CEMS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
To help you quickly find answers to your most common questions, we collected the most frequently asked questions and provided the most applicable answers below. If you still can not find the answer to what you are looking for, please contact us.
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How do I apply for the CEMS MIM?
The CEMS MIM is open to students enrolled in a master’s programme in Management or Economics, or other specialized master’s programmes at one of the CEMS schools or universities.
Prospective students apply to the CEMS schools directly. CEMS schools select candidates to the CEMS MIM based on common requirements but may also require additional documentations or qualifications based on local admissions requirements at the school.
More details are available on the how to apply page. If you have any questions concerning a specific school, you can contact the Programme Manager listed on the school page from the school list.
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Can I apply to the CEMS MIM if I do not possess a bachelor’s degree in business?
The majority of the CEMS students possess a bachelor’s degree in business, but there are certain students who come from non-business backgrounds provided that they can complete 60 ECTS of business courses before the start of the CEMS MIM year. This can be achieved by one of the following ways:
- Declaring a minor in business related subjects which carries at least 60 ECTS in the bachelor’s programme
- Studying at least 60 ECTS of business courses in the bachelor’s programme
- Studying at least 60 ECTS of business courses in the first year of the master’s programme
If you have any questions concerning a specific school, you can contact the Programme Manager listed on the school page from the school list.
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Is it possible to apply to the CEMS MIM programme at more than one school?
Yes, it is possible to apply to several CEMS MIM at different schools, however, be aware that there may be fees involved when applying. It is also important to note that admission requirements, application procedures and deadlines vary across CEMS schools. To enquire about the local admission details, you are advised to contact the Programme Manager listed on the school page from the school list.
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Is GMAT/GRE required?
GMAT/GRE is not a compulsory requirement joining the CEMS MIM. However, if the home school requires GMAT to get access to the local master’s programme, the candidate needs to provide a minimum score of 600 in GMAT Exam or 555 in GMAT Focus to be admitted into the CEMS MIM.
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Is there any tuition fee for the CEMS MIM?
As you must be enrolled in a master’s programme at a CEMS school to join the CEMS MIM, there may be a tuition fee for the local master’s programme, and potentially a separate fee for the CEMS MIM. Tuition fees vary based on the school you choose to attend and the fees will be paid to your home school throughout the studies. Please contact the Programme Manager at your home school on the tuition details. You can find the contact information for the local Programme Manager on the school pages from the school list.
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What is the CEMS Student Registration and Handling Fee?
The CEMS Student Registration and Handling Fee is used for supporting central services provided by the CEMS Global Office, including student and alumni portals, student records database, career services platforms, graduation checking, etc.
Students are required to settle the fee at the start of the CEMS MIM year. Students not paying the fee will not have access to certain services such as study progress on the Student Portal, Global Online Elective Course offering, CEMS career services and eventually will be hindered from receiving the CEMS MIM certificate and diploma upon graduation.
The current CEMS Student Registration and Handling Fee is 100 EURO. Starting from Academic Year 2026-27, the fee will be increased every year by 10 EURO for 5 years up to 150 EURO in Academic Year 2030-31.
Academic Year
CEMS Student Registration and Handling Fee
2024-25
100 EURO
2025-26
100 EURO
2026-27
110 EURO
2027-28
120 EURO
2028-29
130 EURO
2029-30
140 EURO
2030-31
150 EURO
Please note that CEMS Student Registration and Handling fee is non-refundable under any circumstances.
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How much does the CEMS MIM year cost?
In addition to the tuition fees (if any), there will be course materials and other related costs as required by the home school and/or host school, as well as lodging expenses, travelling expenses, and other expenses at both the home term and exchange term. Some CEMS schools may offer on campus accommodation. Please check with the Programme Manager at your home school and/or host school on the estimated expenses. It usually varies from country to country.
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What financial aid is available for the CEMS MIM?
There is currently no global scholarship programme within CEMS, however, here is a list of some scholarships and financial aid programmes available at local CEMS schools. To find out more, you can contact the local Programme Manager on the school pages from the school list.
Alternatively, there are institutions that offer loans to international students or government-supported student funds in certain countries. You may want to explore your eligibility and application details in your own country.
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What is a CEMS Block Seminar?
