Research MBA Programs

This is a deli-ma which haunts many MBA aspirants worldwide, both Europeans and international. I am offering just a piece of advice to help you make an informed decision and a point of reference to begin your own research. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you need any clarification.

*MBA as one of the most reputed degrees in the world found solace in the English speaking world way before its need was felt by the French & the Spanish speaking world, all hail to the United States of America. Although no more then three French MBA programs at Insead, Hec & Emlyon regularly appear amongst the top 100 global MBA programs in the Financial Times MBA rankings, the number of MBA programs from the UK in this list is always between 10 & 15.

* A direct comparison (in numbers) between French & English schools offering world class MBA programs which feature regularly in the FT Global MBA rankings.

ENGLISH
Crème de la Crème - London Business School
Top Tier - Oxford-Said, Cambridge-Judge, Manchester, Cranfield, Warwick, Imperial
Global 2nd Tier - City, Lancaster, Bath, Henley, Strathclyde, Aston, Edinburg, Bradford, Birmingham, Durham.

FRENCH
Crème de la Crème - Insead
Top Tier - Hec
Global 2nd Tier - Essec, Emlyon, Grenoble, Edhec

*The overall representation is stronger in the UK so is the general support system of the schools, which is very important for MBA students. A school's reputation is not enough to fetch you a job, a strong careers department and a willing school staff is what makes all the difference.

*Student quality and facilities at the business schools are roughly the same at equivalent schools but Career Services at the schools in the UK tend to fare much better than their counterparts in France, particularly amongst the schools in the second tier.

*Language does play a very important role. In France, it is very difficult to find a job without mastering the French language but most MBA programs are in English to attract international participants. 50-60% of all international students at Insead & Hec find jobs outside of France and with the strong global reputation of these schools coupled with efficient career services, it is possible to find international jobs in other countries, outside of one's home country. On the other hand nearly 80-90% of all international students at other 2nd tier schools in France such as Emlyon have to go back home and look for a job using just their resources, as these schools have very faint reputation beyond French boundaries and ordinary to disastrous career services.

*According to more than a dozen of, class of 2010 & 2011, MBA graduates from 2nd tier schools in France & UK that i came in touch with, 'these schools have a strong focus on the MBA learning, but not on the post MBA career support'.

No wonder these MBA programs are regularly represented amongst the best 100 global MBA programs, they deserve it, but despite their smaller class sizes & global alumni many MBA graduates are still unemployed after having graduated 14 months ago. Sad but true. The situation is worse for international students studying for an MBA at these schools. Their post MBA aspirations are rarely met.

So whoever you are and wherever you wish to study, make sure you do substantial research and even if you have to delay your MBA to get into a better school, do not hesitate to do it.... Something better is always better for a reason even if that reason could just be a more committed career services department.

MBAGuy, once again, a great piece from you.

Can you add the Spanish schools in the equation and see how does it looks like. Ranking of Spanish schools always puzzle me.

I guess, one you cover these three countries, entire Europe is more or less covered, except few stray schools here and there that pops up randomly in one of the ranking.

Crème de la Crème - London Business School

Global Top Tier - Oxford-Said, Cambridge-Judge, Manchester, Cranfield, Warwick, Imperial

Global 2nd Tier - City, Lancaster, Bath, Henley, Strathclyde, Aston, Edinburg, Bradford, Birmingham, Durham.

Many people will have contention in your categorisation but This is exactly same as my categorisation of UK schools, except only one exception, Imperial.

Hi Wbc,

I understand what you mean to say here but Imperial has its own set of strengths which puts it in the Global Top Tier. One of the biggest strengths is the location. London is the epicenter of post MBA employment in Europe and plays a very big part in helping Imperial MBA graduates find jobs.

Ideally i would have only placed the MBA programs at Oxford-Said & Cambridge-Judge in the list of Global Top Tier MBA programs from the UK and the rest in another virtual category somewhere between global top tier and global 2nd tier, but it would have only added to the confusion. MBA programs at Manchester, Cranfield, Warwick & Imperial are almost equivalent in quality with Said & Judge but definitely better than the next tier of MBA programs at Lancaster, Aston etc. The only problem is their international reputation beyond West European boundaries, which definitely takes a setback when compared to Oxford & Cambridge.

