SAQA All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.
SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY 
REGISTERED QUALIFICATION THAT HAS PASSED THE END DATE: 

Master: Business Administration 
SAQA QUAL ID QUALIFICATION TITLE
48828  Master: Business Administration 
ORIGINATOR
Eduvos (Pty) Ltd (previously known as Midrand Graduate Institute and later to Pearson Institute of Higher Education) 
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
CHE - Council on Higher Education  HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework 
QUALIFICATION TYPE FIELD SUBFIELD
Master's Degree  Field 03 - Business, Commerce and Management Studies  Generic Management 
ABET BAND MINIMUM CREDITS PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL NQF LEVEL QUAL CLASS
Undefined  233  Level 8 and above  Level TBA:Pre-2009 was L8+  Regular-Provider-ELOAC 
REGISTRATION STATUS SAQA DECISION NUMBER REGISTRATION START DATE REGISTRATION END DATE
Passed the End Date -
Status was "Reregistered" 		 EXCO 0415/23  2021-07-01  2023-04-18 
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2024-04-18   2027-04-18  

In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise.  

This qualification does not replace any other qualification and is not replaced by any other qualification. 

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION 
The broad aims of the MBA programme are to:
  • Provide an academically rigorous masters-level programme that develops an ability to analyse complex issues, think critically and appreciate alternative perspectives;
  • Provide a detailed exploration of current management theories and the application of such theories to practical issues across the main functional areas - financial management, human resource management, marketing management and operations management;
  • Provide an opportunity to explore, in depth, the theoretical and practical aspects of the strategic development of organisations and to appreciate the implications for managing at functional and departmental levels;
  • Promote the ability to develop creative and imaginative, yet credible, solutions to management issues;
  • Promote the development of personal and interpersonal skills, notably reporting, presenting, critical analysis, imagination and creativity, group working and independent learning.

    Rationale for the qualification:

    Midrand Graduate Institute's Milpark Business School recognises the power of education to challenge inequality and thus welcomes the positive contribution our institution can make to overcoming discriminatory attitudes and behaviour in society.

    An objective of the Milpark Business School is to enhance the potential of present and future business leaders in southern Africa by enabling them to compete successfully in the global marketplace. This is achieved by the provision of practical, appropriate, relevant and affordable programmes, of which the MBA is one. The Programme encompasses an holistic approach to management development which finds expression in the teaching methodologies practised at Milpark Business School.

    Management education does not exist in a vacuum. Students should be aware of developments in the broader society. As part of their learning experience, they should come into contact with potential role models who can impart valuable knowledge based on their experiences. Milpark Business School's Guest Speaker Programme, involving just such potential role models, is geared to reflect diversity in terms of the social, economic and political profile of South African business and community.

    The practical and relevant approach of our MBA programme makes it very attractive to managers, professionals and graduates who display business leadership potential and who are seeking an advanced management learning programme. Thus the MBA student body reflects the diversity of South Africa's population, our niche market being young, up-and-coming black managers. Many currently-registered students are sponsored by their companies. This demonstrates a recognition by such companies of the need to upgrade the skills levels of their managers. Milpark Business School's MBA programme aims to contribute towards fulfilling this need. 
    		•

    LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING 
  • A recognised undergraduate degree, or another similar qualification (such as a National Higher Diploma, National Diploma, IMM Diploma, IPM Diploma, etc)
  • Appropriate work experience
  • Computer literacy.

    The admission criteria for the MBA Programme are given below:

    An applicant with a recognised undergraduate degree, or similar qualification, is eligible for admission. An applicant with another tertiary-level qualification (National Higher Diploma, IMM, IPM etc) may be eligible for admission to the programme.

    Applicants may be required to attend an interview prior to admission.

    In addition, owing to the interactive nature of the MBA, an applicant must have sufficient professional/work experience. This should be evident from the additional information that must be submitted upon application. This information includes:
  • A condensed curriculum vitae
  • A biographical essay
  • An employer's report.

    Final admission will be granted to a candidate based on his/her entrance qualifications, work experience and interview.

