The University of Manchester（曼彻斯特大学）entry requirements for Chinese students (2026) — minimum average mark, university list tiers and programme extras
For the 2026/27 intake, the University of Manchester（曼彻斯特大学）publishes its China entry requirements as minimum average marks in a bachelor's degree that vary by faculty, by which of the university's own university lists your institution appears on, and by programme. The minimum is not one number. Here is how the published structure works, and where to check each figure yourself.
The three published list bands
Manchester's China requirements are organised around ranked lists of Chinese institutions. The published bands are:
- Rank 1 List — the Core List (Top + Tier 1): 80%
- Rank 2 List: 82%
- Rank 3 List: 85%
Alongside each institution name the list prints a decimal BC Rank figure. In the current published table these values include 0.8, 0.82 and 0.85. How each faculty applies a given list to a given degree, and how the decimal figures are described in full, should be read on the university's own country requirements pages, which take precedence over any summary.
Why one number is not enough
The faculty a programme belongs to changes the rules. Manchester's published notes for 2026/27 set out these conditions:
- Business School (AMBS) and the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures (SALC): you need to supply an English language score at application stage that meets the pre-session language course requirement before an offer is made.
- School of Social Sciences (SoSS) and the School of Environment, Education and Development (SEED), except Psychology of Education: you may apply without submitting language scores, but applicants who already meet the language requirement are prioritised.
- Psychology of Education: the language score is required.
- Faculty of Science and Engineering (FSE): the published notes state that the project management programmes (Commercial Project Management, Construction Project Management, Engineering Project Management, Management of Projects) now accept a wider range of bachelor's degree backgrounds.
The same instruction appears throughout the published material: all schools will prioritise applicants from higher ranked institutions who exceed minimum academic entry requirements. Clearing the minimum is a floor, not a competitive score.
Programme-specific requirements in FSE
Within the Faculty of Science and Engineering, individual course pages add their own academic threshold, language requirement and admissions process. Published examples:
| Programme(s) | Discipline | Staged admissions | Deposit | Academic entry requirement | IELTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSc Communications and Signal Processing | EEE | Yes | No | 80% from Top, 83% from Tier 1 | 6.5 overall, no sub-test below 6.0 |
| MSc Advanced Control Systems Engineering (and Extended Research) | EEE | Yes | No | 80% from Top, 83% from Tier 1 | 6.5 overall, no sub-test below 6.0 |
| MSc Electrical Power Systems Engineering (and Extended Research) | EEE | No | No | 80% from Top, 83% from Tier 1 | 6.5 overall, no sub-test below 6.0 |
| MSc Renewable Energy and Clean Technology (and Extended Research) | EEE | No | No | 80% from Top, 83% from Tier 1 | 6.5 overall, no sub-test below 6.0 |
| MSc Commercial Project Management | Management of Projects | Yes | Yes | 82% from a ranked institution | 7.0 overall, no sub-test below 6.5 |
| MSc Construction Project Management | Management of Projects | Yes | Yes | 82% from a ranked institution | 7.0 overall, no sub-test below 6.5 |
| MSc Engineering Project Management | Management of Projects | Yes | Yes | 82% from a ranked institution | 7.0 overall, no sub-test below 6.5 |
| MSc Management of Projects | Management of Projects | Yes | Yes | 82% from a ranked institution | 7.0 overall, no sub-test below 6.5 |
Two patterns are worth noticing. The management-of-projects programmes set the same 82% threshold for any ranked institution, which is a different rule from the EEE programmes' tiered80%/83% split. And those MOP courses are the ones carrying a deposit requirement in the published table.
Other disciplines publish their own thresholds at different levels — mathematics, mechanical engineering, materials, physics and aeronautical engineering entries each carry their own figures. Because these course entries are long and revised, treat every one of them as needing a direct check.
Computers, robotics and portfolio-type requirements
The Computer Science and EEE listings for the computing and robotics master's carry their own academic thresholds, language scores and additional information fields — including references to first-class or strong 2:1 classification equivalents. Those particular rows are long and were only partly visible in the material behind this article, so the exact percentages, any GMAT or portfolio expectation, and whether an interview is required are not reproduced here. For MSc Artificial Intelligence, MSc Cyber Security, MSc Machine Learning, MSc Advanced Computer Science and MSc Robotics, check the university's own course pages, which take precedence.
The same applies to any test other than IELTS. If a programme asks for a standardised test, a portfolio or an interview, that requirement will be stated on the course page, not on the country list.
Study modes
Manchester's China requirements are written for bachelor's degree holders applying to taught master's programmes. Whether an individual course is available part-time, or as an integrated or extended research variant, is decided course by course. The published table marks "Extended Research" variants separately from standard versions for several EEE programmes, which indicates these are distinct course entries rather than a mode switch on an existing offer. For anything beyond full-time taught entry, check the university's own pages, which take precedence.
How to verify each figure
Work through this in order:
- Open the Manchester country requirements page for China.
- Find your bachelor's institution in the published list and note its BC Rank figure.
- Identify the faculty your target programme sits in.
- Open that programme's own course page.
- Read the academic requirement, the IELTS requirement, the deposit position and the staged admissions decision dates on that page.
- Re-check the language rules for your faculty, because the submission timing differs between faculties.
Where this article and the university's pages differ, the university's pages take precedence.