is no deadline for completing the course, If you don't go the top up route, you get admitted directly at the uni and complete the same degree,?

There is no fixed calendar deadline for completing the Level 7 Diploma in Strategic Management and Leadership Online – MBA Top-Up Route (120 Credits), provided you remain within your provider’s maximum registration period, typically two years. This flexibility supports working managers balancing operational duties with study. However, the premise that skipping the top-up leads to direct university admission for the same degree is incorrect. The Level 7 Diploma is a standalone qualification. To achieve a full MBA, you must complete the final 60-credit top-up module at a partner university. Without this, you hold a Level 7 Diploma, not an MBA. Universities do not award the full degree based solely on the diploma; the top-up is the mandatory academic bridge to master’s status.