Why MBA from Abroad?
Even though India has some world class B schools of mba, India is one of the leading countries when it comes to the number of students going abroad for an MBA. Studying abroad does provide some additional options advantages to students, vis-à-vis an MBA from India. For instance, the promise of an international career, the possibility of settling overseas and international exposure in terms of faculty, fellow students and curriculum are a definite plus. However, there are certain things that one needs to take into account before taking this all important decision. Factors like cost of education, immigration issues and placement for foreign nationals post MBA are important decision points when one decides to study abroad.
Why Should you go abroad for MBA?
Deciding whether to go abroad to pursue an MBA or not, can be a tricky decision. Applying to foreign B schools is a time consuming and costly process and in many cases the competition levels are much higher, as you need to compete with the best of the world than just the best of India. Along with that, by virtue of being such a key career decision, it needs to be a well thought out and logical one. We can categorize this decision criterion under three broad categories:
- Financial factors
- Personal aspirations
- Eligibility and Relative performance
Financial Factors – How to meet the costs?
Pursuing a two year MBA from abroad can cost anywhere between $160,000 and $30,000. This works out to be quite a lot even in the current economic scenario, with the dollar weakening. Add to this travel expenditure and visa costs and the costs may escalate further. In most of the cases, candidates look for assistance while meeting the financial requirements for a course.
As is the case, with the Indian economy opening up and the increasing value of an MBA degree from a reputed international school being recognized all over, there are several financing options available to students. State owned and private banks provide loans at attractive rates, specifically for studying abroad. Once the course completes and the student manages to get a job there itself, repaying the loan should not be an issue. However, one needs to ensure that the job market is receptive to foreign nationals and that there are no immigration related issues – which come in the way of getting placed abroad. In certain cases, banks abroad also extend loans to foreign students, provided a guarantor takes guarantee of the student (For instance in the US, the guarantor must be someone with a valid credit history or a green card holder at least).
Also, fellowships, Research and teaching assistantships, scholarships and on campus jobs are another way of meeting some of the financial requirements for a course. However, these options are limited in number and available on first come, first serve basis. Sometimes these options are available based on past academic performances. This option is the most comfortable, as it allows the student to work on campus. But by the same virtue, and also with the large numbers of students trying for this, it is also the most competitive option to pursue.
Personal Aspirations – Motivation for going abroad for MBA
As discussed in the beginning of the article, there can be several reasons for going abroad for MBA. In case your reasons fall under the ones mentioned below then you should think of going abroad for an MBA.
- International career aspirations
- Global exposure with blue chip firms
- Financial gains
- Access to the best available faculty and infrastructure
- A one year course
- A Desire to settle abroad
An MBA abroad from a good B school will place you firmly in the global management cadre and will be the perfect launch pad for your management career. An international career with exposure to management problems of global scale, will not only be an enriching experience, it can also be financially very rewarding. Top B schools like Wharton have placements with salaries going up to $165,000 per annum. Most of these offers are made by fortune firms and/or leading investment banks. Needless to say these are coveted and prestigious offers which are bagged by the best of the best. Sometimes, the chance to study in the best and most prestigious B school in the world (Wharton, University of Pennsylvaniya), with famous business journals and books (Harvard Business Review) being taught by the best faculty available (Philip Kotler – Kellogg School of Management) and being from the same B school as certain influential leaders and thinkers is a great motivator.
In certain cases, you might decide that you want to settle abroad. An MBA degree will ensure you good job prospects and help you settle abroad. But a word of caution in this case - Immigration rules for foreign nationals vary from place to place. Only the US, Canada and to an extent the UK make it easy for foreign nationals to settle down permanently. Sometimes, students may also want to look at one year courses, as offered by various schools in Europe as it allows them to quickly get back into the work stream post MBA. ISB is one school in India which follows the similar model.
Eligibility and relative Performance – Where are you with respect to the rest?
Eligibility criteria for studying mba abroad vary from school to school. But for most of the schools the following criteria are followed:
- 3-4 years of education post the 10+2 stage
- Prior work experience is recommended (Required for a majority of the schools)
- GMAT and TOEFL scores (GMAT is mandatory for all schools in the US, recommended for schools elsewhere – unless specified)
- A strong extra curricular record
As is obvious, all the schools relatively compare you to the rest of the applicants. But along with that, a realistic assessment of ones capabilities must also be done. In case you don’t have prior work experience, there is not much to be gained by applying to schools abroad. You would be better off writing the CAT, FMS and XAT and applying to the best B schools in India. In case you see that your GMAT scores are above the cut off averages of schools you wish to apply for, then you automatically make a strong case for yourself. Along with a strong academic record, MBA schools abroad also give quite a lot of weight to extra curricular activities – in the belief that an applicant needs to be well rounded and capable of giving back to society. This is a very important facet which one tends to ignore.
One needs to be realistic and needs to research the school and the student community statistics (Average GMAT score, Average work experience, Average Salary offered) and map oneself against that to determine whether to apply to MBA schools abroad or not.
Eligibility tests for MBA
The eligibility tests for an MBA abroad are mainly the GMAT and the TOEFL.
The GMAT or the Graduate Management Aptitude Test is a three and a half hour aptitude test, testing the test takers’ verbal, quantitative and analytical writing skills. It is a globally accepted eligibility criteria for more than 1500 universities and institutes.
The TOEFL, or the Test Of English as a Foreign Language is a four and half hour test which evaluates the English language skills of candidates.
Both the tests are Computer Based tests.
More information about the various study abroad tests along with sample tests, tips and tricks can be found at the following link:
http://www.studyplaces.com/testcenter
Most popular destinations for MBA abroad
The most popular destinations for MBA abroad are:
The following section provides a list of the top most schools by destination.
Top USA MBA Schools
- University of Pennsylvania: Wharton
- Columbia Business School
- Stanford University GSB
- Harvard Business School
- MIT: Sloan
- University of Chicago GSB
- New York University: Stern
- Dartmouth College: Tuck
- Yale School of Management
- Northwestern University: Kellogg
More information about MBA schools in the USA can be found at the USA channel page at Studyplaces.com
http://www.studyplaces.com/usa
Top UK MBA Schools
- London Business School
- ESCP-EAP European School of Management
- Cranfield School of Management
- City University: Cass
- London School of Economics and Political Science
- Lancaster University Management School
- Warwick Business School
- Henley Management College
- University of Oxford: Saïd
- Imperial College London: Tanaka
Top European MBA Schools
S.No. | Business school name | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | HEC Paris | France |
| 2 | London Business School | U.K. |
| 3 | Insead | France / Singapore |
| 4 | IMD | Switzerland |
| 5 | IE Business School | Spain |
| 6 | Iese Business School | Spain |
| 7 | ESCP-EAP European School of Management | France / U.K. / Germany / Spain / Italy |
| 8 | Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University
| Netherlands |
| 9 | EM Lyon | France |
| 10 | Esade Business School | Spain |
More information about MBA schools in the UK can be found at the UK channel page at Studyplaces.com
Top Australian MBA schools
- Australian Graduate School of Management
- Melbourne Business School
- Macquarie Graduate School of Management
- Brisbane Graduate School of Business
- University of Queensland
- University of Adelaide
- Curtin University of Technology
- University of Technology Sydney
- University of South Australia (International GSM)
- RMIT University
More information about MBA schools in the Australia can be found at the Australia channel page at Studyplaces.com
http://www.studyplaces.com/australia
Source for MBA rankings listed above:
http://rankings.ft.com/global-mba-rankings
http://www.mbaguide.com.au/mba-rankings.php