The CEMS Block Seminar is a one-week course that takes place at the beginning of Term 1 with professors and students from various CEMS schools. As the Block Seminar is a mandatory element of the programme that can under no circumstances be postponed & class attendance is mandatory. It is the student’s responsibility to make sure that they will be able to attend a block seminar at the beginning of the programme. The Block Seminar may have a fee.
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What is a CEMS Skill Seminar?
CEMS Skill Seminars are delivered as interactive class sessions and integrated into the programme to help students to develop their soft skills.
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What is a Hard Skills course?
Hard skills courses emphasize the training of students’ quantitative and computational skills and expertise. The main focus of these courses is not the theoretical/conceptual background of these skills but their application and implementation in preferably real business-decision settings. Students have to fulfill a minimum of 5 ECTS in elective courses focusing on hard skills during the CEMS MIM. Schools offer courses in different domains. Please check with the Programme Manager at your home school and/or host school on the course offering.
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What is a Global Online Elective course?
The CEMS Global Online Elective course is aimed at providing students access to courses across the alliance to add to their CEMS experience. This offer is uniquely available for current class year students in Term 1.
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What is a Business Project?
The Business Project is a consultancy-like project designed for students to gain real-life learning experience together with CEMS corporate and social partners. International student teams solve a real business problem as a one-term, part-time activity. It is one of the crucial components of the CEMS MIM which helps students to achieve the CEMS learning objectives.
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How many credits do students have to obtain per semester?
A minimum of 24 ECTS must be validated to pass a semester. If not passed, the student is automatically disqualified from the CEMS MIM. A maximum of 37.5 ECTS can be validated by each semester. Any excessive ECTS in a semester will not be counted towards the graduation requirements.
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What are the requirements to graduate from the CEMS MIM programme?
To graduate, the CEMS student must have fulfilled all obligatory components and attained at least 66 ECTS for the CEMS MIM as well as completing her/his home degree. You can find more information on the CEMS grading & graduation page.
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Where can students view their progress/how many ECTS they still need?
You can find information regarding your academic progress by logging into the CEMS Portal and clicking on the tab “My Progress” or clicking on this link while logged in.
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Is CEMS accredited?
CEMS holds associate membership with The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and the EFMD Quality Improvement System (EQUIS) by EFMD Global.
All CEMS Academic Partners are invited into the CEMS network based on their academic excellence and commitment to quality assurance. Each CEMS Academic Partner is accredited either by AACSB, EQUIS, The Association of MBAs (AMBA), The Business School Impact System (BSIS), or a combination of these prestigious bodies. This demonstrates their dedication to maintaining high standards in quality assurance and continuous improvement in education. For specific accreditation details, please refer to the individual schools page.
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How does CEMS assure quality?
CEMS conducts continuous quality control of the CEMS curriculum and regular internal quality reviews of every CEMS MIM programme offered by a CEMS Academic Partner to ensure the highest possible quality experience for CEMS students around the world.
Based on results of student satisfaction surveys filled in by students on each curriculum element, the Academic Committee carefully monitors the quality of the programme. The most successful courses/seminars are awarded with “Course of the Year” title, while underperforming courses are supported by the community.
Each CEMS Academic Partner is reviewed every five years. These reviews cover critical aspects such as admissions, programme and student management, teaching and assessment, and corporate relations, among others.
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What are the CEMS language graduation requirements?
All MIM graduates must have language proficiency in three languages, one of which is English. Language 2 could be any language including mother tongue or a foreign language at B1 level (oral & written) while language 3 could be any language including mother tongue or a foreign language at elementary level.
Please note that regional dialects are usually not considered as an official language and could not be declared to fulfil the language requirements.
Please refer to the language requirements for details.
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How can I fulfill the CEMS language graduation requirements?
Students can fulfill the language requirements by any of the following ways, including mother tongue, secondary education, university degree, commercial language tests, commercial language courses, or language courses accredited by CEMS schools.
There are different formats of language courses/tests and proficiency levels required to fulfill the CEMS language requirements. For example, for commercial language tests, the minimum required proficiency level is B1 (written and oral) while the required level for elementary language courses taken in accredited cultural institutions or CEMS schools is A1. Some CEMS schools may require higher proficiency levels for their home degree.
