BENEFITS OF DOING MBA FROM ABROAD

The Master of Business Administration (MBA) is an internationally-recognized degree designed to develop the skills required for careers in business and management. According to Wikipedia, the MBA degree originated in the United States in the early 20th century when the country industrialized and companies sought scientific approaches to management. An MBA degree has gained tremendous popularity in India in recent times, as it is often seen as a getaway degree to better opportunities in more fields. This article will talk about whether it is an excellent idea to pursue an MBA degree from India or from abroad and what advantages and disadvantages each hold for the student. WHY GO ABROAD TO DO AN MBA?  Going abroad to do an MBA presents a lot of advantages to its degree holder. Some of these are mentioned below:

1. The student will experience personal growth and broaden his worldview. An MBA from a foreign university will help students gain a new understanding of their own culture and values. They will also become more independent and self-confident. The exposure to a new culture will allow them to gain a broad and sophisticated worldview and diversify their thoughts and values.
2. Gaining valuable life skills will also be a part of the student’s life. Getting entrance to a foreign university gives a full understanding of living in a diverse environment. This helps them get the opportunity of learning a new language, interacting with the local population as well as with fellow international students.
3. Strengthen leadership skills: Students will learn how to work with and gain a better understanding of different leadership and business styles while studying overseas. If the student can manage others, then they will acquire priceless experience, working with an assorted team.
4. Widens career prospects: Doing an MBA abroad helps Indian students stand out from other candidates by gaining special skills through international familiarity. This includes well-built cross-cultural connections and acquaintance with international principles, laws and policies.
5. Hands-on Learning: Whether it is an MBA in Singapore, an MBA in the USA or an MBA in Australia, an MBA from a foreign university is generally based on reviewing the case studies of several business entities. This technique of teaching makes the student comprehend how to apply a hypothesis into concrete industry practices. This method of imparting education is more appealing and convenient when compared to MBA programs in India, which stress more on abstract knowledge.
6. Scientific Self-assessment method: The international B-schools conduct regular psychometric tests presided over by highly qualified professionals for knowing the aptitude of their students. These examinations not only assist them in choosing their MBA specialization but will also facilitate them in evaluating their abilities.
7. Cultural Diversity: Studying overseas enables one to interact with students from all across the globe. Numerous students with diverse culture and rich work experience join MBA programs. Broad exposure and interactions with culturally diverse students help one in exchanging ideas while also enabling them to develop their personality.
8. Extend Networking Base: An MBA from an overseas university offers the individual with a chance to network, with the elite of the business world, through its immense alumni support. Students network with each other as well as with business icons even before the conclusion of their MBA program, which in turn assists in their ultimate placements.
9. Earn learning: Many international B-schools provide opportunities for paid internships, where students can easily earn while learning. This serves as a twofold advantage for candidates as they can not only make for their daily expenses, but they can also get global job experience onto their CV, which unquestionably pays off in the long run.
10. High opportunity cost: More opportunities are available to those candidates who pursue an MBA from abroad. The top B-schools abroad such as Harvard and Oxford, offer high paid placements. So a student seeking well-paid jobs and a luxurious life should about think of taking admissions in these schools.

MBA is one of the most sought-after courses to pursue in today’s time. The most important thing for an Indian student to keep in mind is that studying MBA abroad is not only acquiring a business degree from abroad but also going through a two-year long journey of exposure to a different education system, exploration of skills outside generic disciplinary domains and life experience of living and working overseas. A 2-year MBA program in the top B-schools of India will cost INR 10–20 Lakhs while overseas, MBA courses can start off at INR 30–40 Lakhs for one-year programs and go up to INR 75–80 Lakhs for the top US MBA programs. An MBA from a prestigious institution like the Kellogg School of Management or Harvard Business School is a great advantage when compared to an MBA from Indian institutes in terms of international exposure to different course curriculum, culture and lifestyle. This helps applicants to look at problems with different perspectives.

MBA Abroad — Top Places to study MBA abroad

The QS global rankings are based on some criteria which form the basis of five key indicators: Employability, entrepreneurship, alumni outcomes, return on investment, thought leadership and diversity.

• Harvard Graduate School of Business
• INSEAD, France
• HEC, Paris, France
• Stanford Graduate School of Business, US
• London Business School, UK
• The Wharton School of University of Pennsylvania, US
• MIT Sloan School of Management, US
• Columbia Business School, US
• Said Business School, University of Oxford, UK
• IE Business School, Spain

MBA course programs in Australia and Singapore are also popular apart from the above-listed countries.