    All students are required to be computer literate. In the event of students requiring additional computer training, such training is available at Milpark Business School at a nominal fee.

    Recognition of Prior Learning:

    Prior learning is recognised in the following ways:
  • A student, who has completed a specific module/subject at Midrand Graduate Institute, may apply for credit for that module/subject;
  • A student, who has completed the equivalent of a specific module/subject at another recognised higher education institution, may apply for exemption from that module/subject. 
    		•

    RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING? 
    Y 

    QUALIFICATION RULES 
    N/A 

    EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES 
    Exit-level outcomes are divided into generic competencies, fundamental competencies and those core to the MBA Programme, as follows:

    a. Generic competencies
  • The ability to analyse complex issues, think critically and appreciate alternative perspectives.
  • The ability to collect, analyse and present information.
  • A knowledge of the use of technology.
  • The ability to use technology and other methods of presentation for communication purposes.
  • The ability to identify and suggest possible solutions to a problem.
  • The ability to work as a member of a team.
  • The ability to organise work requirements so as to meet set deadlines.
  • The realisation that management education does not exist in a vacuum and the ability to relate the educational experience to broader society.

    b. Fundamental competencies

    Management at the Functional Level:
  • The ability to explain the link between the main business functions and business strategy.
  • The ability to explain the role of each of the functions in achieving organisational effectiveness.
  • An awareness and understanding of the key functional issues affecting specific organisations.
  • A sound understanding of the role of finance and accounting in an organisation.
  • A sound understanding of the nature of operations across a broad span of economic activity.
  • The ability to illustrate the different ways in which operations can be designed and activities laid out.
  • A sound understanding of marketing strategy and the ability to draw up a marketing plan.
  • A sound understanding of the responsibilities and functions of the human resource function and the factors that influence human resource planning.

    Financial Management and Decision-making:
  • The ability to analyse financial statements and make suitable recommendations.
  • The ability to contribute to accounting policies.
  • The ability to contribute to and lead the budgetary process.
  • The ability to use appropriate costing and pricing techniques.
  • The ability to prepare and appraise proposed capital projects.

    The Managerial Environment:
  • An in-depth understanding of some of the key national and international trends affecting management decisions and performance in the public and private sectors.
  • The ability to evaluate, select and apply concepts of environmental analysis.
  • The ability to research, evaluate and present key external trends and issues affecting operational and strategic decisions of a specific organisation.
  • The ability to ascertain how companies must act responsibly towards the environment.
  • The ability to demonstrate a holistic view of the world.

    Managing People and Organisations:
  • The ability to make informed judgements on the appropriateness of management models and theories for specific institutional challenges.
  • The ability to use a range of techniques from the fields of organisation theory, and organisation analysis and development to explore institutional activity.
  • The ability to evaluate theory critically.

    Project Innovation:
  • The ability to establish personal and group objectives and the link between them.
  • The ability to demonstrate that project work can be used to develop and implement innovative changes in organisations.
  • The ability to complete successfully a project dealing with innovation in an organisation.

    Strategic Management:
  • The ability to analyse the strategic position of an organisation and formulate appropriate strategies.
  • An understanding of, and ability to participate in, the process of strategy formulation and implementation.
  • The ability to analyse the business position of a company in an industry.
  • The ability to design alternate future scenarios.
  • The ability to engineer a business strategy to fit the most probable scenarios.
  • The ability to advise management teams on implementing and monitoring strategy.

    c. Core competencies

    Strategic Operations Management:
  • An understanding of the strategic significance of operational activities within an organisation and the ability to outline both the positive and negative effects which management of those activities can have for business strategy as a whole.
  • An understanding of the main issues affecting organisations at the time and the ability to assess their relevance to a chosen organisation.

    Strategic Marketing:
  • The ability to formulate a marketing plan.
  • The ability to develop an appropriate international marketing strategy for an organisation.
  • A sound understanding of the difficulties and complexities of implementing marketing strategies, and the ability to propose appropriate implementation strategies.
  • The development of a specialist area of interest in marketing.
    Human Resource Strategies for Flexibility and Change:
  • A sound understanding of the concept of flexibility and the links to organisational effectiveness.
  • A thorough understanding of the concept of organisational change.
  • A thorough understanding of the concepts of E.Q. and customer service, and the ability to apply them to an organisation to increase its effectiveness.
  • The ability to apply an appropriate intervention/strategy from the available approaches.
  • The ability to evaluate critically the competing approaches and understand their implications.

