Study our national program, delivered in Canberra, at a business school in the top 1% globally.
Our Executive MBA is different to a conventional MBA. It's designed for executives who have a desire to hone their leadership skills with an elite national cohort.
Flexible delivery
Tailored for executive responsibilities, you will be able to fit study around your career demands. Course work is contained to bi-monthly weekend intensives and online learning.
2025 intake
The Executive MBA has a yearly Canberra intake. If you are interested in joining our January 2025 cohort, or want more information, call our program manager.
Excel as an executive in Canberra
Career support
Broaden your learning, deepen your network and advance your career with QUT's extensive connections and our range of coaching, mentoring and networking opportunities available to you.
Scholarships
Designed to support leaders to complete their Executive MBAs, our scholarships will help you reach your full leadership potential while empowering you to create a positive impact.
Real-world learning
From in-class case studies on real companies, to cohort discussions lead by industry professionals, to assessment designed with industry; real-world learning is embedded throughout our Executive MBA.
Expert teachers
Learn from senior executives leading some of the world’s largest and most complicated projects. Their practical and applied teaching will inspire you to consider new ways of thinking and leading.
International experience
We take real-world learning to the next level with an international study tour at the heart of your learning experience. Deep dive with leading international universities or some of the world's largest companies.
National connections
Connect with a national cohort of big thinkers. Spend two years learning, studying and networking with the same cohort of high-achieving like-minded peers, building your connections through collaboration.
Study at a nationally and internationally renowned business school
Of the 13,670 schools offering business degree programs worldwide, only 1% have triple international accreditation. QUT was the first Australian university to be awarded this accolade.
QUT's Business School has also been ranked number 3 in Australia for postgraduate studies in AFR's BOSS Best Business School 2023 rankings.
Welcome to the 1%
Executive MBA structure
Tailor your study to your career goals
Our Executive MBA allows you to design your studies around your career aspirations. Gain a strong foundation through core units, choose a specialisation and consolidate your learning with a workplace project.
You will undertake 16 core units that will build the key foundations for your Executive MBA and ensure you're multi-disciplinary.
Building a foundation
It all starts with laying down a solid platform to ensure you are confident in the key areas where all great managers excel.
These core units cover specialisations including accounting, economics and communication to build a strong foundation for your Executive MBA.
Multi-disciplinary proficiency
Your ability to make good decisions isn’t just affected by time pressures and volatility, it’s the need to work within multiple disciplines and draw on various perspectives as you quickly formulate an integrated solution.
Building on your foundation knowledge, these units explore innovation, negotiation and complex leadership to advance your practical learning across a range of disciplines.
Specialise in international leadership or complex program leadership and strategic procurement as part of your Executive MBA.
Complex program leadership and strategic procurement
Develop the capability to lead in complicated environments by connecting with some of the world’s most difficult projects as part of this stream.
Investigate the challenging nature of leading global organisations as part of the international study tour and discover how to apply your insights strategically in your own business with our hands-on learning. Choosing this stream will hone your knowledge in project implementation, risk management, and strategic global contracting.
International leadership
Delve into global business, stakeholder engagement and entrepreneurship with the international leadership stream. Immerse yourself at MIT Sloan School of Management on the study tour and learn from their global experts.
You will have the opportunity to integrate emerging digital and engineering innovations into your organisation, while taking advantage of developing opportunities or mitigating against disruption with this study pathway.
QUT is all about real-world learning. That’s why the final component of your Executive MBA program is a capstone unit that gives you the opportunity to apply what you have learnt in a new venture or within an organisation. The aim of the workplace project is to enable students to apply learning from the program to address a complex work-based problem or a new or emerging business opportunity of interest to the student, their employer or a sponsoring organisation.
Students have previously worked with corporate, non-profit, small and medium enterprise and public sector companies including RACQ, Westfield, Mater, Queensland Ambulance Service, Tourism and Events Queensland, and Urban Utilities.
Leadership coaching and mentoring
Throughout our Executive MBA, you'll have a leadership coach to guide you every step of the way.
During the program's first half, you will be allocated an executive coach to provide feedback on leadership style, advice on effective managerial techniques and help with coursework.
In the program's second half, you will be paired with an executive advisor - a current executive or board member - and meet them monthly to explore leadership, decision making and governance.
Take your learning global
Complex project alignment and implementation study tour
As part of the complex program leadership and strategic procurement stream, this two-week intensive European study tour allows students to experience the world’s biggest and most complicated projects.
You’ll learn first-hand about leading complex projects through engaging with senior executives at some of the largest global organisations. Gain an understanding of the strategic capabilities needed to execute complex projects at scale.
Previous tours have visited companies such as Airbus, Pilatus, Lockheed Martin, Reaction Engines, BAE Maritime Naval, Rheinmetall and Gotthard Base Tunnel.
MIT immersion program (entrepreneurship and digital transformation)
In an Australian-first initiative, MIT Sloan School of Management and QUT Business School are collaborating. The international leadership stream features a visit to one of the world’s best universities, MIT. You’ll learn about leveraging emerging digital technologies and data analytics to drive organisational transformation in the face of digital disruption.
For two weeks, selected QUT students will immerse themselves into the MIT ecosystem where they will attend classes taught by leading academics. The immersion program will focus on leadership, entrepreneurship and digital transformation. This will equip you with the digital leadership skills to innovate and problem solve with emerging technologies.
Grow your confidence
Department of Defence alumni Mark Bailey and Anush Avakian, both used their Executive MBA to expand their leadership skills.
'The Executive MBA has equipped me with a repertoire of skills to deal with the modern challenges within the contemporary business environment. I have continued to utilise these skills day-to-day within my workplace as a senior executive.'
'Being able to navigate a complex environment, simplify an issue to its core, and develop successful outcomes is critical for career achievement. The tools, strategies and learning from the Executive MBA have laid the groundwork for success.'
Discover our Executive MBA scholarships
We’ve introduced a range of new scholarships to support leaders to complete their Executive MBAs.
Whether you’re an aspiring leader or an experienced executive, our scholarships will help you reach your full leadership potential while empowering you to create a positive impact in your organisation and community.
These scholarships aim to support a range of future students, including female entrepreneurs, Indigenous leaders and not-for-profit leaders.
'As a single mother further study was out of reach, but the Women in Leadership Excellence scholarship made it a reality. It allowed me to expand my professional opportunities, leadership skills and career. It was long-term goal of mine to complete the Executive MBA and I am grateful for the support of the scholarship that enabled me to have this experience. I would recommend the scholarship to any woman wanting to further their leadership skills.'
Evolve your expertise
'QUT's Executive MBA challenged all preconceived ideas about business for me. This is exactly what is required to lead in today's climate. Efficiency in adapting to change is a critical success factor in leadership today. This, combined with an innate and uncompromising commitment to individuality and inclusion in the workplace, is something the Executive MBA supported me to realise.'
Broaden your capability
'My Executive MBA has provided me with significant opportunities to grow professionally and to challenge myself during the program. The international connection with MIT Sloan School of Management has grown my entrepreneurial mindset, access to an executive advisor has provided valuable coaching, and networking opportunities across a credible alumni network has expanded my professional contacts.'