Middle East is one place where i found graduates from global top tier MBA programs from the UK in good numbers. Schools like Cranfield are well represented in the Aviation industry in the middle east while Manchester & Imperial are well represented across various other industry sectors.

Thanks Bro, appreciate that.

Looking forward on your take on the Spanish ranked schools

Why do we care what this guy thinks?

Unless he has actually studied at each school, presumably his opinions are nothing more than a summary of the business school dogma that you see everywhere on the internet.

Hi Kohsamed,

This is a free forum where people post & advice others on the basis of their own experiences, expertise & research. I tell others what i found out, with my own efforts, hidden behind the marketing curtains of many so called global business schools.

I too was an MBA aspirant sometime ago and took the pain to postpone my MBA by one year when i received dubious replies from a few European MBA programs. I contacted more than 50 schools, several of their alumnus, Hr managers all across Europe, Asia & Africa and went through several blogs & other material regarding these MBA programs. I am just trying to help others save time on things that i have already done and can help them with. Of-course my perspective plays a part and this is where i ask others to use their own discretion.

I ask everyone to do their own research & find it out themselves and i am glad that many have found sense in what i have to say. No MBA aspirant is dumb enough to follow my posts blindly, every one does their own research, i just try to give them a point of reference.

Hope it helps.

kohsamed wrote:Why do we care what this guy thinks?

Unless he has actually studied at each school, presumably his opinions are nothing more than a summary of the business school dogma that you see everywhere on the internet.

Answer to your first part is "MY WISH"

Regarding second part, can you please share some of the "nothing more than a summary of the business school dogma that you see everywhere on the internet"

mbaguy2012 wrote:Hi Kohsamed,

This is a free forum where people post & advice others on the basis of their own experiences, expertise & research. I tell others what i found out, with my own efforts, hidden behind the marketing curtains of many so called global business schools.

I ask everyone to do their own research & find it out themselves and i am glad that many have found sense in what i have to say. No MBA aspirant is dumb enough to follow my posts blindly, every one does their own research, i just try to give them a point of reference.

Hope it helps.

Mate, you really pissed-of some of those marketing/recruiting agents!!

I am still looking for your views on Spanish schools. Not that I am going to join them, but I must have a clear picture so that I can assist someone in future in a right way. The same way, you are doing now.

And as you rightly said, everyone must be intelligent enough to understand what to believe and what not. I have reason to value your views more than the colourful marketing brochures of the schools.

Thanks mate and ignore all the deterrent noises ... you know the reasons of those noises very well!!

It's get easy now to search for the full time MBA program from the internet and find the best MBA business schools.

Hi Anias,

I would disagree with you on that. There is so much clutter on the internet that it has become even more difficult to form an opinion about business schools and their MBA programs. This is the reason i insist that prospective candidates do their own qualitative research and use pointers from internet forums only as points of reference.

mbaguy2012 wrote:Hi Anias,

I would disagree with you on that. There is so much clutter on the internet that it has become even more difficult to form an opinion about business schools and their MBA programs. This is the reason i insist that prospective candidates do their own qualitative research and use pointers from internet forums only as points of reference.

Bro,
Have you seen what the link points to? Just see and you will understand the objective of that post!! And that proves why views of people like you are so important!!

True.
Only a smart & well informed MBA aspirant, who is willing to make an honest effort, will be able to make a smart choice based on his personal circumstances. One has to look behind the marketing curtains of business schools and break the 'not so relevant' codes of these global rankings.

Just a quick question about MBA programs in France. I was on a study abroad program at Audencia School of Management in Nantes, France, and recently I mentioned Audencia to a current Grenoble student. He said that Audencia is one of their direct rivals. Where, in your opinion, Audencia fits in your rankings?

Audencia is a well known name in France thanks to their undergrad program (as opposed to their postgraduate degree). I would rank them in the third bucket.