Master of business administration full time programme
AFRICA'S PREMIER MBA
The full time MBA program is ideally suited to students who are seeking a global approach with an African perspective, and are looking to immerse themselves in full-time study.
Adapt, Evolve, Thrive
Join the preeminent business school linking African experience and global relevance.
Enhance your professional knowledge and become a business leader of the future by understanding and identifying creative solutions to critical challenges in complex environments. Gain a unique perspective and expertise to drive positive societal change in South Africa and beyond.
Benefits of studying an MBA at the UCT GSB include:
- Enhanced personal leadership competencies
- Expanded professional networks and relationships
- Unique and effective managerial knowledge and tools for efficient management
- Value creation for entrepreneurial enterprises
- An opportunity to diversify skills and self-reinvent
- International exposure
- An increase in earning potential
- Accelerated career advancement
- Skills acquired for greater social impact
The MBA is offered both as a full-time programme over one year or in a modular format over two years.
* Application & Course fees are provisional for 2025, and are subject to annual UCT council approval. If you would like more information on fees for this programme, click here.
** Limited Scholarship opportunities are available for applicants admitted to the programme
UCT GSB MBA full time programme overview
Find out more about the annual term dates for the UCT GSB full-time MBA formats. The UCT GSB MBA full-time format comprises an intensive one-year journey from mid-August to mid-July including Core Courses in Terms 1, 2 and 3 and Electives in Term 4. Learn more about which attributes and qualifications are required for the UCT GSB MBA. Course designs are updated and adapted annually, therefore the topics listed for each course are a guideline of what students can expect will be covered on each course. The UCT GSB is committed to broadening access to postgraduate education through funding and scholarship opportunities. Explore funding options available to MBA candidates.
What our alumni say
Study in an emerging market
Study in Cape Town, South Africa’s most beautiful city, at a globally ranked business school with a world-class reputation.
At the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business we are passionate about learning and are dedicated to social responsiveness and to addressing the key developmental challenges facing this country and other emerging markets.
Africa’s Top MBA
The UCT GSB MBA is top rated and internationally recognised
Ranked 1st
MBA in Africa and 5th in the world for value for money, Financial Times Top 100 Global MBAs
Ranked 27th
By Corporate Knights Better World MBA
1st place
at the 39th John Molson MBA International Case Competition
The MBA Student Experience
Watch our student experience below
Study abroad
Spend part of your course overseas at one of our reputable partner schools
UCT GSB MBA students have access to a variety of short- and long-term international study opportunities at leading business schools that all have excellent reputations and rankings.
Long-term Exchange We currently have 47 partner schools providing international exchange opportunities for our MBA students. This is a prized opportunity to spend a term or semester abroad, without the burden of paying international student fees.
GNAM Weeks We are the only business school in South Africa to be part of the 32-member Global Network for Advanced Management (GNAM) hosted by the Yale School of Management. GNAM Weeks take place annually for a week in March and October, and give our MBA students the opportunity to pursue intensive study at another network school – tuition-free.
Alongside their counterparts from elsewhere in the network, students attend classes, tour local businesses, and meet with experts focused on current business problems. Each school offers a week focused on a specific topic designed to address the current challenges professionals may face in their respective fields. Visit the GNAM website for more information about the topics on offer during previous MBA Global Network Weeks.
Frequently asked questions
The UCT GSB MBA programme is aimed at aspiring up and coming managers who want to hone their management skills where as the UCT GSB EMBA is aimed at senior level, experienced individuals who consciously want to enhance their ability to conceptualise, rather than their proficiency in functional management. As such, the MBA is strong on content in respect of the core disciplines of management specifically.
Yes, even before you graduate your UCT MBA opens doors for you. The UCT GSB currently has 47 partner schools providing long- or short-term MBA exchange opportunities, and another 32 leading global business schools in the GNAM network that you can choose from for your exchange opportunity.
You can choose from study abroad programmes that range from one week to six months:
- Exchange for a full term/semester, usually 3 – 6 months, but can be 6 weeks depending on the school
- Summer School, usually a short-term exchange specialising in a particular discipline
- Global Network for Advanced Management (GNAM) opportunities to participate in GNAM week, or short exchanges
The MBA is an intensive immersion experience and students need to make sure that they have enough time and space in their schedule to tackle the programme, whether you are studying a full-time or a modular programme. It is also important to make sure you have sufficient support from your family to enable you to study.
The material is studied in three distinct stages:
Private Preparation Before arrival at the GSB, and during late evenings and early mornings throughout the programme, students are expected to read all prescribed material.
Syndicate Groups Students are assigned to a syndicate group, where the readings and cases are discussed. This consolidates and enhances students' understanding through discussion with equally experienced colleagues.
Plenary Sessions Plenary sessions are held in a "lecture theatre", although the process cannot be viewed as a traditional lecture. Lecturers provide focused inputs, but also invite questions and discussion. Here the student is regarded as an expert as well. The level of debate is high and critical faculties are honed in an electric atmosphere where the sharing of ideas, experiences and knowledge is encouraged.
Once you graduate from the UCT GSB you will join our alumni network which is a dynamic forum that comprises more than 23 000 past GSB students in 68 countries worldwide.
Many of the GSB’s alumni hold key positions in top companies or have started their own successful businesses.
Alumni play a vital role in supporting and encouraging more recent graduates to follow in their footsteps and GSB students who find employment after graduation - particularly internationally - frequently do so through alumni contacts.
