Understanding that the COVID-19 pandemic complicates business as usual, Florida State University has dropped its GMAT admission requirement for fall master’s degree applicants.

This eases the application process for those applying by June 1 for fall entry into College of Business master’s degree programs in Accounting (MAcc), Business Administration (MBA) or Management Information Systems (MS-MIS). It also saves applicants the $250 test expense.

“We hope this temporary university measure will give those considering a graduate degree extra incentive to move forward with their plans,” said Kathleen McCullough, associate dean for academic programs. “Now that the world has received a crash course in working remotely, we know there will be more professionals ready to embrace learning online. Our admissions team is ready to help people wanting to take that next career step.”

One of the early pioneers of online education, FSU’s College of Business was offering virtual MBA courses before Facebook or Gmail existed. Its online master’s degrees in Management Information Systems (MS-MIS) and Risk Management and Insurance (MS-RMI) consistently rank in the Top 10 public programs nationwide on U.S News & World Report’s list of Best Online Graduate Business Programs.

Recent graduates say choosing online studies allowed them to stick with their full-time job while developing the skills they needed to advance.

“Earning my MS-MIS enhanced my skills and put me in a better position to further my career,” said Jeff Olson, a 2017 graduate and director of IT for Legacy Health in Portland, Oregon. “My organization values education, especially for our leadership team.”

Olson said he chose FSU’s MS-MIS program for its stellar reputation and focus on IT management, and he found it also suited his time constraints and budget.

“The workload was manageable, and the tuition was reasonable,” he said.

FSU is automatically waiving the GMAT only for the June 1 deadline for fall entry. For future semesters, the college will continue to accept and review GMAT waiver requests from highly qualified candidates. On-campus and online master’s degree options are available. Learn more and apply at graduatebusiness.fsu.edu.

-- Melanie Yeager