Accreditations and memberships

Essex Business School has successfully secured the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation for five years. EBS joins the top 6% business schools globally to be awarded AACSB. 

The AACSB accreditation process involved a rigorous review of the School’s mission, faculty qualifications, curriculum, societal and research impact, and ability to provide the highest-quality programmes to students at UG, PGT and PGR level. 

In order to secure business accreditation, the school had to demonstrate excellence and continuous improvement in every area, as well as a commitment to strategic management, learner success, thought leadership, and societal impact.

AACSB praised the School’s commitment to sustainability, research and education initiatives, widening participation, dedication to equality, diversity and inclusion (including a very international and diverse faculty and student community), having a strong portfolio of knowledge transfer activities and being the first zero carbon business school in the UK.

EBS is an AACSB member. AACSB International is a global association of leaders in education and business dedicated to supporting and advancing quality business education worldwide.

Through membership, accreditation, research, thought leadership, professional development, and advocacy, AACSB partners with over 1,500 organizations, from more than 90 countries globally. Membership or participation in the Global Education Alliance does not imply accreditation.

Our Essex MBA is accredited by the Association of MBAs (AMBA). Less than 2% of business schools can boast this accolade for their MBA and the AMBA affiliation can add huge value to your MBA qualification.

Choose from:

• Master of Business Administration: The Essex MBA
• Master of Business Administration: The part-time Essex MBA

During study you will be able to access the full range of member benefits.

AMBA is a professional membership association that connects MBA students and graduates, accredited Business Schools and MBA employers throughout the world.

AMBA are committed to raising the profile and quality standards of business education internationally, for the benefit of Business Schools, students and alumni, employers, communities and society. AMBA describes its accreditation as the “gold standard” for management training around the world and is highly respected by managers and leaders globally.

EBS is an EFMD global member. EFMD is a global, membership driven organisation and is the largest international network association in the field of management development. The EFMD network includes over 900 institutional members and reaches more than 30,000 management development professionals from academia, business, public service, and consultancy across 88 countries worldwide.                                                            

Many of our accounting, banking and finance degrees are associated with exemptions from professional ACCA exams.

At undergraduate level, these include:

• BSc Accounting
• BSc Accounting and Finance
• BSc Accounting and Management
• BSc Finance
• BSc Banking and Finance
• BSc Finance and Management

Depending on the degree or options you study, you could be entitled all nine exemptions from ACCA’s professional examination papers:

• Accountant in Business
• Management Accounting
• Financial Accounting
• Corporate and Business Law
• Performance Management
• Financial Reporting
• Audit and Assurance
• Financial Management
• Taxation

At postgraduate level, the following courses entitle you to exemption from up to four ACCA professional examination papers:

• MSc Accounting
• MSc Accounting and Finance
• MSc Accounting and Financial Management

The ACCA examination papers are:

• Accountant in Business
• Management Accounting
• Financial Accounting
• Corporate and Business Law

Many of our marketing degrees are associated with exemptions from CIM qualifications.

At undergraduate level, these include:

• BSc Management and Marketing
• BSc Marketing
• MMan Marketing and Management

And at postgraduate level, these include:

• MSc Marketing
• MSc International Marketing and Entrepreneurship
• MSc Management (Marketing)

Depending on the degree or options you study, you could be entitled to up to two exemptions towards the Level 4 Certificate in Professional Marketing and/or an exemption towards either the Level 6 Diploma in Professional Marketing or Level 6 Diploma in Professional Digital Marketing.

The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) is the world's leading professional body for marketing, with a global membership made up of studying professional members and Chartered Marketers. CIM's mission is to create a marketing advantage for the benefit of professionals, business and society with a focus on export, data and skills. CIM believes marketing is the critical factor in driving long term organisational performance.

Many of our accounting and finance undergraduate courses are associated with exemptions from professional Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) examinations, including:

• BSc Accounting
• BSc Accounting and Finance
• BSc Accounting and Management
• BSc Accounting with Economics
• BSc Finance

Depending on the degree and module options you choose, you can currently obtain up to seven exemptions from the CIMA's professional examination papers, including:

• C01 Fundamentals of Management Accounting
• C02 Fundamentals of Financial Accounting
• C03 Fundamentals of Business Mathematics
• C04 Fundamentals of Business Economics
• C05 Fundamentals of Ethics, Corporate Governance and Business Law
• P1 Performance Operations
• F2 Financial Management

Our MSc Human Resource Management is accredited by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). Professional accreditation gives your career a head-start by allowing you to move into a professional role faster. For more than 100 years, the CIPD have been championing better work and working lives by setting professional standards for HR and people development in the UK and across the globe.