Please consult with the Programme Manager at your home school for details.
Please refer to the language requirements for details.
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Are the three languages required at the time of admission to the CEMS MIM?
The three languages are indeed graduation requirements for the CEMS MIM, which must be fulfilled at the time of graduation. Students who do not possess three languages at the time of admission can choose to study language courses at the CEMS schools or at selected cultural institutions, or take commercial language tests that are accredited by CEMS.
Yet, some CEMS schools may require students to possess 3 languages at the time of admission or require higher levels of proficiency to be met as a graduation requirement. Please consult with the Programme Manager at your home school.
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Can I declare multiple mother tongues?
Students may declare more than one mother tongue. Mother tongues are not tested but a “declaration of mother tongue” is to be filled in for each language declared upon application to the programme. Students cannot change their mother tongue once they confirm it during application.
Please refer to the language requirements for details.
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Are regional dialects accepted as mother tongues?
Regional dialects are usually not considered as an official language and could not be declared to fulfill the language requirements. Also, there are certain combinations of similar languages that are not allowed to fulfill the requirements, such as:
- Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian/Montenegrin/Slovenian
- Czech/Slovak
- Danish/Swedish/Norwegian
- Danish/Faroese
- Dutch/Flemish/Frisian/Afrikaans
- German/Luxembourgish
- Russian/Ukrainian/Belarusian
- Russian/Kazak
- Spanish/Catalan
- Spanish/Galician
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My mother tongue is English, do I need two foreign languages to fulfill the CEMS language requirements?
Yes. Students can choose to study language courses at the CEMS schools during the CEMS MIM year, or study elementary language courses at selected cultural institutions, or take commercial language tests that are accredited by CEMS.
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Where can I take the commercial language tests?
Students can take the commercial language tests accredited by CEMS. The minimum requirement is to attain B1 level in both the written and oral parts.
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Where can I study the elementary language courses?
Students can study elementary language courses at a CEMS school. Please note that elementary level language courses (A1, A2, B1) must have a minimum of 5 ECTS or 60 contact hours. Please check with the programme manager at your home school or host school for details.
Alternatively, you can study elementary language courses at selected cultural institutions. Please ensure that the course meets the minimum elementary level with an equivalent of 60 contact hours.
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Are online language courses recognized or acceptable?
Language courses that are delivered online at the selected cultural institutions are subject to be accepted. Make sure to contact your home school programme manager before applying or if there are any doubts.
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I have studied a language course in secondary school or university, is this sufficient to fulfill the CEMS language graduation requirements?
Unfortunately not. Only students who have studied their secondary education and university degree in a foreign language in the entire duration (3-4 years) could be used to fulfill the language requirement. A Medium Of Instruction (MOI) certificate to proof the foreign language as a medium of instruction is required.
Alternatively, for language courses to be accredited by CEMS, they have to be studied at a CEMS school or at selected cultural institutions with at least 60 teaching hours.
Please refer to the language requirements for details.
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Can I fulfill the language requirement if I work for an internship in a foreign country using a foreign language?
Working on an internship using a foreign language would not be sufficient to fulfill the language requirement. A certification is required to prove your language proficiency, which can be attained by any of the following ways such as commercial language tests accredited by CEMS, at selected cultural institutions, or elementary language courses at a CEMS schools, etc.
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Is there an expiry date for the commercial language tests or language courses that I have taken?
There is a certain shelf life for languages other than mother tongue, secondary education and university degree.
- Languages at C2 / C1 levels are valid forever.
- Languages at B2 level are only valid for a maximum of 5 years before the start of the CEMS MIM year.
- Languages at B1, A2 / A1 levels are only valid for a maximum of 2 years before the start of the CEMS MIM year.
Please refer to the language requirements for details.
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How do I select where I want to do my semester(s) abroad?
Term abroad selection is determined by the home school. Once you are selected as a CEMS student, please consult your home school Programme Manager and they will guide you through the process.
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Can I change the semester abroad destination after it is being allocated?
Semester abroad once being allocated cannot be changed unless there are legitimate reasons due to extreme circumstances.
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Can I go for two semesters abroad?
This depends on whether the home school offers two semesters abroad options. Please consult your home school Programme Manager and they will guide you through the process.
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Can I go back to my home country for the semester abroad?