Meet the Programme Director
Dr Caitlin Ferreira
Dr Caitlin Ferreira holds a PhD in Industrial Marketing from the Luleå University of Technology where she focused on the intersection between marketing and entrepreneurship and the changing nature of entrepreneurship. She holds three further degrees from the University of Cape Town specialising in marketing, economics, and finance.
She is particularly interested in the intersections of marketing with other disciplines and the ways in which marketers can ensure a more sustainable focus to their marketing efforts. She has lectured at several institutions both locally, in the public and private sectors, and abroad. She maintains a steadfast passion for merging relevant industry insights with theoretical content to foster her students’ critical and creative thinking skills, getting them ready for a future world of work. Outside of academia, Caitlin has been a marketing and research consultant for several years where she assists companies with the successful implementation of research projects.
She serves on the editorial boards of international journals and has presented her research at both local and international conferences. She has published in several peer-reviewed international journals including the Journal of Marketing Management, Journal of Business Research, International Business Review and the Journal of Product and Brand Management.
Ideas Exchange
GSB MBA Students Win Global Innovation Competition
MBA students from the UCT Graduate School of Business (UCT GSB) have secured first place in the prestigious 2024 Geneva Challenge, an international competition spotlighting innovative solutions to global issues. Their project, "Mntase Cares," tackles South Africa's teenage pregnancy crisis with mobile clinics offering healthcare, education, and telehealth support. This achievement underscores the UCT GSB's dedication to fostering impactful, globally recognised solutions for critical challenges.
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New ranking places the University of Cape Town’s MBA #7 in the world
The UCT Graduate School of Business’s MBA has ranked #7 globally and #1 in Africa in the 2024 Corporate Knights Better World MBA ranking. This recognition highlights the UCT GSB’s focus on sustainability, complex problem solving, and navigating uncertainty — a growing priority for employers and prospective students alike. With an emphasis on the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the UCT GSB’s MBA prepares future leaders to drive meaningful change in a world where impact-driven business is essential.
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GSB Foundation Launches New Scholarship for Black Women
The Farai Cheryl Shonhiwa (FCS) Scholarship for African Women is a new initiative within the GSB Foundation, celebrating the legacy of Dr Farai Cheryl Shonhiwa. Designed to empower African women, this scholarship provides financial support for the full-time MBA programme at UCT Graduate School of Business. Contributions to the FCS Scholarship will help continue Farai’s vision of fostering leadership and transformative impact across the continent.
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Cassim Motala: Game Changer
As a student at the UCT Graduate School of Business, Cassim Motala (MBA, Class of 2004) helped to shape not just the structure and delivery but the ethos of the School’s MBA programme. As an alumnus, he continues to push for the programme to be as progressive and relevant as ever
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How an Inclusive MBA in Cape Town inspired Tsitsi Hatendi-Mtika (MBA 2014) to Change the Finance Industry
Tsitsi Hatendi-Matika chose the MBA at the UCT GSB to help her broaden her career horizons in finance. Now it’s helping her change the industry for the better.
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What the UCT GSB Better World Ranking reveals about the changing role of the MBA
The UCT Graduate School of Business is firmly guided by its values, which recently resulted in a Top 40 position in the prestigious Corporate Knights Better World MBA ranking – making it a world leader in principled and impactful education
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Don’t let finances get in the way of your MBA dream
Attending business school can be an expensive and time-consuming undertaking, so you need to make sure it’s aligned with your purpose and your purse. Two recent UCT GSB graduates tell us how scholarship funding helped them.
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How students can take charge of their own development through the Career Leadership Centre
UCT GSB students are empowered to navigate their own career advancement with first-class career development tools and direct contact with influential industry players and corporates keen to recruit from their ranks
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UCT Graduate School of Business ranked in the top 50 globally by the FT
Latest ranking of customised programmes from the Financial Times shows the University Cape Town Graduate School of Business is leading in Africa.
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In search of purpose
With people quitting their jobs in greater numbers than ever, professional executive, team and board coach George Koshy shares from his own journey of ‘purpose finding’– and how he is empowering individuals, teams and organisations to find their purpose.
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Three top tips for acing the GMAT test
There is no shortage of advice on how to prepare for the GMAT exam – the often daunting test that opens the door to the most prestigious MBA programmes around the world – but taking advice from someone who’s cracked it themselves is a good place to start.
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UCT GSB MBA ranks top in Africa on sustainability performance
UCT GSB MBA ranks top in Africa on sustainability performance
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Combining passion with purpose to improve science education for all
Bathabile Mpofu is passionate about empowering young people to become scientists, and with her business, Nkazimulo Applied Sciences, she aims to demonstrate to high school learners the beauty of science in an exciting, hands-on way.
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Tractors may not be sexy but they offer a real solution to Africa’s challenges
As COO at Hello Tractor, a novel mobile platform that connects farmers to tractors as well as agricultural equipment, expertise and financial services, MBA alumnus Folu Okunade is working to connect under resourced farmers in emerging economies to the information age.
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Taking the road less travelled is a choice we make
MBA alumna Mouna Akefli is not one to conform. Passionate about building a more diverse, inclusive and connected continent, she is determined to shake things up and her role as marketing manager for Ericsson in West Africa and Morocco is giving her new opportunities to do so.
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Gearing oneself for a post-pandemic world
Do we ever stop needing to constantly reinvent ourselves? Evan Kagan, who completed his MBA at the UCT GSB in 2010, doesn't think so. But by trusting ourselves, working with our passions, learning and connecting with others, and following the latest industry trends, he believes we can all gear ourselves for the post-pandemic world.
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