Frequently Asked Questions
Post-Graduate

Please click here to get to our online application platform.

We require an application fee of €50 for all applicants.

Apply online via our online application platform (see question above). We will start evaluating your application once we have a complete application. Then you will have a short interview with the Academic Director to evaluate your personal and professional development and your potential for leadership. You will then be notified of the decision.

As long as you have not submitted your application, you can still make changes to it. Once you submit your application, you can no longer edit it. If you forget to upload a document and only realize it after submitting it, please write an email to admission@klu.org. We will let you know what to do next.

We encourage you to submit your application early not only for planning, preparation, visas, etc. but also so benefit from our early-bird discount.

For fully completed applications received by February 28th, you will be granted a 10% early-bird discount on the overall tuition upon enrollment. To be entitled for the discount you need to fully complete the online application form and submit it together with your transcript of records.

Please note, that the early bird discount cannot be combined with KLU scholarship.

No, there is no way to speed up the process, unfortunately. The applications are processed in the order we receive them.

As long as you have not submitted your application yet, you can still make changes to it. If you have submitted your application, then please email admission@klu.org with the document as an attachment. We will make sure it is added to your application.

You can log-in to your account at any time to add or alter information. When you first signed up, you would have received a link and password. Please use this for all future logins. If you have already submitted your application, you can no longer add anything to your application. Please email admission@klu.org.

To accept your place of study you need to sign and send back your study contracts and annexes.

No, MBA students are not required to pay a deposit.

Once you start your application, you cannot delete it. If you want to withdraw and/or delete your profile, please email us at admission@klu.org. It would be helpful for us to know why you want to withdraw, so please remember to mention that in your email to us.

Please note that there are multiple criteria in the eligibility check for our MBA program. An educated statement on your eligibility can only be made after you have submitted your complete application including all necessary application documents (e.g. transcript of records, degree certificate, letters of reference, confirmation of work experience, etc.) Usually, KLU does not offer any pre-checks. Please check our program page for a full list of our admission requirements.

A complete application consists of:

• Online application form
• Scanned copy of your undergraduate degree certificate
• Scanned copy of your complete university transcript (semester mark sheets), listing your subjects and grades (of all university degrees)
• Proof of English proficiency (please see below how you can proof your English proficiency)
• Curriculum Vitae (CV)
• Motivational Essay (included in the online application)
• Two reference letters in the standard KLU form (included in the online application)
• Confirmation of work experience

Please provide certified translations of any documents that are not in English or German. Please note that the certification must also be in English or German.

As an English speaking university in Germany, we can accept application documents in English or in German. If your documents are not in English or German, please contact a translation agency or your university might provide you with a certified translation.

A certified translation has to be carried out by a ‘sworn translator’. It is certified by the translator or the translation company and accompanied by a signed statement confirming that the translation is accurate and complete to the best of the translator’s knowledge and ability. For the admissions process at KLU, either a translation into English or German is required. Usually British and local German Embassies provide a list of translation services on their website. Please refer to the respective embassy in your country for further information.

You will find the scholarship application on our program page under Tuition and Scholarships. Please note that you must submit your application for the MBA program before submitting your scholarship application. Incomplete applicants will not be considered.

There are several possibilities to finance your studies, e.g. through Brain Capital, external scholarships or a student loan.

KLU offers an innovative financing plan called Brain Capital. In this plan, the KLU tuition fund may carry up to 50% to 100% of the cost of tuition for the program (not the cost of living). Applicants from non-OECD countries do not receive a full funding of the tuition but only up to 50%.

Students can pursue their degrees without having to pay full tuition that exceeds their financial resources. In return, they will commit themselves to making income-dependent payments after graduation.

Yes, KLU offers a variety of scholarships for MBA applicants.

In Germany, tuition can be claimed on tax returns and the tax savings can be used to partially finance students’ degrees.

All master’s degree students can claim all the costs of their degree program as anticipated income-related expenses before graduating and after completing their vocational training, and carry them forward over their time enrolled as cumulative losses – assuming they had no or very little income in that time. Loss carry-forwards make this possible: the losses that students incur because they are studying are offset from their incomes after graduation in subsequent years. This reduces the income for which taxes are due. The costs associated with the semester abroad and tuition are deductible.

It is only possible to take advantage of loss carry-forward if the degree program is a second degree (master’s degree after the bachelor’s or a bachelor’s degree after an apprenticeship). The costs of first degrees can be deducted as a special expense up to a limit of €6,000. Study-related expenses only have an effect in the same year and only result in tax benefits for people whose incomes are high enough that they actually pay income tax in Germany. The Federal Constitutional Court is reviewing the regulation regarding the costs of the first degree. For this reason, students should always claim their study-related expenses as income-related expenses on their income tax returns.

If students participate in the Brain Capital plan and defer payment of tuition fees, the fees can be deducted as soon as payment is initiated (outflow principle).

*non-committal statement as KLU is not allowed to act as a tax advisor.

Yes, there are several external scholarships which you can apply for. DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) offers an extensive scholarship database.

The MBA program is conducted entirely in English, therefore, to succeed in our program, strong English skills in reading, writing, and speaking are essential.

Your English skills will be evaluated during the interview. If your skills meet our requirements, the English test requirement will be waived.

Only in exceptional cases will we require additional formal proof of English proficiency after the interview. In this case, we can still offer you admission to the MBA program. Formal proof must then be submitted by the end of the first semester (January 15).

Aas official proof, we accept the following English tests:

• TOEFL iBT Score Requirements (incl. MyBest Scores & Special Edition)
  For exams taken before January 21, 2026:
  We require a minimum TOEFL iBT score of 90.
  For exams taken on or after January 21, 2026:
  We require a minimum TOEFL iBT score of 4.5.
• IELTS Academic (band 6.5)*
• IELTS Online Academic Test (band 6.5)*
• CAE (grade C) / CPE (180 points)*
• FCE Cambridge English (grade A)*
• Pearson PTE Academic (also online version) (score 61)*

Additionally, you may qualify for an English test waiver if you meet one of the following criteria: 

1. You are a native English speaker from Canada (excluding Québec), the UK, Ireland, Australia, the US, or New Zealand.
2. You have earned a university degree from an institution in one of the countries listed above.
3. You completed your bachelor’s degree in English in other countries (not mentioned in 1), provided that English language proficiency was an admission requirement and this can still be proven according to KLU standards (test results should not be older than 5 years).
4. You hold English high school qualifications from a native English-speaking country and have earned a bachelor’s degree in a different language.
5. You have at least two years of professional experience in a company where English is the official working language. 

Yes, you are able to apply without proving your English language proficiency. You are able to submit proof later on.

No, if you have a Bachelor's degree from a program with an English-speaking curriculum, you do not need to take a language test.

No, our MBA program is taught entirely in English. Therefore no German language skills are required for our program.