Requirements & Deadlines

You’ll start by providing some basic personal information, including your contact information, citizenship, areas of interest and affiliations.

You’ll respond to two required essay questions and one optional question. Your responses should be concise, clear, and introspective as we’ll use them to learn more about you, your motivations, and your aspirations. Typically, we ask that you keep responses to 300-500 words max.

Essay 1 is required. Your response should be no longer than 500 words and should address the following questions:

• What are your immediate career goals and how will you benefit from earning an MBA at Kenan-Flagler Business School?
• As the business world continues to evolve, circumstances can change and guide you in a different direction. Should your goals that you provided above not transpire, what other opportunities would you explore?

Essay 2 is required. Your response should be no longer than 500 words and should address the following question:

We all belong to different communities representing various aspects of who we are, including groups we belong to, where we come from, how we think, what we believe, and how we see and experience the world. The process of discovery is strengthened when people with diverse perspectives and life experiences come together to share and learn from one another, negotiate differences, and engage in diplomacy.

How have you dealt with differences in your personal or professional relationships? In what ways will you contribute to the community and learning environment by embracing your authentic self while respecting others? How do you envision furthering your growth in inclusive leadership as an MBA student and as a business leader?

Essay 3 is optional. We encourage you to tell us more about who you are so we can get to know you as a person and potential member of the Carolina community. Use this essay to convey information that you may not have otherwise been able to in the application. Your response should be no longer than 200 words.

Optional topics:

• Personal or professional accomplishments
• Interests and passions
• Gaps in work experience or inconsistent academic performance
• Context for recommender selection
• A fun fact about yourself

As part of your application, you need one professional recommendations, preferably from a current or previous supervisor. Applicants have the option to submit a second letter of recommendation but it is not required. In your application, you will designate your recommender(s). An e-mail will be sent automatically to the recommender(s) with specific instructions and a link to the recommendation form. We use the Common Letter of Recommendation developed by GMAC to save your recommenders time and effort.

Recommendations are due on the same date as your application; however, we do offer a 10-business-day grace period after the application deadline to receive your recommendations. It’s your responsibility to notify your recommenders of this deadline. We encourage you to start early as delayed recommendations will also delay the processing of your application.

A brief professional overview of your educational, employment, and achievement history, most often condensed to a single page (and two pages at the most). Please include titles and dates, and provide the information in reverse chronological order.

You will need to supply transcripts of all academic work you’ve completed at the baccalaureate/undergraduate and graduate levels. This includes:

• The institution(s) at which you were conferred a degree
• Institutions that are noted as transfer credit on any transcript
• Summer sessions or extension programs
• Any other institutions at which you took one or more courses

If you studied outside of the United States, you must have a college-level education equivalent to an American undergraduate or baccalaureate degree – the same as a first-university degree and, typically, is a four-year degree. If the original language of the academic record and diploma is not English, please submit a certified literal (not interpretive) English translation with the original document.

If you received a bachelor’s degree upon completion of a three-year undergraduate program, you are eligible to apply to our Full-Time MBA program. You will need to supply copies of your academic record and the diploma, degree certificate, or other documentation indicating the conferral date of your degree.

Our school codes are:
GMAT: D40-HL-72
GRE: 5046
TOEFL, IELTS or PTE Academic: 5816

You can self-report unofficial test scores on your application and your official scores are not required until after you’re admitted to the program. As you complete your application, you can disregard the “awaiting score report” warnings that appear on your application Checklist. If admitted and enrolled, you must submit official test results before the first day study at UNC Kenan-Flagler.

We do not have a preference for which exam you take (GRE, GMAT, IELTS, TOEFL or PTE Academic), but we consider each exam score as a whole and do not super score the highest section result of one exam with another taken on a different date. GMAT/GRE waivers are available for new applicants to the Full-Time MBA class of 2023. Should you choose to take the GMAT or GRE exam and your waiver request is accepted, we highly encourage you to submit your test score along with your application for review.

English language exam
You’ll need to provide an English-language test score from TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE Academic if English is not your native language, unless: (1) you’ve earned an undergraduate or graduate degree at a U.S. college or university, (2) your education was completed exclusively in English in an English-speaking country, or (3) you received an undergraduate or graduate degree from a university in Hong Kong or India. (In some cases, we may request test scores from Indian candidates.)

Minimum TOEFL/ IELTS/PTE academic score requirement

GMAT/GRE waivers are available for new applicants to the UNC Kenan-Flagler Full-Time MBA class of 2024. You can access the GMAT/GRE waiver request form from within your application, and we encourage you to submit your waiver request early to allow for processing time. Creating an account takes only a few minutes, and you can continue to work on your application as we process your request.

Our holistic application process is built to ensure that you’re prepared for our rigorous Full-Time MBA program. While scores from standardized tests such as the GMAT or GRE are a beneficial way for our Admissions Committee to evaluate the likelihood of academic success in our Full-Time MBA program, we recognize that some candidates can build a strong case for admission based on but not limited to the following criteria:

• Applicants who graduated with a 3.2 GPA or above and coursework in STEM, business, economics or analytical fields from a U.S. institution
• Earned an advanced or terminal degree in JD, MD or a PhD or MS degree within a STEM, business or economics academic field
• 5+ years of professional experience in a quantitative or analytical field
• Hold a CFA or U.S. CPA professional certificate
• Strong test results from the Executive Assessment, LSAT, PCAT or MCAT

Candidates applying through The Consortium are eligible to request a GMAT/GRE waiver, and should submit the approval email to The Consortium to include with their application.

Important points to consider before requesting a GMAT/GRE waiver:

• Be objective about your strengths and weaknesses in order to put together the strongest application! Consider whether a test score may help supplement your academic achievements.
• Some employers use (or require) test scores during initial screenings, particularly in finance and consulting.
• Receiving a GMAT/GRE waiver does not guarantee admission to the program, and for some applicants, formal offers of admission may be based on the successful completion of Business Foundations prior to the start of the program.

Visit our FAQ page or email us at mba_info@unc.edu for more information about the GMAT/GRE waiver process.

Select candidates will be invited to interview by the admissions committee after submitting a complete MBA application. Due to COVID-19, we have temporarily cancelled open interview season and all in-person interviews. Applicants who are invited to interview will be able to do so virtually.

If you qualify for in-state residency for tuition purposes, you’ll answer some preliminary questions within your application. If residency classification cannot be confirmed based on the information you provide within your application, you’ll be prompted to submit an additional residency form. The application process for in-state residency is separate from the application for admission and all residency decisions, and appeals, are determined by the North Carolina Residency Determination Services (RDS), a government agency. Learn more about the residency application process.

The $150 nonrefundable application fee can be paid by credit card. You may qualify for an application fee waiver if you are currently serving in the U.S. military or are a military veteran, or an active participant in the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, or Teach for America. Indicating your military experience or your participation in one of the qualifying programs within your application will activate the fee waiver, which will be applied after you submit your application. You may also qualify for an application fee waiver if you are a Forte Launcher. In some cases, supporting documentation may be requested. Unfortunately, refunds cannot be issued for application fees already paid.