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Triple Crown Accredited
The highest global standard (AMBA, AACSB, EQUIS), guaranteeing quality and rigour.
The Perfect Start
Accelerate your success from day one with a unique foundation module designed to sharpen your learning edge.
Live Global Networking
Build powerful professional connections through dedicated, real-time collaboration with a high-calibre cohort.
World Class Insights
Master the future of business under the guidance of industry-leading experts and renowned academics.
Course content
The Exeter MBA (Online) is a 24 month part time programme comprising 180 credits at Level 7. It is designed to build your leadership capability step by step, starting with strategic leadership and digital transformation, followed by core modules in key areas of modern business, and culminating in a work focused capstone project that delivers measurable impact within your organisation.
All teaching is delivered online. You will study through flexible on demand content available 24/7, alongside regular live weekly seminars that bring you together with other professionals for discussion, collaboration and real-world problem solving. Sessions are scheduled to support different time zones and are recorded to provide additional flexibility.
Assessments are practice based throughout, allowing you to apply your learning directly to your role and generate value from the start.
Want to explore the modules and structure in more detail? Get in touch using the enquiry form at the top of the page and our team will talk you through the full programme.
Please note that the module information displayed here is subject to change.
| Module Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Business Transformation in a Digital World | This module is underpinned by Exeter’s approach to strategy and leadership, informed by research in digital transformation, climate and circular economy. It examines strategic leadership in an AI-enabled economy, where GenAI, platform dynamics and persistent uncertainty are reshaping value creation, competition and risk governance. The module covers the evolution of strategy alongside contemporary issues including responsible decision-making, stakeholder legitimacy and organisational culture. Students develop capability in horizon scanning, pattern recognition, assumption-testing and adaptive strategy design under pressure. It also builds skills in ethical influence and negotiation, inclusive leadership and psychological safety to support resilient, high-performing, technology-enabled teams. |
| Business Analytics and Marketing Strategy | This module integrates marketing and economics for environments characterised by data abundance, attention scarcity and GenAI-enabled decision and persuasion. It develops evidence-based judgement and credible communication, drawing on sustainable economic thinking, business analytics, applied marketing research and customer insight. The module examines value creation and capture across B2C and B2B contexts, supporting the translation of insight into growth strategy. Students design and evaluate multi-channel campaigns, manage customer relationships and expectations, and consider product and service innovation across the lifecycle. A specific focus is ethical narrative and responsible use of GenAI and digital tools to generate insight and build trust through authentic communication. |
| Integrated Financial Management | This module develops financial management capability for leaders operating in a digital economy shaped by automation, fintech, data and GenAI. It builds practical fluency in accounts, costing, cash flow, performance measurement and financial interpretation, enabling effective dialogue with finance specialists. The module then applies these foundations to investment appraisal, funding choices, capital structure and risk, linking financial logic to strategy and value creation. Learning is supported through cases and workplace-relevant tasks using contemporary tools, dashboards and emerging GenAI applications. Emphasis is placed on decision quality, stewardship and accountability, and on communicating financial insight clearly and credibly to varied stakeholder groups. |
| Leading Dynamic Organisations and Operations | This module examines operations and organisational behaviour as interdependent systems shaped by technology, culture and structure. It analyses how identity, power, norms and organisational routines influence performance across people, processes, platforms and supply chains. Using systems thinking and the resource-based view, students diagnose where value is created, constrained or lost, and identify leverage points for improvement. The module explores how GenAI, automation and digital platforms are reshaping work design, HRM and coordination, and the implications for culture, resilience and fairness. It also addresses sustainable and circular operations and business model transformation, focusing on practical interventions aligned to strategy and values. |
| Strategic Foresight | This module develops capability in strategic foresight, horizon scanning and futures analysis to identify emerging forces, shifting customer needs and potential disruptions. It introduces approaches for competing under uncertainty, including transient advantage, diversification, co-opetition and ecosystem strategy, and examines how organisations evolve through continuous adaptation rather than reliance on static competitive positions. Using practitioner-oriented tools and applied case work, students generate and evaluate strategic and business model options for future markets. Emphasis is placed on designing options that are commercially viable and socially responsible, and on translating foresight into actionable choices for strategy, investment and organisational alignment. |
| AI and Design Thinking | This module develops AI-enabled entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial capability through design thinking and structured innovation methods. It covers need-finding, problem framing, ideation, value proposition design and business model development, with a focus on evidence-based experimentation. A sustained design sprint, linked to a live organisational project, guides students through prototyping, testing, iteration and refinement. The module is informed by ISO 56002/56003 innovation management standards and emphasises value creation and capture, practical experimentation, and cross-functional collaboration. Students build a transferable innovation toolkit enabled by GenAI that supports the initiation, shaping and delivery of new opportunities in their organisational context. |
| Capstone Project | The programme is book-ended by a 30-credit Capstone Project grounded in the student’s organisational context. The capstone synthesises learning from core and elective modules to address a substantial workplace challenge, using evidence-based analysis and appropriate methods to design, implement and evaluate an intervention. It is structured to produce measurable outcomes and a clear return on investment for the learner. The project provides an opportunity to demonstrate end-to-end capability: problem definition, stakeholder engagement, strategic and operational decision-making, delivery under constraints, and credible communication of impact to senior audiences. |
Entry requirements
To be considered for The Exeter MBA (Online), you will normally hold a degree equivalent to a minimum of 2:2 and have at least three years' management experience. If you do not hold a degree, significant management experience of five years or more will be considered.