The essence of the semester abroad is to give students opportunities to immerse in a country or culture that they have not been to before. Students are not allowed to go back to their home country for the semester abroad. Some CEMS schools simply do not accept exchange students with the same nationality as the school country.
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What is “abroad” for CEMS International Internship?
CEMS defines abroad to mean outside the home school country. However, the Academic Directors have the responsibility to look at individual student cases and see what best fosters for them the learning outcome of “internationalism”. On this basis, the Academic Director may allow exceptions, if personal background justifies, such as originating from another country or having acquired secondary education or bachelor’s degree in different countries.
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Will the home school / host school offer internship or provide career service?
.There will be career services offered by the home school or host school but this varies across schools. The CEMS Global Office organizes an annual Career Forum and other regional events that participating corporate partners will offer internship opportunities. Students have the ultimate responsibility to look for internships by themselves and get the approval from their home school before starting the internship.
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Can I work on the internship during my CEMS MIM academic term(s)?
The CEMS MIM is a full-time programme while the internship has to be a full-time activity for at least 8 consecutive weeks. Overlapping of the internship with any of the CEMS MIM academic term(s) is not permitted.
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Can I stay in my home country to work on the internship?
Students must spend at least two out of the three terms abroad. Students either spend the internship abroad, or, when spending both academic terms abroad, they may pursue the internship at home, but within a company operating in an international environment.
For the purposes of fulfilling the CEMS MIM graduation requirements, "abroad" is defined as outside the country of the home school. Students may apply to their Academic Director to be allowed to do their internship in the home school country when their personal background justifies this interpretation. This request may be considered if the student originates from another country or has acquired secondary education or bachelor's degree in different countries.
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Do I need a work visa to work on an internship outside of my home country?
Some companies require students to apply for a work visa on the internship. In this case, the company will normally guide through the process of visa application.
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Is the internship paid or unpaid?
This depends on whether the company of your choice offers paid or unpaid internships. There is no guarantee of paid internships.
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What Student Organizations are available?
The CEMS Global Alliance has a highly energetic student body that impacts student life across the world. CEMS students are represented centrally by the Student Board (SB) with one representative from each school, while local activities are animated via CEMS Clubs (CC). To find out more about local CC activities or learn who is your current SB representative, log into your CEMS Portal. CEMS Clubs events will appear under “announcements” and the “My Schools” tab contains information regarding who are the current Student Board members and local CEMS Club presence. If you would like to join your local CC or become part of the SB, reach out to your school’s Programme Manager to learn more. You can find the contact information for the local Programme Manager on the school pages from the school list. More details are also available on the Student Life page.
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What is the Student Board?
The Student Board is the voice of CEMS students within the CEMS Global Alliance. The Student Board consists of one representative from each of the member schools, with a mission to enhance the CEMS experience for students and acting as the official voice of CEMS students, representing their interests before the Academic, Corporate and Administrative stakeholders of the CEMS Alliance. More details are available on the Student Life page.
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Who is my CEMS Student Board Representative?
Every CEMS member school has one representative on the CEMS Student Board per school. To find out who is your current representative, log into your CEMS Portal and click on My Schools. Under Student Life, you will find the list of Student Board members.
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How can I reach out to the CEMS Student Board?
If you have any questions for the CEMS Student Board, you can contact them via studentboard@cemsmail.org
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What is a CEMS Club?
Each school has a CEMS Club, run by CEMS students, which animates student life through local events and activities involving CEMS alumni and Corporate/Social Partners, supporting both home school students and incoming students to make the most of their local experience. More details are available on the Student Life page.
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How can I get in contact with a specific CEMS Club?
If you would like to get in touch with a specific CEMS Club, please contact the local Programme Manager for that club
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How does a company become a CEMS Corporate Partner?
Since its foundation, CEMS has forged partnerships with leading companies that share an interest in the development of international management education and recruitment. Companies receive a number of benefits through their partnership with CEMS.
There are some criteria companies should consider in becoming a Corporate Partner. If you would like to set up a preliminary discussion, please contact us. -
What is the CEMS Corporate Partnership?
