module particularly helps you to understand consultancy as a process of influence, oriented towards exploring opportunities, solving problems and implementing action. You begin training in the classroom with a 'consultancy toolkit', a set of tools and skills that will enable you to address the complexity and deliver targeted outcomes. We focus on consultant mindset and consulting skills by examining the principles of effective consultancy, the barriers to successful intervention and how consultants manage risk. Subsequently, students work as teams of consultants to analyse a problem or situation for a client organisation and develop implementable recommendations. Previously, students have typically worked with various organisations such as Microsoft, Kellogg's, Hendelsbanken, BAE Systems and the NHS based in the North of England, looking for support to address a wide range of business issues.
The Core Capabilities module is designed to help you develop the skills vital for effective management and leadership. We focus on developing key mindsets around critical thinking, reflectivity, decision-making and collaboration. The module provides an intense experiential learning process and will underpin your work throughout the year.
As the digitally-enabled economy has become dominant and pervasive, the importance and necessity of understanding how businesses can adapt digital innovation to stay competitive has been heightened. This module will develop a narrative for how digital innovations have, and will continue, to transform business enterprises and organisations. The focus will be the trifecta of technology, strategy, and innovation, and the aim is to develop an understanding of the strategic role of information systems and digital technologies in product, service, and process innovation, business integration, new business models, and industry transformation.
Drawing on a collection of both theories and cases, Digital Innovation in Business focuses on how the deployment of information technology influences and transforms interactions and processes within and between organisations.
The Entrepreneurial Challenge is one of the action-learning challenges within the Lancaster MBA. This module allows you to apply your learning in the context of a business start-up. Working in teams, you are required to produce a business development plan for a potential new company.
You must research the market, develop a market strategy, and specify how the business will be organised and financed in the future. This challenging process requires you to take an integrated view of all aspects of a business. The challenge goes beyond traditional orientations to business models focusing only on profit. The entrepreneurial challenge requires the development of a business plan that provides a plausible explanation of two aligned objectives: profitable growth integrated with positive social and environmental impact. In this way, the challenge provides the opportunity to think anew about ideas regarding the purpose of business.
Leading Responsibly will help you explore your understanding of leading and will develop your capability to lead others. Taking a practical approach to the subject of leadership, this module will encourage you to become mindful of what you believe good leadership is. It will ask you to explore your values and the responsibilities of a leader and challenge you to find ways to lead others responsibly.
The module uses practical exercises, talks and discussion groups, skills development, self-awareness questionnaires, and reflective practices to help you develop your leadership capability.
Marketing is a crucial knowledge area for aspiring management executives. It is not simply a promotional arts and crafts toolbox but is rather the whole business as seen from the customer’s point of view. As we say here at Lancaster, marketing is the ‘business of business’ - the core commercial process of ‘going to market’. This module enables an appreciation and understanding of the conceptual, descriptive language of marketing. Such learning will enable you to understand both your marketing colleagues and the experts of the consultancy world. Consequently, you will be able to insightfully and confidently critique their arguments and add to the dialogue.
Sound operations management is essential to ensure that day-to-day operations run smoothly and deliver value to customers and the business as a whole within its overall strategy. To deliver value, operations must identify and work to appropriate success criteria, drive continuous improvement and be capable of delivering the changes required to develop performance for the future. This module develops your understanding of operations and supply chain management, using a series of cases to explore various aspects of operations management within companies. The focus will be on ensuring that customers’ current requirements and expectations are met or exceeded and that the operations function works in an integrated way.
Organising Behaviour offers a broad theoretical and practical understanding of some key concepts and issues in the areas of organisational politics, culture and structure, and addresses their implications for managing the human resources of organisations at a time of disruptive change and the globalisation of business. The module develops important knowledge and crucial skills of analysis and critical reflection.
Management approaches have significant implications in the contemporary world; socially, ethically and ecologically. In a sense, all of management is about choice - what factors to take into consideration in the making of a decision, and what future we should seek,
Responsible Management and Ethics is, therefore, an essential component of the MBA as it seeks to equip students with the ability to integrate this into their management strategies and practices.