    Corporate Strategy:
  • An understanding of the principle theories of corporate strategy, and the ability to evaluate their appropriateness in different business environments.
  • The ability to demonstrate skills in analysis, formulation and implementation of corporate strategy in an organisation.
  • An awareness of the importance of corporate relations to an organisation.
  • The ability to research a major industry and report on the appropriate corporate strategies for the major players in that industry.

    Corporate Finance:
  • The ability to contribute to corporate finance funding activity.
  • The ability to participate in valuing business.
  • The ability to make suitable recommendations for international financial management.
  • An understanding of governance and remuneration issues.
  • The ability to enable suitable risk reduction.

    Consultancy Dissertation:
  • The ability to integrate knowledge acquired from a variety of sources.
  • The demonstration of a critical and evaluative approach.
  • The ability to present a logical, clear and balanced argument.
  • The ability to apply appropriate analytical techniques applicable to the area of investigation.
  • The ability to demonstrate a degree of innovation in approach, analysis, application or level of integration. 
    		•

    ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA 
    a. Generic competencies
  • Projects, assignments and examinations
  • Class and Project presentations
  • Case-study based assignments and examinations
  • Group and syndicate projects and assignments
  • Deadlines set for various assessment components
  • Participation in Guest Speaker programme, case-study based assignments and research project

    b. Fundamental competencies
  • Assignments
  • Tests
  • Examinations
  • Presentations

    c. Core competencies
  • Assignments
  • Tests
  • Examinations
  • Presentations

    Integrated assessment:

    Midrand Graduate Institute practices an integrated system of assessment, in terms of which students are assessed on an ongoing basis throughout the programme. Students are required to complete class tests, individual and group (syndicate) assignments, and examinations, the results of which count towards the final mark for each module. The components of the final mark are determined separately for each module. 
    		•

    INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY 
    An accreditation agreement has been negotiated with Edinburgh Business School, in terms of which Edinburgh Business School is prepared to allow credit transfer from the Midrand Graduate Institute MBA programme to the Edinburgh Business School MBA programme for a specific range of modules.

    Similar agreements are being negotiated with other well-recognised overseas business schools.

    Based on the positive nature of the above negotiations and given that:
  • The curriculum of our Programme incorporates the latest standards and practices in the discipline
  • Well-qualified academics and industry practitioners act as external examiners and moderators of the Programme;
    We have no reason to doubt that the quality and content of our Programme are of an international standard. 
    		•

    ARTICULATION OPTIONS 
    With regard to vertical articulation, a student who wishes to proceed to higher level studies at another higher education institution should be able to do so based on the knowledge and skills acquired during the course of the MBA programme, provided, of course, that his/her academic performance has been of the required standard.

    In order to broaden access to the MBA programme to newly appointed managers or to experienced managers who lack the appropriate academic qualifications, Milpark Business School offers the Advanced Diploma in Management (ADM). Upon successful completion of the ADM a student will be eligible to apply for admission to the MBA programme and to gain credit for certain MBA modules completed towards the ADM.

    At the moment, the MBA is the only masters level programme offered by Midrand Graduate Institute. As such, opportunities for horizontal articulation within the institution are limited. However, Milpark Business School continues to negotiate with other institutions with the objective of setting up accreditation agreements to be applied in the case of MBA students transferring from Milpark Business School. 

    MODERATION OPTIONS 
    All final assessments of all modules of the curriculum are moderated by academic staff of other recognised higher education institutions. 

    CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS 
    N/A 

    REREGISTRATION HISTORY 
    As per the SAQA Board decision/s at that time, this qualification was Reregistered in 2006; 2009; 2012; 2015. 

    NOTES 
    N/A 

    LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION: 
     
    NONE 


    PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION: 
    This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here.
     
    NONE 


    All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.