Master's Admission Requirements - Faculty of Business Administration and Economics

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

The formal requirements include a successful Bachelor's degree in Economics or a relevant degree programme and, for most degree programmes, the fulfilment of an entrance grade.

Content requirements

Each Master's degree programme has specific admission requirements. In addition to a subject-related first degree, these must also be fulfilled for an application.

German language skills

Sufficient knowledge of German is required for all degree programmes (including the English-language M. Sc. International Economics and Management).

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:
- M.Sc. Management
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:
- M.Sc. Business Information Systems
- M.Sc. Business Education

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

M.Sc. Business Administration

	At least ECTS points
Business Administration and Economics	80 ECTS
Quantitative Methods incl. Business Information Systems	40 ECTS
- of which Mathematics	10 ECTS
- of which Statistics	10 ECTS
Bachelor's thesis	10 ECTS

M.Sc. International Business Studies

	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

M.Sc. International Economics and Management

	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

M.Sc. Management

	At least ECTS points
Business Administration and Economics	80 ECTS
- of which from the field of Business Administration	45 ECTS
Quantitative Methods (Statistics and Mathematics, no Business Information Systems)	20 ECTS
Bachelor's thesis	8 ECTS

M.Sc. Management Information Systems

	At least ECTS points
Business Information Systems	30 ECTS
Business Administration and Economics	30 ECTS
Bachelor's thesis	10 ECTS

M.Sc. Taxation, Accounting and Finance

	At least ECTS points
Taxation, Accounting and Finance	50 ECTS
Quantitative Methods (Statistics and Mathematics, no Business Information Systems)	10 ECTS
Bachelor's thesis	8 ECTS

M.Sc. Business Information Systems

	At least ECTS points
Computer Science	30 ECTS
Business Information Systems	30 ECTS
Business Administration and Economics	30 ECTS
Bachelor's thesis	10 ECTS

M.Sc. Business Education

	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.

M.Ed. 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

M.A. Management as part of the two-subject Master's programme "Culture and Society"

	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?

External applicants

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.

Internal applicants

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.

Office of Academic Affairs