English language requirements
International students need to show they have the required level of English language to study this course.
The required test scores for this course fall under Profile B2.
Find out more about our English language requirements »
Helping you to apply
Applying for The Exeter MBA (Online) is straightforward and you won't navigate it alone.
Our team is here to walk you through every stage, from discussing your eligibility, through application and helping to prepare you to start.
Fees and funding
Total fees for this programme are £23,100.
Applicants who are a resident of Devon and Cornwall may be eligible for a £3,000 scholarship towards tuition fees. For further details, including eligibility criteria, speak to our team.
Teaching and research
How will I learn?
You will study through a blend of narrative-driven digital content available 24/7 and weekly seminars. Live sessions are collaborative by design, built around peer discussion, case analysis, simulations and problem-solving with professionals from a range of sectors and countries. All learning connects directly to your professional context.
How will I be assessed?
Assessments are authentic and practice-based throughout. You will complete applied work including; reports, strategic analyses and a reflective practice portfolio, grounded in real challenges from your own organisation. Your portfolio builds over time into a tangible record of your development, capability and career impact.
Academic mentoring
Structured one-to-one academic mentoring runs throughout the programme. Your mentor meets with you individually each term, supports your reflective portfolio and helps you connect your learning directly to your career goals and progression.
Research culture
The programme draws on the research strengths of the University of Exeter Business School, with particular depth in sustainability, responsible leadership, digital transformation, AI and finance. Your learning is research-informed, future-facing and built around the skills organisations need from their leaders today.
Meet the Exeter MBA (Online) academics
The University of Exeter Business School’s strong academic reputation attracts internationally recognised researchers and experienced educators, with 92% of Business and Management Studies research rated as world leading or internationally excellent in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021.
The Exeter MBA (Online) builds on the University’s established Senior Leader MBA, ranked 15th globally in the CEO Magazine Online MBA Rankings 2026, combining this heritage with a contemporary focus on digital transformation, AI in business and leadership.
You will learn from experienced faculty who bring together academic expertise and real-world insight, including programme leaders Clare Hearn and David Butler, who have delivered on this established course. Through this, you will engage with current business challenges and apply the latest thinking directly to organisational contexts.
The Exeter MBA (Online) is taught by a team of leading academics and practitioners, including:
Your Career
Career outcomes
The MBA is a proven route to senior leadership. Graduates progress into roles across sectors including technology, finance, energy, professional services, manufacturing, the built environment, charities, NGOs and the public sector. Typical roles include senior manager, operations director, strategy lead, commercial director and programme director.
Your professional network
You will build a strong professional network by learning alongside experienced professionals from a range of industries and backgrounds. Collaborative learning through live seminars and group work creates connections that support your career long after you graduate.
Careers support
You will be supported throughout your studies by the University’s careers service and academic mentoring, helping you plan your next step and develop professionally at every stage.
Speak to our recruitment team
Whether you are exploring your options or ready to apply, our team can guide you through the programme and what it could mean for your career. Use the enquiry form at the top of the page to start the conversation.
Study a 100% online Masters degree at a Top 15 University*
Apply now for September 2026 entry »
* 14th in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026
