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 of Business Administration

SAQA QUAL ID	QUALIFICATION TITLE
5047	Master of Business Administration
ORIGINATOR
University of Cape Town
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		Finance, Economics and Accounting
ABET BAND	MINIMUM CREDITS	PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL	NQF LEVEL	QUAL CLASS
Undefined	120	Level 8 and above	Level N/A: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"		SAQA 06120/18	2018-07-01	2018-12-31
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT		LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2019-12-31		2022-12-31

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 degree provides study and research in the field of business administration to equip the candidate with advanced skills for employment or for further research and study in the same or related subject areas. Students existing from the programme will be marketable nationally and internationally for senior professional and other position in the business and public sectors. They will also be equipped to establish their own businesses.

Students are required to take a set of core and foundation courses that familiarise them with the debates, techniques of research and study in the fields of accounting, finance, marketing, management science, operations, information systems and technologies, economics, politics, communication, leadership, and learning, qualitative analysis, human resources, entrepreneurship and business strategy.

Students are required to show proficiency in all of these subjects before being able to specialise in an area of choice such as strategic management, entrepreneurship, or finance. Students are required to produce a technical report (company analysis) on a group basis and a research report done either individually or in pairs. The research report submitted should provide the foundation for a PhD thesis.

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING

A bachelor's degree, CA, CMA degree or equivalent qualification and a minimum of three years' working experience in a relevant environment is a pre-requisite for entry to the programme.

In the case of non-degree applicants, a minimum of seven years' relevant working experience and evidence of academic and intellectual potential (in form of reference letters) is required.

Candidates must be at least 25 years of age, must have achieved a GMAT test score of at least 550 and must present evidence of suitability for the programme. Candidates are subject to an interview process.

GMAT scores alone do not determine entry. Evidence of distinctive workplace or professional achievements, quality of work experience, is also taken into consideration, as are letters of reference from employers.

School subject minimum requirements
None.

Recognition of prior learning:

People who have shown by examination or publication or a record of appropriate training that they have reached a level in the subject or a cognate subject equivalent to an honours degree may be permitted to register for the degree.

RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING?

EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES

Cross-field outcomes:

a) Critical cross-field outcomes (generic to all teaching and learning)

The holder of an MBA degree is able to demonstrate mastery in the field of business administration. The holder will be able to lead, manage and operate organisations in the public and/or private sector. S/he will also have acquired professional skills to establish his/her own business.

The Master's graduate is equipped with proficiency in research methodology sufficient to proceed to the PhD level.

Graduates have mastered the skills of critical thinking, problem solving, collection and analysis of data, and effective written communication. The graduate is able to

Understand and manipulate quantitative information tables, graphs, and equations

Understand and evaluate written text of descriptive, prescriptive and argumentative characters

Produce written text to accepted international standards

Find information of professional relevance efficiently and independently

Use such information to conduct research to answer questions

Use information technology efficiently

Understand the international and national context of his/her business

Establish a business plan and strategy

Master the "soft skill" of management such as industrial psychology, communication and leadership.

b) General outcomes (contextually demonstrated general knowledge, skills and values of the programme)

The Masters graduate is able to:

Conduct independent research in the discipline

Communicate verbally and orally with professional audiences

Apply disciplinary knowledge and research skills

Analyse and critique communications of an academic and popular nature.

Appreciate the ethical issues associated with research and knowledge production in the discipline.

Challenge orthodoxies and redefine existing knowledge, while demonstrating awareness of the nature of knowledge in the field.

Have mastered a body of knowledge within a specified area of the discipline.

Have mastered all relevant research techniques, both general and specific in relation to a particular field of study.

Be able to summarise clearly, accurately and comprehensively all relevant aspects of an academic debate

Be able to relate or apply existing knowledge in novel contexts

Have sufficient knowledge for teaching undergraduates

Be equipped to undertake supervised research at doctoral level

Be able to make an expert contribution to the conduct of business in a particular area of economic activity.

