Types of Admission

Regular Admission 

• GPA on a 4.0 scale (overall or in the last 60 hours of college credit) multiplied by 200 plus GMAT equal to at least 1000 AND GMAT score of at least 500. 
• (OR) GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale (overall or in the last 60 hours of college credit) with a Graduate Record Exam Score (GRE) of 147 for both Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning and Analytical Writing of 3.5 or higher. (When it is not possible to interpret academic eligibility by way of transcript, the graduate business program reserves the right to request further evidence of academic eligibility.) 
• Minimum grade of ‘C’ on all undergraduate prerequisite courses. 

Probationary Admission 

• GPA on a 4.0 scale (overall or in the last 60 hours of college credit) multiplied by 200 plus GMAT score equal to at least 1000 AND GMAT score of at least 430. 
• (OR) GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale (overall or in the last 60 hours of college credit) with a Graduate Record Exam Score (GRE) of 144 for both Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning and Analytical Writing of 3.5 or higher. (When it is not possible to interpret academic eligibility by way of transcript, the graduate business program reserves the right to request further evidence of academic eligibility). 
• Minimum grade of ‘C’ on all undergraduate prerequisite courses. 
• Students admitted on probation must complete their first 9 hours of graduate course work, with a grade “B” or better. Students not meeting this requirement are subject to dismissal from the program. 

International Students 

International students applying with a three-year degree must have their transcripts evaluated by an outside agency such as WES or NACES for equivalency. 

Foundational Knowledge base 

Students without an undergraduate degree in business may need to complete some or all of the following required foundation course work by passing the 3-credit hour undergraduate course(s), passing the 1-credit hour Graduate Business Essentials online mini-course(s), or demonstrating equivalent proficiency before taking the associated MBA course.   Students needing to satisfy prerequisites can start the MBA coursework if they don't take a course that requires a prerequisite not yet met.  

Prerequisites: MBA (all options other than Accounting) 

• AC221    Principles of Accounting I   
• EC215    Microeconomics 
• FI361     Financial Management 
• MI375    Management Information Systems  
• QM257  Business Analytics I or PY571 Intro Behavioral Statistics 

Prerequisites: MBA (Accounting Option) 

• AC221    Principles of Accounting I 
• AC222    Principles of Accounting II 
• AC321    Fin. Accounting and Reporting I 
• AC332    Fin. Accounting and Reporting II 
• EC215     Microeconomics 
• FI361      Financial Management 
• MI375    Management Information Systems 
• QM257  Business Analytics I or PY571 Intro Behavioral Statistics 

Students wishing to enter the accounting track should have completed an undergraduate degree in accounting at a regionally accredited institution or have satisfactorily completed courses in Intermediate Accounting I and Intermediate Accounting II from a program that teaches these courses using U.S. GAAP standards. 

Students must earn a grade of “C” or above in all prerequisite courses or pass the equivalent 1-credit hour Graduate Business Essentials online mini-courses.

The set of graduate online mini-courses include:  BA601 Graduate Business Statistics Essentials, BA602 Graduate Business Accounting Essentials, BA603 Graduate Business Microeconomics Essentials, BA604 Graduate Business Finance Essentials, and BA605 Graduate Business Information Systems Essentials.   These courses are available in the first and second 8-week sessions of Spring & Fall as well as during the first 6-week session of Summers.   NOTE:  these courses are only offered online and may not be feasible for international students here on a student visa to take in any semester except summer unless sufficient face to face coursework can be taken concurrently.

Demonstration of Business Proficiency 

Proficiency in these areas may be demonstrated through any of the following alternatives: 

• A CLEP or DANTES exam if available. Credit will not be given for these courses with a passing grade on the exam, but a passing score will indicate proof of course knowledge. 
• Applied knowledge of a given domain in the work environment. The extent to which relevant work experience demonstrates proficiency will be determined by the Director – Graduate Business Studies.  Applicants who would like their work experience to be considered must submit a resume with their application. 

