MBA Interview: MBA Tour Shanghai

Cranfield University MBA

On September 14th 2006 the Global MBA Tour came to Shanghai, participating were 70 of the best business schools from America, Europe and Asia. Attending from the UK were 5 of the best British Business schools, Cranfield, Oxford, Manchester, Warwick and the London Business School.

Maureen Williams, the MBA Marketing Manager at Cranfield University's Management School spoke to How2UK about the Cranfield MBA. Cranfield is a wholly postgraduate university and its Management School is one of the most prestigious in the world. The University's MBA is ranked by the Financial Times as the 10th best in the world for career progression and 16th best in value for money.

Q: For how many years has the school been enrolling Mainland Chinese students? How many Chinese are typically enrolled each year?

A: We enrolled our first student from mainland China in 1995.  Since then we have had an average of 10 Chinese students each year.

Q: Are academic grades important in the application?

A: We need to be confident that the candidates will be able to cope with the academic content of the programme, and therefore take into account academic grades and GMAT scores, but we are much more interested in their career background.  A candidate could have a first class degree and a GMAT of over 700, but if they have not had good work experience they will not be offered a place at Cranfield.

Q: What do you look for in a good application?

A: The most important things we look for are a successful career to date and evidence of a determination to succeed as a senior manager. We look at what applicants have achieved and their views on how they have dealt with challenges and what they hope to achieve in the future.  During their interview we will ask them to give examples from their past experience that indicate not only their management and leadership abilities, but also commitment, ambition, and teamwork skills.

Following the interview, the application goes before the Admissions Board. The Board uses six points of reference to judge their suitability: career to date; reasons for wishing to attend Cranfield; academic or professional qualifications; GMAT and English language test scores; referees’ opinions; the conclusions reached by the interviewer; and potential for senior management positions.

We are looking for experience and communication skills that will contribute to the diversity we seek amongst our students and enable them to play a full part in classroom discussions and team tasks.

Q: What are strengths/focus of your MBA?

A: A key feature of the ‘Cranfield Experience’ has always been our focus on personal development. We challenge our MBAs to improve the quality of their team working, to enhance their ability to communicate and relate to others, and to be aware of cultural differences. In today’s business context, ‘soft skills’ are as important as having the right management knowledge. It is these skills that are needed to apply the knowledge and tools offered by an MBA, and it is this focus that gives Cranfield MBA graduates the edge with international employers.

Q: What do you think characterises a British MBA as opposed to an American or European one?

A: Virtually all the full-time MBA programmes in the UK are one-year programmes rather than two. The average age of the students tends to be older than in the USA so they have more experience to draw on and share with each other.  The average age of students at Cranfield is 32 and they have around 10 years’ work experience.  The classes are also more international than in America, normally having more than 60% non-UK students.

Q: Do you have employment statistics for your graduates?

A: Most of our Chinese students have returned to China and are working in banking, insurance, the aviation and petrochemical industries, and government ministries.  However, Cranfield is one of the 50 top business schools in the world whose students are given preferential treatment in applying to work in the UK on completing the MBA. The British government set up its High Skilled Migrant Programme (HSMP) in order to help international students to quickly take up employment in the UK. The British government recognises the benefits of a Cranfield MBA and it wants to help international students to put their new management skills to practical use as rapidly as possible. Last year 61% of our Asian students successfully gained employment in the UK or Europe with a 372% average increase in salary.

For more details, email: mbaenquiries@cranfield.ac.uk or telephone: +44 (0)1234 754386

For Chinese students scholarships of up to 50% are available, for more details click here