CFA holders Here’s your chance!
Top Schools accepting CFA certification instead of GMAT
Introduction
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) program is an international post-graduation certification offered by the CFA Institute based in America to investment and finance professionals. This program highlights a wide range of topics related to advanced investment analysis spread over three levels, which upon being successfully cleared with 4000 hours (minimum 3 years) of relevant work experience declares the candidate as ‘CFA charterholder’ and adds immense value to their professional life. It has three levels involved- level 1, level 2, and level 3.
Masters in Finance (MFin) is a masters program offered by graduate schools to students with studies focused on subjects from the field of finance. With this course, students can get access to graduate school alumni professionals network and on completion are presented with a course completion degree. Hence, it is a full time degree program and not just a certification course.
In order to get accepted into a prestigious graduate school, candidates are required to appear for GMAT and mention their scores in applications. But here’s a little known fact for you, there are many top graduate schools for studying masters in finance programs that accept students’ CFA level 1 and level 2 certification in lieu of GMAT scores. This makes pursuing CFA along with your Masters in Finance more rewarding and exciting!
Below mentioned are the graduate school accepting CFA level 1 and level 2 passing certificates for entrance applications:
CFA LEVEL 1
1) Master of finance, Schulich School of Business, Canada
Schulich School of Business, based in Canada has received World QS Ranking of being 13th for careers in finance and is considered #1 B-school in Canada for pursuing a Masters degree in a management related field..
Schulich School of business offers one of the most extensive programs for Finance in Canada, and covers a wide spectrum of financial subjects and activities. Schulich requires a candidate to provide either a GMAT score of minimum 550 or GRE scores for consideration, but makes an exception for students passing CFA level 1, or FRM Part 1 exams and allows these to be submitted for consideration of their application instead.
Application fees for Schulich School of Business is $150.
2) Master in Finance, IE Business School, Spain
Master in Finance program offered by IE Business, based in Spain, is a 1 year full-time program that provides students with first-hand insight into the world of modern financial markets, covering latest trends, increasing use of artificial intelligence, and the application of big data to aspects of finance.
In order to stand eligible to apply, students are required to take one of these four exams: GMAT with scores ranging 650-770, or GRE equivalent to GMAT score of 650, or CFA level 1, or CAIA level 1.The application assessment is usually followed by a personal interview to determine inter-personal skills of the candidate.
Master in Finance program provided by IE B-school, Spain, has received the QS ranking of 11th in the world for career in finance as of September, 2022.
3) Master of Finance, Queen’s Smith School of Business, Canada
Smith School of Business, Queen’s University boasts of a 12 month Master of Finance program that can help students build a competitive edge for themselves in the finance industry. This program allows you to study without leaving your current job. They also provide options of two different learning formats- one includes live classroom format, while the other includes online learning with live instruction. This flexible way of learning brings an ease of balancing study with work.
Students can submit GMAT scores or CFA level 1 passing certificate with application for consideration.
Not only does Smith School of Business accept CFA level 1 certification for entrance, but also it has partnered with the CFA Institute,and maintains close relationship with its Toronto chapter to provide its students with exclusive benefits like opportunities to attend CFA events, guest speakers sessions, and CFA scholarships.
4) MSc Finance, Grenoble Ecole de Management, France
Grenoble Ecole de Management, based in France is a business school that provides an MSc Finance program for interested candidates via two tracks- short track and regular track. Regular track is a 2-year program including 7 months on-campus and 3-6 months of internship each year. The short-track students directly start at Year 2 of the course and must complete 7 months of on-campus study and 3-6 months of internship experience over the academic year. Their courses start every year in September only and the classes are taught entirely in English.
Through this program, students can gain advanced knowledge of finance and understand the strategic impact of financial decisions made at the managerial level in international corporations. And also gives students the option to earn a dual degree with an MSc in Accounting or an MSc in Financial Management and Control at Universita Bocconi.
This course also provides excellent preparation for CFA exams as it is part of the CFA Institute University Affiliation Program. Thus, also accepting CFA level 1 results for entrance, in the absence of GMAT scores.
5) Master. in Financial Analysis, London Business School, UK
London Business School is one of the top business schools topping the charts in the world's best business schools records. This B School is highly competitive and known for its academic rigorous curriculum and state-of-the-art financial tools, financial markets and global business understanding. It is a 12-16 months course. The optional fourth month is open to exchange programs or summer internships to strengthen your profile before launching yourself in the job market.
Though a GMAT waiver is not offered in LBS, if you have completed CFA level 1, you wouldn't need to provide GRE/GMAT results.
Did you know, that some universities MFin programs that do not need GMAT? Here are the Top Schools offering GMAT waivers on MFin Programs this 2025!
CFA LEVEL 2
1) Masters in Finance, London Business School, London
London Business School is one of the best schools for building a successful career in finance with a QS ranking of #3 in the world for a master in finance program, and ranked #1 by the Financial Times for the same.
London Business School’s Masters in Finance program is a 10-16 program for working professionals that fuses academic excellence with a global perspective and an applied approach and maintains a fine balance between theory and practical learning. This gives the students an intensive full-time learning experience amongst highly skilled peers.
They have a dedicated Career Centre that helps tailor your journey and guide in progress towards your career goals, and easily transition with internships that help in practical learning and adding new skills. They also provide a part-time program for professionals looking for it.
Although admissions can get highly competitive, the B-school does exempt GMAT and GRE scores for students who have successfully cleared their CFA level 2 exams.
2) Master of Finance, Rotman School of Management, Canada
Rotman School of Management, under the University of Toronto, offers an enticing 20 month program for Master of Finance featuring top-faculty, cutting-edge curriculum and dynamic alumni network.
The admission process and screening at Rotman is very rigorous and expects students with minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.0 to apply. They provide GRE and GMAT score exemptions to candidates who have either successfully completed their CFA level 2 exam, or graduated from University of Toronto with high distinction, or a professional designation in P.Eng or ACIA or FCIA.
Their coursework is usually completed in 16 months and requires students to provide English proficiency test scores. After screening applications, shortlisted candidates are interviewed by invitation only. The application fee is $195 CAD.
Conclusion
So, for candidates pursuing their CFA along with applying for a Masters in Finance program, their applications for these B-schools might have the added advantage of being able to skip the GMAT and GRE scores and attach your CFA exam certificates.
In case you’re wondering which is the best Masters in Finance course to apply for, we can help you with that too. Here’s a list of various masters in finance programs and what they offer. Want to pursue your MFin abroad but confused about where to start? Book a session with our founder and get your journey started today!