GMAT Waiver Qualifications 

Applicants for the MBA degree program are required to provide GMAT scores as part of their application package. Under certain circumstances, an applicant may petition to waive the GMAT requirement. A waiver of the GMAT exam may be considered if the applicant meets any of the following criteria: 

• Has at least three years of significant professional work experience with evidence of profit and loss, managerial, or leadership responsibility as determined by the Director – Graduate Business Studies. 

• Holds a terminal degree (e.g., Ph.D., M.D., J.D., D.D.S.) from an accredited institution deemed appropriate by the Director – Graduate Business Studies. 

• Holds a master’s degree from an accredited institution deemed appropriate by the Director – Graduate Business Studies, with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 (on a 4-point scale). 

• Holds a bachelor’s degree or higher from a recognized HCBC international exchange partner institution* and receives the endorsement of the partner institution’s exchange coordinator and the Director – Graduate Business Studies. 

• Holds a bachelor’s degree from an AACSB accredited program, with a GPA of at least 3.50 on a 4.0 scale overall or at least a 3.25 on a 4.0 scale in the last 60 hours of college credit.   

• Holds a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution, with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better (on a 4.0 scale) and can provide an acceptable converted GMAT score from other standardized entrance exams such as the GRE, MCAT, or LSAT. 

The decision to grant the GMAT waiver rests with the Director – Graduate Business Studies and is determined in joint consideration with the rest of the candidate’s application materials.  Satisfaction of the above criteria does not constitute an automatic waiver. 

*HCBC international exchange partner institutions are defined as those belonging to the Magellan Exchange consortium or bi-lateral partners which include: 

• University College, Leuven, Limburg 
• Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais 
• University of Portsmouth – Business School 
• Technological University Dublin 
• Amsterdam University of Applied Science  

GMAT Waiver Application Process 

• You must first submit the appropriate Graduate Studies Application before applying for a GMAT waiver. 

• If you think you qualify for a GMAT waiver, please submit documentation to admissions@semo.edu (domestic students) or international@semo.edu (international students) requesting a waiver. Include a short statement (one paragraph or less) justifying why you qualify for a waiver and specify which condition(s) you meet. 

• If applicable, provide appropriate supporting documentation as attachments. The following are examples of appropriate evidence needed beyond that which was already submitted for graduate admissions: 
  • Criteria #1: A current resume 
  • Criteria #4: A letter of recommendation from the coordinator at our partner institution 
  • Criteria #6: Results from other standardized entrance exams 
  • Exams 
• Submitted documentation will be forwarded to the Director – Graduate Business Studies for review once all other documentation has been submitted. 

Residence Requirement and Transfer Credit 

In all cases, over one-half of the coursework required in a degree program must be completed at the Cape Girardeau campus, the University's regional campuses, or through Southeast Online. Students must work carefully with their advisor to ensure that the residence requirement is met. Transfer courses do not count toward meeting the residence or 600-level requirements. No more than 12 hours of transfer credit or credit older than 6 years may be applied to a graduate program. Transfer credit must be accepted by the major advisor and is applied to a program at candidacy. Before enrolling for credit at another institution, prior approval must be obtained from the major advisor. Only credit in which a 'B' or better was earned will be accepted for transfer. Credit for transfer is only acceptable if earned from a regionally accredited institution. For programs in education, off-campus credit earned from a non-NCATE accredited institution will not be accepted. 

Second Master's Degree Transfer Credit 

With approval of the advisor and the Dean of the Graduate Studies, twelve hours from the first master's degree may be applied to a second degree. Prior credit is subject to the six-year time limit. 

Application Deadlines 

The application for admission, official transcripts and other required documents should be submitted no later than the dates listed below. 

Domestic Students 

Fall Semester - August 1 
Spring Semester - November 21 
Summer Semester - May 15 

International Students 

Rolling admission, but preferred deadlines are: 
Fall Semester - July 1  
Spring Semester - November 1 
Summer Semester (for IEP students only) - None 

Programs with Early Application Deadlines 

Programs that have application deadlines that are earlier than the general Graduate Studies and International Education and Services deadlines are listed in the table below.