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International Experience = International MBA?

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International Experience = International MBA?

by woojet » Tue Aug 21, 2012 1:31 am
Although American, I have only worked outside of the US across Asia, living in 3 different countries for the last 6 years (Singapore, India, Taiwan). In addition I have learned how to speak mandarin-chinese proficiently and Japanese at a basic level.

Ultimately, upon graduation from any MBA program, I plan to continue working in Asia. My question is: is a MBA from the US still worth pursuing for me?

My understanding of the career placement with US schools is that they are primarily US-centric e.g. if you go to Columbia then you will be offered jobs in the northeast and new york. I know there is no hard and fast rule on this because one could find a job anywhere in the world coming from any school, but generally speaking, what would you advise given that I am looking for jobs located in hong kong, singapore, shanghai?
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by MBACrystalBall » Tue Aug 21, 2012 10:50 pm
Hey woojet,

Here are some perspectives that might help.

Location can play an important role in getting you the first post-MBA job. So the general suggestions you'll get are to apply to schools in the country you want to work in.

However, your situation is unique. So a contrarian approach might be worth considering.

- Your last 6 years have been in Asian countries. But who knows, you might move back to the US in a few years, as the American who 'gets' the esoteric Asian business culture.

- Some of the strongest MBA programs are in the US and these brands have a brand that's respected globally.

- As your entire working life has been spent outside the US, I'm assuming you have a better professional network in Singapore, India and Taiwan that you could tap into for internships and full-time jobs, irrespective of whether you attend an Asian or American MBA program.


So what you could do is to apply to a mix of Asian programs and some top American programs. Based on the relative quality of offers you have in hand (in a few months time), you can pick the one that works best for you.

Your competition for the Asian programs will be with Chinese and Indian candidates. See if you'd find the MBA MAP useful.
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Must read for MBA aspirants
1. Beyond The MBA Hype | 2. Business Doctors: Management Consulting Gone Wild
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by woojet » Wed Aug 22, 2012 1:59 am
Thank you for the reply Sameer/MBACrystallBall...I suppose what I am trying to understand is how I should best allocate my time preparing for which applications. And I think in order to answer that question, I need to know which programs make the most sense for someone like me?

Although I do agree that I could do a mix of applications between the US and non-US schools, I am concerned about how worthwhile it is for me to use my limited time to apply for US schools. In other words, if say, I apply to 5 US schools and 5 non-US schools but overall it makes more sense to apply to non-US schools only, then I rather apply to 10 non-US schools so I have a greater range of choice.

Please consider the following, my three biggest concerns are: time, cost, and value (not necessarily in that order).
- For me, I am eager to start my post-MBA career and generally feel a two year program is too long. Especially since there are many good programs such as ESADE which offers a 15 month program where you can earn your mba and go do an internship like in a normal 2 year program
- Top mba programs in the US are north of $120,000 or even now almost $170,000 at Columbia when you factor in living expenses, etc. Whereas non-US schools are half of that or less.
- When I consider the value of a top tier school from the US and a top tier school from Europe/Asia, I weigh the above with job placement opportunities in Asia, networking opportunities, relative strength of each program, and programs which truly appreciate my type of background (not just say "we teach the international perspective" but with a hidden caveat "...however through an American lens")

Additionally, to be honest, I am not planning to come back to the US in the near future, if at all. My goal is to live in Asia permanently actually. But that's not to say,if way down the road a unique opportunity presents itself whereby I need to return to the US, then so be it. But certainly that is not in my immediate game plan.
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by MBACrystalBall » Wed Aug 22, 2012 2:23 am
That adds more clarity to the discussion. If you don't see yourself going back to the US in the near future (or in the long term) and if you don't want to spend $150,000 and you want to spend less time in the class, then the shorter European and Asian programs become more attractive.

I think 10 schools might be a little on the higher side. Around 7 (magic number for me) well-chosen bschools where you put in strong apps might work better. At some point, you'll feel that you are mechanically going through the motions, and the quality / impact gets diluted.

The 'international perspective through an American lens' point that you raise is something that's tough to completely avoid, though.

You'll find Harvard Business Review case-studies (many based on American companies) in almost all the global MBA programs. Bschools do try to keep the diversity and international element going by including some domestic case-studies created by their own professors.

But don't let that bother you. There'll be enough international diversity within the class (over 90% international students in some European programs compared to around 30% in American programs) to ensure that the learning is well-rounded.
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1. Beyond The MBA Hype | 2. Business Doctors: Management Consulting Gone Wild
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by woojet » Wed Aug 22, 2012 2:47 am
Thanks for that, I think that's really good advice. What would your thoughts be on the advantage I have applying to a US school or EU school given my type of background? Is there a greater advantage in either? In other words, given my background, do I have a greater competitive advantage applying for a US school or EU school overall?

In terms of my background, briefly, I worked in investment banking/finance for a major multinational IB in Singapore for 3 years. Then moved to India for over 2 years to work for a publicly traded, mid cap firm which manufactures pharmaceuticals and sells globally, where I was promoted to general manager level and directly headed the business development team for 1 of 3 product lines, which constituted 40% of business revenue (at the time). Currently living in Taiwan where I was an internal business consultant for a year for my previous company, and now run my own online business helping people from Asia prepare their western style CVs so that they too can make a move into multinational firms or western countries. Simultaneously learning mandarin-chinese.
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by MBACrystalBall » Thu Aug 23, 2012 8:51 am
woojet wrote:Thanks for that, I think that's really good advice.
Glad you found it useful, bro.
woojet wrote:What would your thoughts be on the advantage I have applying to a US school or EU school given my type of background? Is there a greater advantage in either? In other words, given my background, do I have a greater competitive advantage applying for a US school or EU school overall?
With your profile, you'll have an easier time than other applicants to get the initial interest. A lot of candidates from competitive pools feel tempted to try out gimmicks just to stand out among the crowd, often with disastrous effects). You don't need to resort to any of that.

Focus on convincing the adcoms that you are more than just a multi-lingual American living in foreign-land. Remember that you are competing for local jobs (in Asia) with the natives. Your strength is that you have been doing exactly that for 6 years now. Play that up.

Big difference between a wannabe (many applicants unwittingly place themselves in this category) and been-there-done-that applicant.
woojet wrote:I worked in investment banking/finance ...promoted to general manager level and directly headed the business development ...internal business consultant for a year ...now run my own online business.
The bigger challenge I see for you, is to convincingly explain the (seemingly disconnected) stints in multiple industries/roles - banking to biz development to consulting to entrepreneurship.

On an unrelated note, I'm keen to hear more about your online business. Drop me an email on: info [at] mbacrystalball [dot] com if you don't mind sharing the details.
Watch these MBA videos

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Email: info at mbacrystalball dot com

Must read for MBA aspirants
1. Beyond The MBA Hype | 2. Business Doctors: Management Consulting Gone Wild
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by woojet » Sun Aug 26, 2012 7:45 pm
Cheers for that.

Apologies for my late reply. But happy to share with you a bit of background of my business. I will send you an email today on it.
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