Over the hurdles and fighting fit: Business schools are thriving

Applications are up 20 per cent on last year - and interest in tie-ins from industry growing

By Caroline Haydon

Published: 14 June 2007

uoyancy and cooperation are the watchwords for the MBA world as summer 2007 approaches. Buoyant, as schools still thrive on increased competition for places - applications are up 20 per cent this year in top schools like London Business School (LBS) and Ashridge, and often on the rise, or at least staying level, further down the league tables too.

And cooperation and tie-ins with industry are putting schools into the mainstream of both national and local organisations, with obvious benefits to both sides. In Oxford, for example, Saïd Business School is working with BT on a new centre for the study of large scale private and public projects such as the Olympics. Due to open fully next year, the BT Centre for Major Programme Management will carry out multi-disciplinary research which the school says will contribute towards a community of knowledge, and act as a resource for those working on similar projects.

"Major programmes, such as the Olympics, which are characterised by being complex, high value, long-term projects, have proliferated in recent years," says Professor Colin Mayer, dean of the school. "Typically their outcome impacts millions of people. Yet there is a shortage of rigorous, empirically grounded and intellectually robust support for this discipline."

And in the north west, Lancaster University Management School is putting an emphasis on action in the community and engagement with businesses in the region, as an important service locally, as well as a practical learning tool. Pitching students into consultancy exercises on start up ventures brought to them by local businesses concentrates minds, says the director of Lancaster's MBA programme Oliver Westall. "You might have an Indian or Chinese student helping a hard-headed local businessman convert his operation to an ice cream factory. Students have to deliver value - these projects are brought to the school by companies needing solutions."

Combine the buoyant market with fast-growing overall provision - the Association of MBAs (AMBA) now accredits 131 schools worldwide, an increase of 10 over last year, says the organisation's chief executive, Jeanette Purcell - and management education MBA style looks set to continue its recent successful expansion.

However, today's schools are increasingly aware that they must offer a variety of study options to fit varied lifestyles and stages of career, if they are to attract the best students possible.

"Flexibility means we can shift control to the learner," says Julia Tyler, associate dean of the MBA programme at LBS. "Now we offer all sorts of options - more or fewer electives; take a term out; waive courses if you already have a professional qualification. This sort of flexibility is often attractive to women."

And LBS and Durham Business School report small but significant increases in numbers of female students - 6 per cent and 10 per cent respectively, with women now accounting for up to 36 per cent of the full-time MBA programme at Durham. This puts them joint sixth in Europe for the number of female students (see page VI).

The class of 2007 does have a wider choice than ever, with a proliferation of options - everything from the standard two- year full-time MBA to an increasing number of specialist Masters degrees - aimed more often at specialist areas - for younger entrants.

At Ivy League Tuck Business School, Paul Danos, the dean, argues the case for the two-year course - in the US schools are gradually offering more one-year options, but two years remains the norm.

"I believe that the total immersion experience students get in a top full-time two-year programme is immensely valuable for those who want to change their lives and their careers," he says.

"There are large numbers of brilliant, young people with a variety of college degrees and experiences who want do that, but who have little or no formal business education. They need the classic programme with an introductory year, a paid internship in the summer and a second year of in-depth electives."

INSEAD, with campuses in Fontainebleau outside Paris and in Singapore, is a European school originally modelled on top US schools which nevertheless ran a one-year programme from day one. Dean Antonio Fatas says the number of class hours studied is still 80 per cent that of the two-year programme at Wharton Business School in the US, with whom INSEAD has a close alliance, but the difference is that studies are far more intensive in a one-year programme.

At INSEAD he reports that the balance of entrants is shifting. More than 10 years ago the majority of applicants were Europeans, now that has fallen to 40 per cent. Thirty per cent are from the booming Asian countries, notably India.

And, he says, the background of students is changing too, with fewer from more traditional areas like banking and more from NGOs and governments. There are more entrepreneurs, too, who see an MBA as a prerequisite for their career. "I see these things growing," he says. "Little by little there is an increasing diversity in background and in career aspirations."

The UK attracts increasing numbers of Indian students - they represent on average around 12 per cent of the annual MBA intake in Britain. Aside from the kudos of attending a top ranking institution, students like the fact that schools in the UK traditionally engage with the outside - there is an openness to the world, according to Oliver Westall. "That's a real competitive advantage for us", he says. "We can offer an MBA which both reflects the Anglo-Saxon, US tradition and the distinctive styles of management and social organisations represented elsewhere. These need to be represented on a course and understood and valued. We might call the resulting experience " worldly" instead of "global", which can end up meaning "all the same".