CEMS was built on the vision of creating a bridge between the academic and corporate worlds. Since its creation in 1988, CEMS member schools have worked alongside industry in providing expertise, insight and vision for all aspects of programme development, implementation and support. Today, over 70 world-renowned companies operate in a variety of sectors with students, alumni and faculty as a part of this global business network. If you would like your company to join CEMS as a Corporate Partner, contact us.
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I am working at one of CEMS 70+ Corporate Partners. Is there any way I can know if other CEMSies are working for the same company?
We are establishing the CEMS Corporate Ambassador Groups among our 70+ corporate partners. Contact us if you would be interested in leading a CP Ambassador group at alumni@cems.org.
In addition, we created lists of CEMSies working at Corporate Partners. If you would like to learn more, please contact corporatepartners@cems.org
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How do I manage my cemsmail address?
Your cemsmail address is a redirection toward the mailbox you provided when you joined the CEMS Alliance.
If you would like to change the redirection:
- You can change your destination address via the CEMS Portal in the personal e-mail field.
- Messages sent to the CEMS email address are redirected towards this email address. Any updates may take up to 1 hour to complete. Your @cemsmail.org email address is a 'forwarding address' only, which means that there is no “inbox” to check your messages. Instead, all messages sent to your @cemsmail.org address will be automatically forwarded to your chosen destination address. Your @cemsmail address is listed in "CEMS Portal >> CEMS Life"
If you are not receiving mail, it is possible that :
- Your mailbox hosting platform may have strong anti-spam filters, so be sure to check your spam folders and mark these messages as safe. To make sure that you do not miss CEMS MIM related mailing, you should add the following emails to your mail contacts : mailing@cems.org, mailing-mim@cems.org, mailing-cp@cems.org, mailing-cf@cems.org, mailing-ae@cems.org, cems@cems.org, welcome@cems.org, info@cems.org, studentfee@cems.org
- A wrong address was used as the target of your cemsmail redirection. Make sure that your mail tool is aware of your cemsmail address. For instance, in Gmail, you have go to "Settings >> Accounts and import >> Send mail as" (and you declare your cemsmail address as "not an alias")
- If you send a mail from your gmail account to your own cemsmail address, you will not see that message in your inbox, as it is already in your gmail sent box. To to do a test, ask a friend to send you an email from a different mailbox. Also note that some mailboxes will simply not work properly with our redirection system (eg. hotmail).
If you still have some issues after taking those information into account, make sure to provide the following information when contacting the Global Office
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How do I change my password ?
Use the Lost Password tool at https://www.cems.org/lostpassword. To be able to use the Lost Password tool, you need to have access to the mailbox you attached to your cems.org account when you joined CEMS. If you do not have access to that mailbox please contact us.
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How do I regain access to my CEMS Portal and/or CEMS Alumni Platform?
Step 1: Go to https://www.cems.org/lostpassword
Step 2: You will receive a time sensitive link to reset your password via email (check spam messages). If the email you use has not been previously listed in your CEMS profile, then an email from the Alumni Team will be sent to confirm your identity, we will need a scan of one of the following:
a valid ID (i.e. passport, international identity card, etc.)
CEMS MIM Certificate
Once your identity has been verified and your new email has been added to your profile, you will receive an email to reset your password. After you have chosen a new password, you may access the CEMS Alumni Platform.
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How do I remove my profile or CV from the CEMS CV database?
Step 1: Log onto your CEMS Portal and select "Click here to update my CV." on this link. If you do not see "Click here to update my CV", it means that either you haven't created a CEMS CV or that you already detached it from the CEMS database.
Step 2: You will be transferred to the CV management platform DoYouBuzz. You Click on "Account" (top right) then "Manage my account" then "Delete my account."
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How do I ensure my account is protected from online threats?
If you or anyone you know has received suspicious emails, please do not open any attachments, click on any links or provide any personal data or payments. Report these emails as spam in your mailing tool and share this information with the police as this is a crime in most countries in which CEMS operates. As a gentle reminder, please ensure to regularly change your CEMS password as a security measure.
