What requirements do you need to fulfil for a Master's programme at our faculty?
The admission requirements for our Master's degree programmes can be divided into the categories "formal" and "content-related". In addition, sufficient knowledge of German is required for all degree programmes. The specific admission requirements can be found further down on this page or in the corresponding examination regulations for the Master's degree programmes.
Formal requirements
Completed first degree
In order to fulfil the formal admission requirements, you need
- a successful completion of a Bachelor's degree programme from the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics at Paderborn University or
- a successful completion of an equivalent or comparable research-oriented degree programme in Economics or a relevant degree programme. This will be checked in each individual case. As a rule, the Bachelor's degree programme must comprise at least 180 ECTS.
Admission grade
You will be admitted to a Master's degree programme at our Faculty if you
- are among the best 35%* of the Bachelor's year or
- have a grade of at least 2.3 for the Master's programme:
- have a grade of at least 2.5 for the Master's degree programmes:
- have at least a grade of 2.7 for the Master's programmes:
There is no entry grade for the M.Ed. Business Education.
* Regarding the 35% quota:
No-one in the top 35% will be rejected on the basis of their grade. If you fulfil the 35% quota, you are among the best in your year. "Year" always refers to one year (two semesters), either to the semester in which your degree was awarded and the previous semester, or to the two semesters preceding your final semester. The examinations office of the university you attended will certify that you are among the 35% best in your year.
Please note: the 35% quota is calculated on the basis of your entire Bachelor's degree, not just on the basis of the last two semesters.
Content requirements
| At least ECTS points | |
| Business Administration and Economics | 60 ECTS |
| Quantitative Methods incl. Business Information Systems | 20 ECTS |
| - of which Mathematics | 5 ECTS |
| - of which Statistics | 5 ECTS |
| Language skills in English | Language certificate (not older than 2 years) - C1 |
| Language skills in French or Spanish | Language certificate (not older than 2 years) - B2 |
| Bachelor's thesis | 10 ECTS |
| At least ECTS points | |
| Business Administration and Economics | 80 ECTS |
| - of which Economics | 20 ECTS |
| Quantitative Methods incl. Business Information Systems | 40 ECTS |
| - of which Mathematics | 10 ECTS |
| - of which Statistics | 10 ECTS |
| English language skills | Bachelor's degree in an English-speaking country or in a domestic degree programme accredited as an English-language programme or TOEFEL 87 or equivalent knowledge (e.g. BEC Vantage Level B2) |
| Bachelor's thesis | 10 ECTS |
| At least ECTS points | |
| Business Administration and Economics | 60 ECTS |
| - of which Business Administration | 30 ECTS |
| Business Education | 25 ECTS |
| Quantitative Methods incl. Business Information Systems | 20 ECTS |
| - of which Mathematics | 5 ECTS |
| - of which Statistics | 5 ECTS |
| Bachelor's thesis | 10 ECTS |
A maximum of 20 ECTS credits can be made up in the field of Business Education. Enrolment is not possible if 25 ECTS credits are missing in the field of Business Education.
| At least ECTS points | |
| Specialised science in the major vocational subject area Business Administration and Economics (große berufliche Fachrichtung) | 113 ECTS |
| - of which specialised Didactics | 8 ECTS |
| Specialised science in the minor vocational specialisation area (kleine berufliche Fachrichtung) | 33 ECTS |
| - of which specialised Didactics | (up to) 8 ECTS |
| Educational Sciences / Vocational Education incl. vocational field and orientation internship | 18 ECTS |
| German for migrant pupils | 6 ECTS |
| Bachelor's thesis | 10 ECTS |
| At least ECTS points | |
| Statistics and Quantitative methods | 10 ECTS |
| Business Administration | 40 ECTS |
| - of which Management | 20 ECTS |
| Bachelor's thesis, not necessarily in the subject area of the sub-degree programme | 10 ECTS |
The admission requirements are designed in such a way that access is not only possible for applicants to a Bachelor's degree programme in Business and Economics, but also for applicants to other degree programmes who have developed a business and management-oriented profile as part of their Bachelor's degree programme.
What options do you have if you do not fulfil the content requirements?
The list above shows the minimum content requirements for admission to the respective degree programmes.
If you are missing up to 30 ECTS credits from the Bachelor's degree you have submitted, enrolment in the Master's degree programme is possible subject to certain conditions. If possible, the requirements should be fulfilled in the first year of the Master's programme. You can find out which content you need to re-study in the notification sent to you by the Office of Academic Affairs. The Office of Academic Affairs is also happy to answer any further questions you may have about the conditions imposed.
If you are missing more than 30 ECTS credits, enrolment is not possible under certain conditions, as the Bachelor's degree submitted differs significantly from a Bachelor's degree from Paderborn University.
The list above shows the minimum content requirements for admission to the respective degree programmes.
Paderborn University Bachelor's students who do not fulfil the content requirements can acquire the necessary credits via additional modules. It is also possible to be enrolled on the Master's programme subject to certain conditions. In this case, you would make up for the missing subject and content requirements during the Master's programme. Please contact the Office of Academic Affairs to find the most suitable route for you.
Preliminary examination of requirements outside the application phases
If you would like to check in advance whether you fulfil the content and formal admission requirements for a degree programme, please send your overview of grades from your Bachelor's degree to the Office of Academic Affairs. This service is only offered outside the application phases.
Do you have any questions?
Studienbüro Wirtschaftswissenschaften
Warburger Str. 100
33098 Paderborn