Will understand and endorse the need for very high standards of rigour in academic research

c) Specific outcomes, including professional outcomes, contextually demonstrated

The holder of an MBA degree will be:

Familiar with leading issues in the field of business administration and general management

Able to apply the techniques of mathematical, statistical and formal logical analysis to solve a rage of business problems.

Able to review, critically evaluate literature and learning in the field.

Able to prepare professional papers, research documents for peer review

Able to develop innovative proposals for business of all types

Able to write research and funding proposal.

Economics

Identification of national and international economic trends

Understanding of the context of business

Integration and prediction of future developments and trends

Business, Government and Society

Evaluation and identification of socio-economic and political trends

Understanding of how such trend impact upon business sector

Analysis of the relationship between business, government and society

Accounting

Read, use and understand corporate financial statements

Introduce cost analysis and management control systems

Teach the underlying principles of accounting

Communication, Leadership and Learning

Introduction of the theories of systems practice and organisational learning
Generic skills of communication and management

ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

a) Critical cross-field outcomes

The integration of skills learnt in the Masters in Business Administration is assessed by means of a company analysis (group project) and a research report (dissertation) of approximately 20,000 words. The dissertation must demonstrate competence in the following areas:

Research problem formulation

Integration of literature

Appropriate design and execution of research

Use of appropriate methods of data collection and analysis

Integration of findings

Appreciation of limits of the study

Use of the publication and style convention of the discipline

The Holder of an MBA will have been assessed through written examinations in all core courses as well as oral presentations in various courses throughout his/her period of study.

Assessment will also come in form of group projects as well as individual projects and a final research report, which is subject to external examination.

b) General outcomes assessment. The achievement of these outcomes is assessed in the integrated assessment of the programme.

The MBA holder will be able to:

Construct a comprehensive bibliography relating to business administration and demonstrate mastery of the arguments and evidence presented therein.

Be able to participate and assist in academic research projects

Demonstrate the ability to explain and apply scientific and scholarly methods

Be able to gather and evaluate empirical data

Be able to replicate research results obtained by others

Be able to identify flawed reasoning and lack of rigour in the work of others

Integrated assessment:

The holder of the MBA degree will be able to through a report:

Construct a comprehensive bibliography relating to a particular area of study and demonstrate mastery of the arguments and evidence

Formulate a research problem

Integrate relevant literature

Participate and assist in academic projects

Design and execute research

Use appropriate methods of data collection and analysis

Demonstrate the ability to explain and apply scientific and scholarly methods

Integrate research findings

Appreciate the limits of the study

Replicate research results of others

Identify flawed reasoning and lack of rigour in the others
Use the publication and style conventions of the discipline.

A mixture of methods is used to assess the students. In core classes, students are awarded grades on the basis of performance in individual and/or group projects, midterm and final examinations as well as written work. The students have to exhibit proficiency in a range of mathematical, analytical and verbal assignments designed to test their abilities.

The MBA is design to impart to students a set of professional as well as academic skills. Students that choose to embark on careers in the business or public sector are equipped to lead, operate and manage the organisations. They will be able to analyse context, business processes, procedures, and systems and manage these to the advantage of the organisation. They are equipped to deal with "real life" situations and problems. They are able to make business decisions based on sound information, analysis, learning and judgements.

ARTICULATION OPTIONS

Title(s) of related qualification(s)
PhD

This qualification serves as an entry point to the related qualification(s).

Entry to this qualification in midstream:
Not possible

Exit from qualification in midstream:
The period of attendance and credits for course work are recorded on the academic transcript and may be recognised by another institution

Other higher education programmes which articulate with this qualification without "going back to square one"
The MBA articulates with the PhD in the Faculty of Commerce.

MODERATION OPTIONS

The University of Cape Town has a system of external peer review and evaluation of each course. One of the aspects of the system is an evaluation of the standards and assessment practices of the department.

CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS

The academic staff of the University of Cape Town will be used in a manner, which is consistent with the quality assurance system of the University.

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.

1.	University of Cape Town