Here are some password creation tips:
Your new password should be a minimum of 8 characters, which should contain at least 1 uppercase letter, 1 number, 1 symbol/special character, 1 lowercase letter
Do not use your old password, your name or something easily associated with you and do not use your CEMS password with other accountsWe are constantly striving to improve our security, so if you would like to take one further step, we would be grateful if you could check if the mail you received travelled through the CEMS SMTP/email server. If you find the following in the mail header, please share this with us and we can improve our anti-spam filtering criteria:
Received: from mail.cems.org (brown.nexen.net. [89.31.146.190])
or
Received: by mail.cems.org (Postfix, from userid 500) id C912CA5F; Mon, 12 Nov 2018 15:57:16 +0100 (CET)If you do not see this, then the mailing is not coming from the CEMS system. If you have any further questions, please contact us.
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Now that I have graduated from CEMS, how can I continue to be involved in the CEMS Community as an alumni?
There are several ways you can stay in touch with the CEMS community and other CEMSies after graduating.
- Join one or several of our local chapters or global groups around the globe
- Participate in 200+ social & professional events worldwide (find event calendar or join the biggest CEMS event of the year: the CEMS Annual Events)
- Become a CEMS alumni mentor (in only 3 minutes) to provide your professional experience to CEMS students or other CEMS alumni on the CEMS Mentoring Platform. Alternatively, you can also sign in with your cemsmail and request career consultation from 1200+ CEMS alumni advisors.
- Become a CEMS alumni mentor locally through the SAMP (Student & Alumni Mentoring Program). This program matches students and alumni to provide support and advice on studies, internships, exchange semesters, applications or career choices locally. It also can create new friendships and a unique long time relationship among the participants.Inquire with your local CEMS school today.
- Provide a webinar or panel discussion to fellow CEMS alumni and/or students.
- Offer a Business Project or Skills Seminar.
- Provide a company visit to fellow alumni or students.
- Provide an alumni interview or testimonial
- Donate to support the CEMS Alumni Community.
- Connect with fellow alumni: https://www.cemsalumni.net/page/networking
Read more on how to get involved at https://www.cemsalumni.net/page/getinvolved
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Where can I find the CEMS Alumni Toolkit?
You can find the toolkit here.
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How do I find my CEMS MIM Certificate?
You may access your CEMS MIM Certificate via the CEMS Alumni Platform under the "CEMS MIM Certificate" tab once you are logged in:
https://www.cemsalumni.net/page/CEMS-MIM-Certificate-and-Diploma
Forgot your password? No problem. You may submit a lost password request in 3 easy steps; see instructions here. Make sure to check your spam folder.
Questions? Reach out to the CEMS Alumni Relations for further support at alumni@cems.org.
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How can I make a donation to the CEMS Alumni Network?
Please read more on how to donate at https://www.cemsalumni.net/page/donate-info
Thank you in advance for your support.
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How do I apply for the CEMS Alumni Network Membership?
The CEMS Alumni Assoc. (CAA), now the CEMS Alumni Network (CAN) has converted to a donation model as of 1 January 2022. In order to support our local alumni chapters, you may also obtain a membership for the local chapter of your choosing within your alumni profile. The proceeds will then be transferred to your local alumni chapter. You may purchase your membership via the CEMS Alumni Platform (www.cemsalumni.net) within your profile under the "Membership tab". Read more about your membership options below:
Annual Membership
Cost: 60 EUR/ year
If you would like to belong to one of the following local alumni chapters as an annual member: Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Ireland or Switzerland; you may apply your annual membership locally to one of the above mentioned local alumni chapters by selecting your "LC Affiliation associated to your Membership" within your CEMS Alumni Platform profile.
If you opt for joining a local alumni chapter as an annual member outside of those mentioned above (ie Australia, Belgium, Chile, USA, etc.), your membership will be converted into a donation within the CEMS Alumni Network fund. It is by default automatically renewed.
Questions? Reach out to alumni@cems.org.
Lifelong Membership
Cost: 600 EUR
Lifelong Member. Pay it once, and never look back.
If you would like to belong to one of the following local alumni chapters as an annual member: Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Ireland or Switzerland; you may apply your lifelong membership locally to one of the above mentioned local alumni chapters by selecting your "LC Affiliation associated to your Membership" within your CEMS Alumni Platform profile.
If you opt for joining a local alumni chapter as a lifelong member outside of those mentioned above (ie Australia, Belgium, Chile, USA, etc.), your membership will be converted into a donation within the CEMS Alumni Network fund.
Questions? Reach out to alumni@cems.org.