You will become a student member of CIPD when you sign up for the programme, giving you access to research resources, HR professionals networks and events. Your membership lasts 18 months, meaning it extends beyond the end date of your course and enables you to continue to access CIPD resources and events as you enter the world of work. Your CIPD student membership is paid for by Essex Business School for 18 months.

Alongside this qualification you will gain Associate CIPD membership and the knowledge component from applying for Chartered CIPD membership. Both of these membership levels are considered essential around the world for HR practice and progressing your HR career.

Essex Business School is recognised as an ICAEW Partner in Learning, working with ICAEW in the professional development of students. Many of our undergraduate accounting courses are associated with exemptions from professional ICAEW examinations. These include:

• BSc Accounting
• BSc Accounting and Finance
• BSc Accounting and Management
• BSc Accounting with Economics
• BSc Finance and Management

Depending on the course and modules you choose and your module/degree grades, you can currently take up to five exemptions from the ICAEW's certificate level examinations, including:

• Accounting
• Assurance
• Business, Technology and Finance
• Financial Management
• Law
• Management Information

To be eligible for credit based exemptions, the ICAEW requires that you apply for credit within five years of completion and have achieved a minimum mark of 50% in all modules of your degree relevant to your application for credit.

CILT is the membership organisation for professionals involved in the management of transportation and logistics systems and supply chains. Our MSc International Logistics and Supply Chain Management is a CILT (UK) accredited degree, giving you academic exemptions from either Membership (MILT) or Chartered Membership (CMILT) after graduation, as long as you have met the organisation’s additional requirements. Becoming a MILT or CMILT may give you the competitive edge when seeking to advance your career in the logistics and supply chain industries.

The CQF Institute is the fastest-growing quant finance membership organisation and the awarding body for the Certificate in Quantitative Finance (CQF) and EBS has become a member of its Academic Partnership Program. This program is dedicated to supporting the professional development of students studying in the field of finance and quantitative finance.

Students will benefit from a wealth of resources at the Institute including leading industry insights via technical conferences and talks, networking with key decision makers and career opportunities from top financial companies. Complimentary membership is available to all students studying a finance Masters degree. For more information please contact the EBS Accreditation Team at ebsaccreditationteam@essex.ac.uk.

Essex Business School is a member of the Business Graduates Association (BGA. The BGA is an international membership and quality assurance body for world-leading and high-potential Business Schools. Schools within BGA’s network subscribe to the BGA Charter and commit to responsible management practices, lifelong learning, and delivering positive impact for Business School stakeholders, including our students and graduates.

Our students and graduates can also become individual members of the BGA and enjoy a range of complimentary tools to support your professional and personal development, such as a CV builder, industry reports, networking opportunities, and exclusive tailored thought leadership.

The University of Essex is a member of the CFA Institute University Affiliation Program. Our MSc Finance and Investment covers more than 70% of the CFA Programme Candidate Body of Knowledge.

Our partner status enables us to award up-to six exceptional students each year with a scholarship that goes towards the fees for the CFA Program Level One exam, so you can start your journey of becoming a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). Achieving this accolade is one way to enhance your CV if you're interested in pursuing a career in investment management.

The scholarship covers the one-time CFA Program enrolment fee and reduces the exam registration fee (includes access to the curriculum eBook) to US$350, saving you at least US$960 in total. The scholarship is open to all University of Essex students in the third year of their undergraduate course, as well as Masters students. You can find out more by emailing ebs@essex.ac.uk.

CFA and Chartered Financial Analyst are registered trademarks owned by CFA Institute.

As a member of the Chartered Association of Business Schools (CABS), we’re proud to be part of a professional body that represents the UK’s leading business schools and higher education providers. CABS supports its members to maintain world-class standards of teaching and research and helps to shape policy by creating opportunities for dialogue with business and government.

The Chartered Financial Analyst Society of the UK (CFA UK) represents the interests of around 11,000 investment professionals and its Investment Management Certificate (IMC) is the most widely-recognised and established qualification of its kind in the UK. The IMC is taken by staff in leading investment firms in the UK and overseas and is the industry's benchmark entry-level qualification.

Essex Business School is an IMC Advantage Partner, meaning we can award up-to three exceptional undergraduates with a scholarship for the two IMC Exams each year. This scholarship includes the registration and exam fees for both Unit One and Unit Two, as well as the Official Training Manual for each of these units.

Our degrees are aligned to the Investment Management Certificate syllabus. Courses which have IMC Advantage Partner status are:

• BSc Accounting and Finance
• BSc Banking and Finance
• BSc Finance

You can find out more by emailing ebs@essex.ac.uk.

As a champion of ethical business practices, Essex Business School is an Advanced Signatory of the UN Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME).

We’re committed to implementing its founding six principles and sharing best practice with other academic institutions to ensure that our students – future business leaders – deliver sustainable value for business, society and the economy.