FAQ

CFA stands for Chartered Financial Analyst. You may click here to find out more.

No, but the SMU modules in the GMF curriculum are designed to meet the CFA examination requirements for those who wish to pursue their CFA designation.

No, the tuition fees do not include the CFA examination fee.

It is important to have proper guidance from professors and industry professionals throughout the course of your studies. Our American-style pedagogy, the emphasis on soft skills training and the ability to communicate knowledge in a compelling manner provide our students a competitive edge.

You may log on to CFA’s website, and obtain more information pertaining to the CFA examination.

Our students have performed well, with a higher pass rate compared to the world wide pass rate in most examinations.

The CFA examination is available in Singapore. Please click here for a list of CFA examinations centres around the world.

The programme will be taught by  well-qualified and experienced SMU and industry professionals. The syllabus is customised for the local and regional financial environment with international  perspectives.

For more information on SMU faculty, please click here.

SMU has a four-point grading system. If computations result in the cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) exceeding the four-point grading system, a round down approach will be adopted. The highest cumulative GPA attainable by a student is 4.0.

All students must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.5 and above in order to graduate from the programme. If a student does not meet the GPA requirement in any particular term, he or she will be issued a warning letter. Those with GPAs below 2.5 for two consecutive terms will be asked to leave the programme.

A student may, upon the recommendation of the Course Instructor and approval of the Programme Director, re-sit a written assessment component of a course in which an overall fail grade was registered.

The re-sit, being a replacement assessment, must be of the same format, scope, and rigour as that of the original assessment. For each course, only one re-sit examination or written assessment will be arranged per term. Requests for alternative re-sit arrangements will not be entertained.

A student who passes a course on re-sit will receive an overall grade of "D", which will override the original fail grade.

In the event a student fails a re-sit, he/she must retake the course or take an alternative elective (subject to compliance of the academic standing policy). No further appeals will be considered.

Students of the GMF programme are expected to complete 13 SMU credits over two terms in SMU from August through to May. This includes 9 credits in core modules, and 4 credits from elective modules

Exemption is not possible. Students are required to complete 13 SMU credits as part of the GMF requirements.

In order to graduate, you will have to complete 24 Olin credits (equivalent to 16 modules) and 13 SMU credits (equivalent to 13 modules).

All lessons and examinations are conducted in English for modules in SMU.

You are expected to attend all the classes scheduled for each of the core and elective courses. The pace is  rapid, and sessions follow a building-block approach, with each lecture building on material covered earlier.

You will need to set aside a considerable amount of time for preparation, reading, group work, project  work, private study, the completion of assignments, and revision/consolidation for examinations.

The pace at which individuals work will obviously vary, but as a rough rule of thumb, you will need to  put in two to three hours of work outside of the classroom for every hour actually spent in the formal sessions.

A typical class size is about 50 to 60 students.

Students who wish to request for leave of absence have to write in to the Programme Director with valid reasons.
As the programme is only offered on a yearly basis, the minimum leave of absence is one year.

You may defer for a year only, and the candidature lapses automatically if you do not return the following year.

Yes, you may withdraw from the programme upon approval from the Programme Director. A student who leaves / requests to withdraw from the University and/or Programme two weeks or more after the commencement of a term is liable for the payment of fees for the entire term.

Request for partial payment will not be considered.

You will have to write in to seek permission from the Programme Director.

As SMU practices rolling admissions, the Admissions process (submitting of application, passing the interview with the Admissions Committee, and accepting the admissions offer) will typically take about two (2) weeks to complete. This is provided that candidates fulfills most of the admission critera stated below.

The admission criteria are:

• A good university degree 
• A good GMAT or GRE score 
• IELTS or TOEFL (required if the medium of instruction of your undergraduate studies was not English)

We would expect applicants to have a good basic degree. However, we look at many other aspects of your application such as your drive and motivation. We also conduct interview sessions to select each cohort of students.

All the courses require no previous formal training. However, the pace builds up quickly, and is rapid and demanding. Preparatory classes will be available before classes commence.

Applicants from all backgrounds and working experience are eligible to apply for the GMF programme. In fact, some of our students are using their knowledge and skills learnt in the programme to enable them to enter the banking and finance industry.

You need to be numerate, rather than having particularly strong mathematical skills. You certainly do not need to  have an undergraduate degree in mathematics or the pure sciences. Some calculus will be required for certain modules in the programme.

No. The GMF is designed for fresh graduates and work experience is not a requirement.

For the GMF, the majority of the students come straight into the programme after getting their first degree, and the average age upon entry to the programme is 24.

There is only one intake per year, commencing in July.

Supporting documents can be delivered to us either by hand or by mail. Our address is as follow:

SMU Lee Kong Chian School of Business
50 Stamford Road
Level 4 Graduate Programme Office
Singapore 178899
Office Hours: Monday to Friday, 8.30 a.m. - 5.45 p.m.

To expedite your application process, applicants are encouraged to email a softcopy of their supporting documents after submitting their applications to maf@smu.edu.sg.

