Which way do you head?

Updated on: Monday, January 03, 2011

With its reputation as the home of management education, the USA has long been a major draw for Indian students. However, the tightening immigration regulations as well as the reduced likelihood of finding work in the country at the end of an MBA programme has made many Indian students explore other options: Europe being one of them.

For the student community, studying in Europe has its own particular set of advantages. Unlike US programmes, most European MBA programmes only last one year, which means you are out of the workplace for less time, something that becomes increasingly important, the more experienced you are, say experts. The other advantage is the class size which is small in Europe — thus you end up getting a lot of individual attention from professors and lots of interaction with your fellow students. The student body also tends to be more diverse than in the USA, both in terms of years of experience and national and ethnic background.

This view, that Europe recruits more internationally diverse classes, is backed by statistics from many of the schools on the continent. Reims in France, for example, draws its students from 27 countries, Solvay in Belgium from 30 and IESE in Spain from as many as 55. And while this can deliver benefits during the programme itself, it can also plug graduates into an international network that will provide support, advice and business opportunities throughout their careers.

The international nature and length of programmes in Europe are also other deciding factors for some Indian students. While for others, Europe has more to offer. According to one student who did an MBA programme at HHL in Leipzig, Germany, “My decision to study for an MBA in Europe was based on my fascination for European languages. I wanted much more than an MBA degree, and living here in Germany has helped me get an inside view of the language, to see things that you would probably not understand in a language class back home. Then of course there’s the cultural beauty of the whole region and much more…’’

Which way do you head?

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