The University of Cologne's M.Sc. in International Management and the CEMS Master's are designed to provide you with excellent academic and practical training, together with an international focus for your future career in a global business environment.
In a nutshell
Standard period of study: 4 semesters, full-time
Start: Fall term
Degree title: Master of Science (M.Sc.)
Language: English
Fees: Only social contribution fee (more information here)
Application deadline: March 31st 2020
Key Issues
No. 1 international management education in Germany (Financial Time Masters in Management Ranking)
Broadest global network of top 33 business schools from 32 countries with a presence on every continent
Broadest global network of around 70 multinational companies and 7 NGOs
Wide and multidisciplinary offer of courses (e.g., digital analytics, including politics, sociology, geography, etc.)
Unique CEMS student community - at home and all around the world !
What is the CEMS network?
This network is a global alliance of 33 leading business schools across 5 continents, around 70 multinational corporations and seven social partners that together offer the CEMS Master’s in International Management (MIM). We are a founding member – and the only German member – of the CEMS alliance. From the first days of your studies the CEMS network offers you a strong and lifelong community that supports you personally and in your career. The CEMS MIM, top-ranked in the Financial Times Masters in Management Ranking, is a pre-experience postgraduate degree. It is open to top-class, internationally minded, multilingual students enrolled in the M.Sc. in International Management programme at the WiSo Faculty – one of the CEMS member schools.
CEMS Master in International Management
An opportunity not to be missed!
Learn to apply the latest research and appropriate solutions to questions with practical, real-world relevance on courses at your home and partner universities. Develop an understanding of the role of leadership in different intercultural environments and effective approaches to strengthening ethical behaviour in business. Reflect on your own conceptions of leadership and relate them to current positions and arguments discussed in academic literature and case studies. Discuss current topics of relevance to international companies (strategy, organisation, personnel, business ethics, etc.) with CEMS members from all over the world; learn econometric methods and analyse the economic situation of global companies. As the University of Cologne is state-funded, there are no tuition fees - just a biannual "semester contribution" of a little more than 250 euros - so you can invest in an excellent education - and your future - without paying a fortune.
Practical Experience
As a student of the WiSo Faculty, you benefit from an approach that is based on theory and methods, combining both research and teaching with practical elements. The teaching at our faculty has benefited from many years of experience in working with companies and visiting lecturers from different professional fields. Many of the visiting lecturers are professionals and managers who bring important industry experience to the programmes, resulting in sector-specific, up-to-date programme content for our students. This ensures that the programmes reflect the real world and that they thus combine the practical and the theoretical, whilst also promoting knowledge-sharing between companies and you, the student.
Some examples of the questions CEMS MIM students look at
How are multinational companies managed and organised and what types of strategy to they use?
How can I analyse the economic situation of multinational companies and other global institutions?
How can I assess future trends in how business is done in the face of ever-changing technology?
How do I conduct a case study?
How do I communicate in an intercultural team?
How can I present my findings in written form and in presentations?
What do I need to be aware of when practising intercultural management?
How can I become a responsible manager?
How can I apply research findings to real-life business issues?
How can I check and compare the effects of a company’s marketing activities?
How can I use mathematical methods to determine optimum stock levels for a company?
The University of Cologne – a founding member of the CEMS Alliance – is the only German university to deliver the prestigious CEMS Master’s in International Management degree. In Cologne, we cooperate closely with our corporate partners. If you are interested in international management and in a programme that prepares you for a position in a multinational enterprise, CEMS MIM is the perfect choice for you.
Information on the application
Due to the coronavirus, we have decided to make some changes in the application process for the master's programme in International Management (CEMS MIM). These changes are subject to the condition that your application is submitted to the MIM Master Application Portal of the University of Cologne and - if you have a non-German bachelor‘s degree - to uni-assist by 31 March 2020.
1) Admission tests: • You can send your test result to wiso-zulassung[at]uni-koeln.de until 15 April 2020. The preliminary test results are sufficient. 2) Language certificate for English: • You can send your test result to wiso-zulassung[at]uni-koeln.de until 15 April 2020. The preliminary test results are sufficient. • We accept all English certificates that are no older than five years (including 2015). • We accept TOEFL iBT® Special Home Edition. • Note for applicants* with a foreign bachelor's degree: We have suspended the language test via uni-assist. Now you do not have to present a certified language certificate to uni-assist. Should uni-assist have evaluated you negatively due to a lack of language skills or the wrong form of the language certificate, your application will automatically be re-evaluated.
We look forward to receiving your application! If you have any questions, please contact the WiSo Student Service Point team.