MBA Abroad — MBA Admission Requirements

Before deciding to get admitted into an MBA college, you need to adhere to the following eligibility requirements.

Academic

• Basic level of Bachelor’s degree like B.Tech, B.Sc. or B.A

Note: A MS or PhD degree is also good to have after graduation and many students who have gone abroad for an MS work for a few years and then take up an MBA.

Work Experience

Work experience is essential to apply for an MBA abroad. The colleges abroad have strong requirements while selecting applications for MBA interviews such as the applicants must have worked and gathered some experience in a relevant field. They are required to gather technical and managerial skills. It is recommended to leverage pre-MBA work experience highlighting the meritorious achievements, professional accomplishments and leadership qualities at work in your MBA application. Most MBA abroad programs like the ones in the US require you to have 5 years of experience before applying for an MBA.

Source: P&Q and BTG

Good work experience for B-School admission include:

• Leadership skills — Applicants should be able to demonstrate formal leadership experience which weights quality over quantity.
• Transferable skills — MBA applicants can possess soft and technical skills but the skills required for an MBA program and post-MBA should be the ones which are transferable.
• Professional maturity — Applicants need to be dynamic and show professional maturity for eg. showing the ability to manage conflicts in geographically spread teams or dealing with teams having members from all over the world. It is difficult to show this on the CV and hence, the applicant needs to mention this as part of their applications/essays.

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MBA Abroad — MBA Application Procedure

Generally, MBA applications are more elaborate and time-consuming than job applications. They require a lot of introspection and preparation before you start filling in the application. The application form consists of general information, sections for essays, recommendations, and MBA entrance exam scores.

General information — Applicants need to fill in information related to age, bio-data, experience, test scores, languages known, etc.

Admission Essays — MBA application includes questions focusing on what the applicants have done in their career so far, why they are thinking about an MBA degree at this stage, post MBA career goals, strengths and weaknesses, and other questions that allow the admission committees to see them as real persons.

Recommendations — Admission committees require applicants to submit 2–3 recommendation letters. Every B-School has its own format.

MBA Entrance exam score s — GRE or GMAT score is a key entrance exam score required for admission into MBA abroad. For English proficiency, TOEFL or IELTS scores are needed.

Would you like to apply for Scholarships? Check out MBA Scholarships pages.

MBA Abroad — Competitive Exams to Study Abroad

There are two kinds of entrance exams for overseas MBA programs. The first category is designed to test the aptitude for business management. The second category is meant to test the comfort level with the English language as the mode of communication in the corporate or business world is mostly English.

Due to an increase in the number of B-schools accepting the GRE exam scores, candidates with vague post-graduate plans may wish to opt for the GRE rather than the GMAT. This would enable them to go for an MBA, M.S. or dual degree program or even a PhD. If a candidate is sure about pursuing an MBA, then taking the GMAT would be an advantage for them. The time-tested GMAT score has been considered a better indicator of a student’s capability and preparedness for a tough MBA program.

TOEFL is quite popular among students as it is widely accepted as an English proficiency test. The official guide to the TOEFL iBT is a good resource for those who are already proficient in the language, as it serves as a good repository of different types of questions that can be expected in the test.

MBA Abroad — MBA Starting Salary

An MBA is a major investment and many students incur huge debts to pursue this business degree. The competition has increased triple fold and there is an abundance of MBA graduates. When it comes to ROI (Return on Investment), doing MBA from abroad is the best bet. The Financial Times Rankings places 40% weightage on ROI of the schools. The average annual packages at IIMs, ISB and other top B-schools are around INR 19 Lakhs, while the average annual pay package offered at top B-schools abroad is around INR 78 lakhs.

Comparison of MBA starting salaries for Indian and abroad MBA B-Schools

MBA Abroad — MBA Scholarships

To help many such students who come across financial constraints, various B-schools and institutions offer MBA scholarship. Whether you want to attend a business school in India or abroad, you can find an MBA scholarship to meet your requirements.

Read MBA Scholarships article which lists all Indian and international scholarships to pursue MBA programs in India and abroad.

The applicants need to first list out their objectives regarding their career plan, budget, the country where they want to apply, etc. and prioritise them. Once they have done that, deciding whether they should do an MBA abroad or in India becomes an easy task.