Middle East Managers target MBAs

Economic downturns traditionally mark a surge in applications to business schools. Some argue that there’s never been a better time to study at a top business school, as the MBA is increasingly seen as a pre-requisite for a serious career in International business.

The Graduate Management Admission Council® - the association of leading graduate business schools around the world - reports an increase in applications to business schools in 2009, especially to full time MBA programs with demand for part-time and executive programs more patchy but still holding up after a strong 2008. Students are looking for the quality that comes with a top ranked business school and accredited programmes; flexible format is also an important benefit.

The region’s business education sector is developing rapidly and a similar story emerges in the Middle East, according to Manchester Business School (MBS), which launched its Middle East Regional Executive Centre in September 2006, at Dubai Knowledge Village, and today supports more than 700 MBA students from around the region.

Middle East regional demand for MBAs has remained strong amongst working professionals and managers, many in middle to senior management positions in large companies, and others in specialist roles who may be looking for a career path in general management. The MBS Middle East centre announced another record student intake for January 2010, with an additional 130 students (an increase of more than 20 per cent). The Middle East centre is now the largest in the school’s international network (UK, Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai, Malaysia, Caribbean, Brazil, Middle East).

“Despite – or because of - the challenging economic conditions, we continue to see strong demand for our executive MBA programmes in the Middle East, and especially from the UAE,” says Randa Bessiso, Regional Director – Middle East, at MBS. “Our MBAs are designed for experienced middle and senior managers from around the region; the vast majority of the new students are self-financed, which suggests that they are all prepared to invest in themselves and their future careers.”

In the Middle East, MBS offers four part time executive Global MBA programmes, all post experience courses designed for experienced businesspeople. Students can choose from three different specialist MBA learning pathways – engineering, construction and finance (with an accelerated route professionally qualified accountants) in addition to the Global MBA General, which brings together general management elements with a focus on leadership, innovation and internationalism.

Critically, all the programmes are delivered through a blended learning format which guarantees at least 250 hours (comparable to the amount of face to face time for a full time programme on campus) in face to face workshops with Manchester faculty, conveniently hosted in Dubai.

Careers management for MBA students

Challenging economic conditions are making for a tough recruitment market and in response,
MBS has just announced the launch of a new Global Careers Service (GCS) for its current MBA students in the region. The new global careers service for students offers a web portal, face-to-face workshops and coaching to help face the challenge the market. Previously, MBS had provided careers support only for its campus students and alumni but the new service will be available to all MBA students from enrolment until 12 months after graduation.

The GCS takes a blended approach in offering students access to a comprehensive and customised web 2.0 portal of resources, psychometrics, databases, webinars and jobs. Workshops are delivered through the School’s international executive centres, with delivery through expert corporate partners based internationally.

Alison Edmonds, Head of the Global Careers Service at Manchester Business School says: ”The MBA qualification is internationally recognised and still sought after in business. MBA students need help understanding their unique value proposition, and to self market to, and negotiate with, employers. They need support in understanding job markets and targeting, in order to find international career paths.”

According to Alison Edmonds, MBA students need specialist skills to navigate a tough market, where networking and the hidden job market are more crucial than ever. “There is always a demand for business talent but with the number of senior openings shrinking, competition between MBAs is tough. This new service is a career management programme that strongly supports our students in achieving their international career goals and salary expectations. It has been designed around their needs and their specific geographical locations. We know already from our full-time programme that access to such a diverse talent pool is valued enormously by employers. The new service is truly global and all jobs are available to all students, no matter what their location. We anticipate that the UAE and China job markets will hold greatest interest from our students generally.”

Randa Bessiso adds: “Over 80 per cent of students take an MBA to help them meet their career ambitions and a world class business school must provide a service that supports this key motivator, as an added value service. The vast majority of our students are self financed and company sponsored students have access only to the self-evaluation tools of the Global Careers Service, to help them understand how they fit into their existing management structure. Corporates recognise that students taking MBAs are career-motivated and so most student support deals include tie-in periods.”

Manchester Business School is ranked as one of the top 50 business schools in the world, according to the annual Financial Times survey conducted in January 2010. MBS is the UK's largest campus-based business and management school. It holds triple MBA accreditation – AMBA, EQUIS, AACSB. All successful MBA students are awarded a degree by the University of Manchester and the ‘Manchester MBA’ is recognised by employers worldwide as a hallmark qualification.

Contact

MBS Worldwide | Manchester Business School | The University of Manchester | Office F -05 | Block 6| Dubai Knowledge Village| Dubai Tel  +97 (0) 14 3658313| middleeast@mbs-worldwide.ac.uk