Admission Requirements and Selection Procedure
Admission Requirements
The admission requirements must be met by the application deadline and are as follows:
Bachelor or equivalent degree
in Business Administration or Economics with strong proficiency in Business Administration, Economics and quantitative methods
Applicants who have not yet completed their bachelor studies: Where a student has not yet fully completed their bachelor studies, they may apply if they have earned at least 70% of the required degree credits and will have accumulated the remaining credits by 30 September at the latest. The specific admission criteria governing the designated course of study (including the overall grade) must already have been fulfilled on the basis of the exam results available at the time of application.
Overall grade of at least 2.5 (German grade) in the bachelor degree
Fulfilment of the following subject-related requirements:
Subject-related requirements
....at least 48 ECTS must be specific to the field of Business Administration/Management Studies
...at least 16 ECTS must be specific to the field of Economics
...at least 10 ECTS in Statistics/Mathematics (only methodological expertise, no user expertise)
GMAT Test score ( or English TM-WiSo also accepted), highly recommended [24,5-0 score points]
Interview (includes education, motivation, analytical and communication skills, demeanour and integrity, international experience) [24,5-0 score points]
Applicants who are shortlisted after the assessment of the written application will be invited to Cologne for a selection interview, which will take place between the end of April and mid-May.
The Admissions Board will communicate its decision no later than beginning of July. Enrolment is generally in July.
The detailed scoring can also be seen in the Admission Regulations (German version)/ Admission Regulations (Englisch version) and in this pdf-file.
The submission of the test is not mandatory, but highly recommended.
Application Deadline and Process
All documents must be provided in either German or English and submitted on the application portal by 31 March. An authorised translation into either German or English must be attached to any documents in other languages. We may need to ask for further documentation at a later stage of the application.
Applicants with a (bachelor) degree acquired abroad must also apply via uni-assist by 31 March.
Detailed information about the admission procedure and admission deadlines are provided on the application website.
Please note: It is not possible to apply for an advanced standing transfer to University of Cologne for the M.Sc. International Management (CEMS MIM) since the programme can only be successfully finished when started in the first semester (winter term).
Application Documents
Authenticated documents required for the Master Application Portal:
Bachelor's degree certificate If you have not yet finished your bachelor's studies but have passed at least 70% of the examinations (at least 126 credits in a 180-credits bachelor), you can apply by submitting a confirmation of all credits earned so far, along with a provisional average grade calculated and certified by your examination office. Please note that the remaining credits must be earned by 30 September.
Transcript of records (stamped and signed)
Transcript of semester abroad, if examinations passed abroad should be considered for the admission criteria as well. The courses have to be recognised by the home university as part of the bachelor's programme and recorded on the transcript of records.
University entrance qualification (e.g. A-level/ Abitur/high school diploma)
Official description of the content of all taken bachelor courses/lectures (e.g. course catalogue/ module catalogue or PDF-file with link to online course description)
Certificates of all internships, education and employment listed in the CV
For all volunteer and extracurricular activities listed in the application, please provide a contact person (with email address and phone number) and a website address
Students, who did not obtain their bachelor's degree in Germany must additionally apply via uni-assist. Uni-assist recommends sending in the application at least eight weeks before the deadline expires. This ensures that uni-assist can inform applicants in time if they need to submit further documents. Only after the handling fee has been paid, the application will be evaluated. The following documents are required:
authenticated (and translated) copy of bachelor's degree certificate or attestation of 70% studies (and transcript of records)
authenticated (and translated) copy of diploma supplement
authenticated (and translated) copy of university entrance qualification (e.g. A-level/Abitur/high school diploma)
authenticated copy of proof of English language proficiency
authenticated copy of all documents listed above in the original language| Only if the original document is not available in English or German language. Information about translation and authentication of documents can be read here.
only for applicants with Chinese (except Hongkong) or Vietnamese bachelor’s certificates | original APS certificate | certified copies cannot be accepted!
Standard period of study: 4 semesters, full-time | Start: fall term | Degree title: Master of Science The master's programe carries 120 ECTS credits and compromises a Core and Advanced Section, a Specialisation Section, a Supplementary Section and a Master Thesis.
The core and advanced category (54 CPs) comprises the compulsory CEMS Cores and elective modules.
In the supplementary category (24 CPs), you are free to choose one of five subjects: Accounting, Taxations and Finance, Corporate Development, Marketing, Supply Chain Management or Economics.
Modules in the specialisation category (27 CPs) feature the CEMS Business Project and Case Studies Course.
The Master’s thesis (15 CPs) analyses a specific topic or problem and is normally completed during the fourth term.
For more information about the several sections and the courses please have a look at the following webpage.
CEMS Master in International Management
If you want to experience international atmosphere in a city which has a lot to offer and provides you with everything you need – you should definitely apply for the CEMS MIM at the University of Cologne!
From the first day of your studies the CEMS network offers you a strong and lifelong community that supports you personally and in your career. Become part of it and apply now!