If your certificates are certified 'true copies', you do not need to bring the originals for verification.

You will have to translate all documents to English, and have them certified.

The usual application fee of S$100 will be waived for GMF applicants from our partner Universities.

Of the two personal references, one should typically be from a current or previous employer, a colleague, or someone else who knows you well at work; the other referee could be someone who taught you at  university or college, or another person who knows you in a professional capacity.

For fresh graduates, both referees can be your professors.

Upon submitting your online application, a link will be sent to your referees via email to submit their recommendations online. You will be required to fill in your referees' particulars accordingly.

Applicants are encouraged to notify their referees before or after submitting their online application to complete the online recommendation form.

Admissions are done on a rolling basis. A typical applicant willl be notified of their application outcome within 2 weeks after applying.

You can check the status of your application online. Please logon to our Applicant Self Service function with your user id and password.
Alternatively, you may send an email to maf@smu.edu.sg.

You can apply again even though your previous application was rejected.

You have to submit two online application forms.

We require applicants to take the GMAT (Graduate Management Admissions Test). The GMAT measures general verbal and mathematical skills, and the score report gives separate scores for the quantitative and verbal sections of the test, as well as a total score. There is also a short analytical writing section. The GMAT is used to promote fairness, objectivity and validity in selection and provides supplementary information to that contained in the application form.

Please logon to the GMAT website. The website provides information about preparing and registering for the GMAT test.

There is no minimum GMAT/GRE score required. We will view  your application for admission to this programme holistically to gauge your suitability.

However, to make your application more competitive, we encourage applicants to achieve the following:

GMAT/GRE: 600 and above (with a strong Quantitative Score)
TOEFL: 95 (internet based test)     
IELTS: 6.5 and above

You can retake GMAT 16 days after your first attempt, but retaking the test is only recommended if you believe you have under-performed significantly. You are strongly encouraged to be well prepared for your test, as you will be allowed a maximum of five attempts within a calendar year.

If the rest of your application is complete, you can send it to us, even if you have not taken the GMAT. Do note that we will process your application only after receiving your GMAT score.

Email us the unofficial score report, which you will receive a hardcopy of immediately after the test. Please also arrange with the test centre for the official score report to be sent to SMU via the institution code F8D-7V-27.

GMAT/GRE is mandatory for all candidates, regardless of their academic background or prior qualifications for a variety of reasons:

• The GMAT/GRE score is a helpful measure for comparison when evaluating potential candidates from all countries and universities.
• All business schools have to provide summary data on applicants/students including their average GMAT/GRE score to various external bodies.
• Exemption of the GMAT/GRE component may lead to inconsistencies and unfairness in our admission processes.

A GMAT score is valid for five years after the test date.

GMAT can be taken at:

Pearson Professional Center
10 Anson Road, Level 30, Unit 3,
International Plaza, Singapore 079903
Tel: +65 6225 2027

SMU's GMAT institution code for the MSc in Applied Finance is F8D-7V-27.

You can submit your GRE score instead of GMAT. Your GRE score is valid for five years after the test date.
SMU's GRE institution code is 5757.

You should submit your highest score if the score is still within the 5 years validity period after the test date.

The TOEFL/IELTS test is required if the medium of instruction in your undergraduate education was not in English.
SMU’s institution code for TOEFL is 9014.

Your TOEFL score is valid for two years after the test date.

Applicants will receive an acknowledgement letter at least latest, by end June. Please notify the Admissions Team at maf@smu.edu.sg if you do not receive the letter within the stipulated period.

SMU is set up as Singapore's first publicly-funded private university offering a style of education modelled after The Wharton School.

SMU has established a reputation for pushing the boundaries of innovation, creativity and academic excellence in redefining tertiary education. SMU introduced pedagogy previously unseen in Singapore, and has shown how a broad-based education and interactive teaching environment in small class sizes produces graduates well-prepared for the demands of the real world.  

SMU is also known as a pioneer in its holistic admissions approach of recruiting all-rounded, multi-talented students and incorporating leadership and soft skills training in the curriculum.

Visit our SMU's main website for more information.

There are six schools in SMU: the Lee Kong Chian School of Business, the School of Accountancy, School of Economics, School of Information Systems, School of Law and School of Social Sciences.

Please click here for a list of our postgraduate programmes.

As an international student, you should hold a valid employment pass or dependant's pass if you wish to enrol in a part-time programme offered by SMU.

Successfully  securing a job offer is subject to numerous factors, ranging from the  performance of a candidate during his or her job interview, the economy, the candidate’s personality and expectations.

To date, our graduates have been well sought-after locally and internationally. 

The  programme provides a stepping-stone for those who want to enter the finance and banking industries. Most of our graduates venture into the fund management, banking and consultancy sectors.

The immediate return is a chance to get into the finance industry. The rest depends on the individual, i.e. job performance.

An SMU degree is recognised worldwide. Kindly check with the education ministry in your home country to be sure.