Eligibility criteria varies between educational institutions, but normally a successful MBA applicant will need to have taken the GMAT or GRE pre-entrance test. Schools do not have a required minimum score for these tests. If an undergraduate university did not use English as the primary language, then a student also needs to take the TOEFL, PTE or IELTS English language tests. Schools have minimum score requirements for these tests. A bachelor's degree or the equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's degree is also necessary for an MBA.
Eligibility to a post-graduate program will be similar to the MBA, but the GMAT and GRE tests are not required as these are only used in the U.S.
A post-graduate diploma is typically completed within one year while an MBA normally requires two years of full-time study. Some advanced MBA courses can be completed in a year.
The main result from an MBA is an actual degree. A post-graduate program results in a diploma in a particular field. However, students may often transfer credits from a post-graduate diploma program into a master's program.
Although MBA programs are often provided at U.S. schools, they are available from many universities around the world. Post-graduate diplomas are typically offered at universities in Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Australia, though other countries also offer this diploma.