This is borne out by the testimony of students like Tomohiro Yamada, a 39-year-old manager in research and development with Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT). He considered going to the US to study but "wanted something different", and chose Birmingham Business school because he liked the student diversity and felt support for international students was good. "There are strong differences in the way countries handle knowledge," he says. "The US and Chinese cultures can be more explicit, whereas in Japan and Europe they can be more tacit. This affects the way we handle things like communication methods in business."

There's increasing evidence students are thinking internationally. The Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) says schools worldwide are seeing a rise in international applications. In schools outside the US the figure has nearly doubled, with schools seeing a 62 per cent rise in 2006, up from 37 per cent in 2005.

In the face of this, British schools are determined to remain competitive - Tanaka in London, for example, has offered three £10,000 scholarships for students from emerging economies and £20,000 Rajiv Ghandi scholarships for exceptional Indian candidates living and working in India. "It's important to attract really good quality students and money will be an issue for some of them. This way we can maintain a strong international presence," says Eoin Bedford, spokesman at the school.

But schools need to maintain a balance, too, says Kai Peters, chief executive of Ashridge Business School, which has 27 students on its one-year, full-time MBA programme, representing 15 different nationalities. "The internationalism of the student body is important, but 15 different nationalities isn't automatically better than 14. We actively work on the spread of nationalities so the class works, particularly important in view of our small class sizes."

The fun and stimulus of a truly international, but well-balanced, class is a real bonus. As Tomohiro Yamada says, one of the best things to come out of his time in the UK has been the camaraderie in his class, and the friendship he has made with another international student, a Brazilian. It's the sort of friendship - and of course, networking opportunity - that looks set to increase.

'The ability to handle risk and uncertainty is critical'

Brett Joyal is an American who chose Ashridge for his MBA studies. Three months into his one-year programme, he cites the high regard in which British schools are held, the diversity of the classes, and the short, intense one- year study period as the main reasons for coming here.

"I felt the intensity of the experience and the good credentials of the course were critical," says Joyal. "As someone who has had the benefit of working in government, small business and with a global investment bank, I wanted something geared to the more experienced student and shorter in duration."

Joyal, whose last job was in the Department of State Treasurer in North Carolina, as director for strategy and performance, says "I was attracted by the small size of the classes and its esprit de corps. The school places an emphasis on developing leaders who can guide complex global organisations. Though it's a cliché, we really do work in a globally integrated market and the ability to handle evolving risk and uncertainty is critical for successful management.

"The opportunity to pursue an MBA in the UK was a chance to further refine these skills. Afterwards I plan to remain in the UK and prove my worth in an organisation with international operations, and eventually I hope the experience will enable me to make a more informed contribution to US economic and trade policy."

Which course? A guide to your options

Full-time study

A typical student on a full-time one or two year course will be around 27 years old with a large chunk of work experience under their belt - schools accredited by the Association of MBA's (AMBA) are required to take students with a minimum of three years work experience. Two year courses are the norm in the USA (though a few schools now offer a one year option). In the UK, only London Business School offers a two year (21 month) course. You get greater depth and more course options, and some employers prefer graduates of two year programmes. But the cost is greater in terms of tuition fees and lost income. In the rest of Europe courses usually last one year, but there is a lot of variety, with options from nine months to two years.

Part-time study

More popular than full-time and on offer at most business schools. What began as part-time work in the evening has widened out to day release or modular study (one or two week residential blocks) as schools have responded to demand. Students tend to be older - in their thirties or forties, already well established in their careers, and the course will last two or three years. Part-time MBAs may be called evening MBA or any of a number of alternatives. In Europe and Britain they are increasingly being re-labelled executive MBAs or EMBAs. This defines the target market - in the UK or continental Europe it generally means the same thing as "part time". In the US, where the term originated as weekend study for top executives, it might carry more of the original meaning. These courses suit those with family or other commitments and mean students can keep working while studying - often they will receive company support.

Distance learning

May take anything from two to eight years to complete. For those who are unwilling to study full-time and do not live near a school offering a part-time course, this is the only possibility. The cost is generally less than many part-time or full-time courses and flexible in terms of study hours. A good deal of sponsorship is available from individual student employers. There are high drop out rates in the first year - this kind of study needs discipline and application.

Pre-experience programmes

Similar to an MBA, but these one-year Masters are for those who have recently graduated and have little or no work experience. Rising in popularity with students and employers alike, they offer a crash course in general management areas or, increasingly, "specialist masters" offering routes into specific areas, such as marketing or finance. The latter are worth considering if you know the route you want to take and don't need a more generalist degree, and will be a better option than taking an MBA at a non-accredited school.

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