Educating leaders for the global marketplace and society

16 Jul 2019

The year is 2030. The largest economy in the world is China. The fourth-largest, after the US, China and Europe, is Southeast Asia, home to four of the world’s fastest growing economies. In another 20 years, the economic world order will see emerging economies in Asia like Indonesia and Turkey triumph over the old world giants of Germany, the UK and France. These are the predictions of consultants and world leaders. Aspiring business graduates would do well to heed them.

Asia’s business scene is booming and changing fast. Going abroad to study in the usual mainstays of Europe and North America has its perks. In today’s world, however, Asia’s where it’s thriving. For domestic students who already have an edge in language and cultural competency, going away for a few years may mean losing out on valuable knowledge and experience in a region that’s fast becoming the world’s commercial hub. Even Goldman Sachs executives are reportedly setting their sights on business schools in the continent.

And why wouldn’t they? Apart from its ascent to global business dominance, Asian universities’ steady climb up global university rankings have not gone unnoticed. From Forbes and the Financial Times to Trendence’s rankings on graduate employability, Asian MBAs are now regular features in the upper echelons of global league tables.

Source: Boston Business School, Singapore

Any member of the business knows that going to a well-ranked school alone, while very much welcome, is no guarantee to career success. Networking is equally, if not more, important to business graduate students. According to LinkedIn, 80 percent of professionals consider networking important to career success, and more than 60 percent of professionals claim to benefit from their professional network.

Attending a business school in Asia means building relationships with peers, professors and business leaders in the region. Looking towards the future, this translates to potential job opportunities and business ventures with powerful contacts you wouldn’t have rubbed shoulders with anywhere else in the world.

Ready for a game-changing educational experience in the world’s most exciting region? Check out these business schools fast making a name for themselves on the global stage:

UKM GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, UNIVERSITI KEBANGSAAN MALAYSIA (UKM) – MALAYSIA

UKM Graduate School of Business (UKM-GSB) is located about 35 kilometres south of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In 2017, the school opened the UKM-GSB executive venue, a state-of-the-art learning and training centre in KL’s central business district, placing it at the heart of the corporate community.

Source: UKM Graduate School of Business

Steadily gaining presence in reputed global rankings, UKM and its suite of postgraduate business study options highlight its pursuit of management education and research excellence.

Its revised MBA programme includes updated input from industry partners to better suit students’ aspirations. Fast-paced and action-packed, the one-year full-time MBA emphasises Action Learning and Leadership Development, complementing its strong foundation in academic theory.

As a highly recognised research university, the two doctoral programmes offered – Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) and Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) – allow candidates to conduct research within business and management topics in areas such as finance, marketing, management and other related areas. Supervised by some 100 experienced doctoral supervisors from GSB and UKM’s Faculty of Economics and Management, they are rigorous and demanding, but mastery of the discipline at advanced levels is assured.

BOSTON BUSINESS SCHOOL – SINGAPORE

In Singapore’s Bugis district lies Boston Business School (BBS). Two features make it an attractive graduate school: the dual quality of being part of the country’s acclaimed education system, and it’s located in one of Asia’s most developed economies.

Source: Boston Business School, Singapore

Established in 2004, BBS specialises in hospitality and tourism education. The private institution is registered with the Committee for Private Education under the Enhanced Registration Framework. Here, several hospitality management courses aimed at providing theory and industry experience, focused adult and post-secondary programmes are offered.

Partnered with the Confederation of Tourism and Hospitality, Boston Business School offers quality programmes that are approved by Ofqual and accredited with the UK’s Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF). Hospitality courses include a Specialist Diploma in Hospitality Management, and the CTH Level 4 Diploma in Hospitality Management, designed to prepare students for immediate employment in the industry or advanced study.

The CTH Level 5 Diploma in Hospitality Management instils an understanding of the managerial, decision-making and leadership aspects of the hospitality industry, also developing independent research and study skills for senior managerial roles.

CUHK COLLEGE OF BUSINESS, CHINESE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG (CUHK) – HONG KONG

CUHK’s aim is to develop global leaders for the Asian Century. To this end, it offers a pioneering education in the Pearl River Delta. Students graduate equipped with an entrepreneurial mindset, a global perspective and a keen sense of social purpose.

Source: CUHK College of Business

Ideally situated between the city centre and the Shenzhen border, CUHK offers several Master degrees in accounting, business analytics, finance, information and technology management, management, management of real estate & hospitality assets and marketing. But it is the MBA that is its most illustrious offering.

The first MBA in Hong Kong and Asia, it has 50 years of history behind it. Today, the programme is ranked 57^th in the world by the Financial Times and 93 percent of its graduates are employed in Asia. More than 6,600 alumni from 40 countries provide an enviable network for both current and graduate students.

MBA graduate Prajjwal Singh from India said: “How much CUHK would offer you in one year is truly remarkable—there were speaker events, networking events, alumni catch-ups, dinners, recruitment talks, wonderful opportunities to participate in Hong Kong Fintech Association events—[even] a sports championship! The list never stops.”

GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS, HANYANG UNIVERSITY – SOUTH KOREA

This private research university is known for creating the nation’s first engineering, architecture and civil engineering institute in South Korea. It’s also known for ranking first for the number of CEO alumni of venture companies in 2015. In 2013, Times Higher Education ranked Hanyang University 76^th for the number of CEO alumni found in the world’s top 500 companies.

Not to be underestimated is the School of Business, an establishment committed to the nurturing of global business leaders equipped with creativity, integrity and collaborative skills. Here, field-based research is combined with the rigor of academic modelling and analysis. Students have access to leading scholars and are exposed to research that influences management theory and practice. To complement this, they are also encouraged to participate in field trips and the latest management innovations, including those that will only emerge in the broader business community years later.

Fully delivered in English, the International MBA gives students an understanding of major industries in South Korea and Asia through realistic case studies.

*Some of the institutions featured in this article are commercial partners of Study International