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Business and Development Studies
Entry requirements
Entry requirements
You are qualified for (but not guaranteed) admission to the programme if you:
1. Fulfil the language requirement by the application deadline
2. Fulfil the academic requirements below
3. Have a bachelor degree or will have by study start
Please note: Fulfilment of the entry requirements does not guarantee admission.The programme has a limited number of places. If there are more qualified applicants than places available at a programme, there will be a selection process, according to the selection criteria which you can find below.
1. English language requirement
The programme requires English at Danish level A.
The English requirements are very strict, which means that only the qualifications listed on the English level A page are accepted as alternative fulfilment.
The English language requirement must be fulfilled by the application deadline.
2. Academic Entry Requirements
This is a concentration under the MSc in Business, Language and Culture programme. MSc in Business, Language and Culture has two concentrations. The entry requirements below are the same for both concentrations.
The MSc in Business, Language and Culture is the natural progression for the BSc in Business, Language and Culture from CBS and the BSc in International Business in Asia from CBS.
Applicants who do not have one of the above-mentioned bachelor degrees can also be qualified for the programme, if they have an equivalent academic background, which covers the academic areas listed below in full and as prescribed. Your educational background will be subject to an overall individual assessment in order to establish whether your bachelor's degree qualifies you for the programme and the following academic entry requirements are met:
| 25 ECTS-points in Business Administration / Economics |
Examples of Business Administration include Marketing, Strategy, Organisation, Management, Accounting, Finance and Innovation/Entrepreneurship
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| 5 ECTS-points in Micro / Macroeconomics | Microeconomics and / or Macroeconomics |
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LANGUAGE AND CULTURE The programme requires proficiency in Chinese, French, German, Japanese or Spanish as well as comprehensive understanding of cultural, societal and political contexts. |
Choose the applicant category that best describes your situation from the two options below (non-native or native speaker) to find out how to document fulfilment of the language and culture requirement. |
Non-native speaker
The chosen language is not the first language you learned, nor the language you use most frequently at home.
You can document fulfilment of the language and culture requirement through one of the following language tests:
| Chinese | French | German | Japanese | Spanish |
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Language tests must be passed at the minimum levels listed above.
Only the language tests/exams listed above fulfil the entry requirement in the language in question; language tests not listed above are not taken into consideration.
Language tests may be taken all over the world, but at different dates and intervals. You must sign up for a test taking place well in advance of the documentation deadline and upload a proof of registration when you apply for the programme, to make sure that you will be able to receive the results and make them available to us on time.
NB: You may apply even if the language requirement is not yet fulfilled; however, you must indicate in your application in which way you plan to fulfil the entry requirement. The entry requirement must be fulfilled and documented by study start (or 1 June, if you are a non-EU/EEA citizen applying in Group 2).
Alternative fulfilment of the second language requirement
- 60 ECTS-points passed at bachelor level focussing on the language in question (language courses and cultural area studies courses only. Other courses, for example Economics, taught in the respective language do not fulfil this requirement)
The chosen language is a language you were brought up with and frequently spoke at home as you were growing up, and you have a full formal education in the respective language, i.e. an upper secondary and/or bachelor degree taught entirely (or almost entirely) in the respective language.
You are required to document that you have:
- A full bachelor programme OR a full upper secondary education taught in the language in question (i.e. where the majority of the courses have been taught in the language in question)
AND
- 15 ECTS-points in language*/cultural/political/society studies
*Language courses in relation to studying language as a subject, for example, Linguistics or Rhetoric. Courses such as, for example, Business English or Business German do not cover this requirement.
Regional Tracks
The language you choose (Chinese, French, German, Japanese or Spanish) determines which regional track courses you will study. For more information, see MSc BLC - Business and Development Studies or MSc BLC - Diversity and Change Management.
The academic entry requirements must be covered with academic and research-based courses done at bachelor level. Courses done at master level are not able to be used.
The courses must have a specific academic content and a level of analytical competence comparable to bachelor level courses at CBS and it is CBS Admissions who determine if a course can fulfil a certain academic entry requirement or not. We make our assessment based on official course descriptions and study programme regulations.
The exact number of ECTS-points must be covered as per the specific entry requirements listed above (for example, 6 ECTS-points are not sufficient for covering a 7.5 ECTS-points requirement).
If your grade transcript does not indicate the courses' workload in ECTS-points, CBS Admissions will carry out an ECTS-points conversion - please find more information on our general admission page.
How to find out if you fulfil the academic requirements
CBS Admissions cannot pre-assess your qualifications ahead of the application round.
We have already assessed a number of bachelor degrees, you will find them all in the list of advance assessments.
To find out if you qualify, you can do the following:
- Check the advance assessments: see below if we have already published an advance assessment for your bachelor degree.
- Self-assessment: if your bachelor degree is not listed in the advance assessments below, you can make your own self-assessment using the self-assessment form further down.
Advance Assessments
The following advance assessments are only valid for:
- the 2025 admission round
- applicants whose bachelor degree exactly matches the university, degree title and enrolment year listed
What is included in the advance assessment?