Strategic Management is both a ‘science’ and an ‘art’, and this module enables you to gain an understanding of both. On the one hand, you will be taking an essentially analytical perspective, studying the traditional ‘toolbox’ of strategy as a business discipline. On the other, you will gain practical exposure to strategy development by engaging in strategy-making and reflection. The module will explore various subjects within the umbrella of strategic management, such as the nature of strategy, the roles and implications of governance, stakeholders, corporate parenting and strategic purpose, as well as the important issue of good relationships in theory and in practice. Crucially, you will develop your capacity to assess, evaluate and research strategic positions, and develop strategy itself.
Optional
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This highly interactive module complements your study of strategic management. It particularly addresses the strategic questions that face large multi-business groups and how these differ from the issues faced by single-business firms. This module further addresses diversification strategies' reasons, benefits and boundaries and critically evaluates approaches to managing the group's portfolio. An important focus will also be on the role of the corporate centre for value creation, as well as the organisation design choices of large corporations. You will have the opportunity to work in groups to explore case studies of large multi-business firms.
This module explores change management and implementation, including understanding the need for change, individual responses to change, planned versus emergent change, and tools for change. These are specifically addressed through case study examples and relevant change management theory. This module can assist you in your preparation for your final challenge, focused on consultancy, where you undertake a consultancy report with recommendations for a real business and must understand how implementation might follow.
Managing Strategic Change consequently provides an excellent opportunity to move beyond analysis to explore implementation and the consequential human issues evoked through change and can help you prepare for the concluding part of the programme.
This module addresses issues specific to mergers and acquisitions, such as deal structure, deal financing, and target valuation. It also introduces topics such as leveraged buyouts and the role of private equity in the corporate control market. At the end of the module, you will understand the motivations behind mergers and acquisitions. You will also have knowledge of the financing of merger and acquisition transactions, the choice of deal structure and the valuation of target companies. Finally, you will understand the role of various parties in the mergers and acquisitions market.
Building on the earlier core Marketing module, this module is designed to develop a critical understanding of brand management as a major issue in strategic marketing. The module moves away from the traditional classical model of branding, which emphasises the consumer, and instead addresses the new, more balanced perspective which recognises the importance of staff and other stakeholders as brand builders. The latter necessitates an integrated communications approach, as successful corporate brands result from coordinated pan-company actions involving stakeholders to create coherent brand promise. No longer is it viable to claim long-term competitive advantage from functional benefits; instead, corporations recognise the importance of emotional differentiation driven by their organisational culture.
The module opens by discussing the nature of brands, the concept of the brand as a promise, and mechanisms to encourage a coherent brand strategy. It then explores the attributes associated with powerful brands and techniques to ensure effective brand differentiation. You will be exposed to diverse managerial interpretations of the brand concept and see how models enable brand evolution to be anticipated. It also describes a typology of added values. Finally, a significant amount of time will be devoted to a strategic framework that enables the development of a coherent brand.
There may be extra costs related to your course for items such as books, stationery, printing, photocopying, binding and general subsistence on trips and visits. Following graduation, you may need to pay a subscription to a professional body for some chosen careers.
Specific additional costs for studying at Lancaster are listed below.
College fees
Lancaster is proud to be one of only a handful of UK universities to have a collegiate system. Every student belongs to a college, and all students pay a small College Membership Fee which supports the running of college events and activities. Students on some distance-learning courses are not liable to pay a college fee.
For students starting in 2025, the fee is £40 for undergraduates and research students and £15 for students on one-year courses.
Computer equipment and internet access
To support your studies, you will also require access to a computer, along with reliable internet access. You will be able to access a range of software and services from a Windows, Mac, Chromebook or Linux device. For certain degree programmes, you may need a specific device, or we may provide you with a laptop and appropriate software - details of which will be available on relevant programme pages. A dedicated IT support helpdesk is available in the event of any problems.