The advance assessments are based on the obligatory courses as listed in the programme regulations.
If you have obligatory courses that have been credit transferred from elsewhere, we will not use the advance assessment and will instead assess your courses using the available documentation.
If you have electives, we will assess these in addition to the obligatory courses.
Categories
The advance assessments are grouped into 3 different categories:
- Qualifying bachelor degrees: Your obligatory courses fulfil the academic requirements.
- Potentially qualifying bachelor degrees: Your obligatory courses do not fully cover the academic requirements. You will therefore need to either choose relevant electives or take supplementary qualifying courses to fulfil the requirements.
Read more about how to qualify on Are you qualified? - Non-qualifying bachelor degrees: Your obligatory courses do not fulfil the academic entry requirements and it is unlikely that elective courses and/or taking supplementary qualifying courses will help you to fulfil the requirements in full.
Your bachelor degree may be listed in different categories for different enrolment years.
Please note: Fulfilment of the entry requirements does not guarantee admission.
CBS Bachelor Degree
Potentially Qualifying Bachelors Degrees (Can Supplement to Qualify)
Your obligatory courses do not fully cover the academic entry requirements. You will therefore need to either choose relevant electives or take supplementary qualifying courses to fulfil the requirements.
You can use the self-assessment form (further down the page) to give an overview of any courses you believe fulfil the missing academic entry requirements from the advance assessment.
| BACHELOR DEGREE: | ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT: | B.A. / EconomicS ENTRY REQUIREMENT: | LANGUAGE and Culture entry REQUIREMENT: |
|---|---|---|---|
| HA | English to be fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
| HA(jur.) | English to be fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
| HA(fil.) | English to be fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
| HA(kom.) | English to be fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
| HA(psyk.) | English to be fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
| BSc in International Business and Politics | English is fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
| BSc in Business Administration and Sociology | English is fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
| BSc in International Business | English is fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
| BSc in Business Administration and Service Management | English is fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
| HA i Europæisk Business | English is fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement | Native speakers: You need to document your native language Non-native speakers: You must fulfil the 2nd foreign language requirement |
Other Danish Bachelor Degrees
Potentially Qualifying Bachelors Degrees (Can Supplement to Qualify)
Your obligatory courses do not fully cover the academic entry requirements. You will therefore need to either choose relevant electives or take supplementary qualifying courses to fulfil the requirements.
You can use the self-assessment form (further down the page) to give an overview of any courses you believe fulfil the missing academic entry requirements from the advance assessment.
| BACHELOR DEGREE: | ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT: | B.A. / EconomicS REQUIREMENT: | LANGUAGE and Culture REQUIREMENT: |
|---|---|---|---|
| BA int. (SDU) | English is fulfilled | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement |
The German language requirement is fulfilled.
For other regional tracks: |
| BA negot. (SDU) | English is fulfilled, if you studied BA negot. with English | Applicants enrolled in this programme in 2021 or 2022 fulfil the Business Administration and Economics requirement |
If studied with Chinese, German or Spanish, this specific entry requirement is fulfilled.
For other regional tracks: |
SELF-ASSESSMENT (COURSE MATCH)
If your bachelor degree is not listed above, you can make your own self-assessment using the self-assessment form.
The form can give you an overview of your undergraduate courses from both your bachelor degree and any supplementary courses you may have finished outside of your bachelor degree. It is a tool for you to match your courses with the academic requirements for the programme.
You can include courses you have already passed, courses you are currently taking, and courses you plan to take in the summer.
You can also use the self-assessment form to show how you fulfil the missing entry requirements, if your bachelor degree has an advance assessment showing that it does not fulfil all the academic entry requirements. If this is the case, you only need to fill out the form showing which courses outside of your mandatory courses make up the shortfall (for example, electives, exchange or supplementary courses).
Make sure to download the form and save it on your computer.
SELECTION CRITERIA
The programme has a limited number of places. Only applicants fulfilling the entry requirements are considered qualified and will be considered in the selection process.
If there are more qualified applicants than places available at one or both of the concentrations, a selection process will take place, where applicants are selected according to an overall assessment of the educational background at bachelor level, with focus on relevant courses and grades.
The following factors are of importance:
- Analytical skills and experience with social science methodology
- Grades and relevance of educational background at undergraduate level, with a focus on the following academic areas:
- strategy, finance and economics for the Business and Development Studies concentration
- language studies, cultural studies, management and organisation for the Diversity and Change Management concentration - Personal statement (see below)
Personal statement
The personal statement is your chance to describe yourself in relation to the programme.
For instance, you can describe your experiences, academic, work-related or otherwise, and reflect on how they relate to the programme in question, and how the programme can relate to your future aspirations.
Your personal statement should not exceed two pages, be minimum font size 11 and must be written in English.
STATISTICS ON ADMISSION
In our statistics on admission you can find information about the number of applicants for the programme in previous admission rounds as well as the number of places.