The University provides limited financial support to assist students who do not have the required IT equipment or broadband support in place.
For most taught postgraduate applications there is a non-refundable application fee of £40. We cannot consider applications until this fee has been paid, as advised on our online secure payment system. There is no application fee for postgraduate research applications.
For some of our courses you will need to pay a deposit to accept your offer and secure your place. We will let you know in your offer letter if a deposit is required and you will be given a deadline date when this is due to be paid.
The fee that you pay will depend on whether you are considered to be a home or international student. Read more about how we assign your fee status.
If you are studying on a programme of more than one year’s duration, tuition fees are reviewed annually and are not fixed for the duration of your studies. Read more about fees in subsequent years.
Scholarships and bursaries
You may be eligible for the following funding opportunities, depending on your fee status and course. You will be automatically considered for our main scholarships and bursaries when you apply, so there's nothing extra that you need to do.
Unfortunately no scholarships and bursaries match your selection, but there are more listed on scholarships and bursaries page.
Hear from some of our students about their experience of the Lancaster MBA.
MBA stories: James Manning
MBA Alumnus James Manning tells us about his experience as a student on the MBA programme and how it took his career in an unexpected direction.
Lancaster MBA stories: Parisa Sepasi Ahouyie
Joining us from a background in investment and finance, Parisa Sepasi Ahouyie tells us about her experience as a student on the MBA programme here at Lancaster University.
Lancaster MBA stories: Alex Longworth
Coming from a background in mechanical engineering, Alex Longworth tells us about his experience as a student on the MBA programme here at Lancaster University.
Lancaster MBA stories: Supop Buranasumpatanon
Joining us from a role in Construction, Supop Buranasumpatanon tells us about his experience as a student on the MBA programme here at Lancaster University.
Lancaster MBA stories: Demilade Adenuga
Coming from the world of consulting, Demilade Adenuga tells us about her experience as a student on the MBA programme here at Lancaster University.
Lancaster MBA stories: Ibraheem Malik
Coming from the role of Financial Controller, Ibraheem Malik tells us about his experience as a student on the MBA programme here at Lancaster University.
Living in Lancaster; exploring the United Kingdom
Our programme offers you the chance to explore the United Kingdom with various programme trips, networking events, and reflection opportunities in the beautiful English countryside.
You will further benefit from learning at our Lancaster campus, which has extensive academic facilities and a dedicated MBA suite, which you can access outside business hours.
Hear from our recent MBA graduates as they share their experience of the Lancaster MBA.You can also watch the video versions of the podcasts on the MBA highlights YouTube playlist.
Across the world, our MBA alumni have used their experiences on the programme to develop successful careers in a wide range of roles. Whether exploring new opportunities or embarking on an unexpected direction, our inspirational alumni share personal stories of the influence that their MBA studies had on the course of their future careers.
Our candidates for the 2023-2024 MBA programme include a broad range of sectors, nationalities and backgrounds. For more information, please contact Andy Bagshaw.
The information on this site relates primarily to 2025/2026 entry to the University and every effort has been taken to ensure the information is correct at the time of publication.
The University will use all reasonable effort to deliver the courses as described, but the University reserves the right to make changes to advertised courses. In exceptional circumstances that are beyond the University’s reasonable control (Force Majeure Events), we may need to amend the programmes and provision advertised. In this event, the University will take reasonable steps to minimise the disruption to your studies. If a course is withdrawn or if there are any fundamental changes to your course, we will give you reasonable notice and you will be entitled to request that you are considered for an alternative course or withdraw your application. You are advised to revisit our website for up-to-date course information before you submit your application.
More information on limits to the University’s liability can be found in our legal information.
Our Students’ Charter
We believe in the importance of a strong and productive partnership between our students and staff. In order to ensure your time at Lancaster is a positive experience we have worked with the Students’ Union to articulate this relationship and the standards to which the University and its students aspire. View our Charter and other policies.