The bold claim of the London Business School (LBS) is that it chooses the best and makes them better. The fact that its full-time and Executive MBA programmes rank among the world’s best, according to the Financial Times and BusinessWeek business education surveys, would seem to go some way to backing up this declaration.
Alongside its flexible 15-to-21-month MBA programme, which combines a research-based curriculum with real-life applications, LBS and its world-renowned faculty run a range of other masters and non-masters programmes. These include one of only three Sloan MSc programmes in the world.
With a campus overlooking a lake in Regent’s Park, the school is at the heart of the world’s leading commercial and financial centre, home to 75 per cent of Fortune 500 companies. London has more international banks than any other city and accounts for 43 per cent of the global foreign equity market.
Despite all these reasons to maintain a focus close to home, LBS runs an outward-looking Global Business Experiences programme and maintains a partnership with 33 International Exchange schools.
“Students love London and the experiences they gain while at [LBS],” says David Simpson, the school’s associate director for client services and business development. “I think some students underestimate just how international their experiences may be. For example, they could study at the school in the first year of their MBA, then do a summer internship in Germany, go on international exchange to a school in South Africa, Australia, the US or other countries, then carry out a second-year project in Germany.”
While in London, students not only benefit from regular visits to the LBS campus by international banks, top consulting firms and leading executives from industry, they also get a chance to enjoy the host of extra-curricular attractions the city has to offer. With all of London’s historic buildings, museums, theatres, galleries, nightlife and street life, Samuel Johnson’s famous adage, “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life,” seems as relevant today as when he penned it.
In line with the overall national figure, around 90 per cent of LBS students come from outside the UK. Given the presence of fellow Hongkongers at LBS, and the fact that London is a long-standing home to a large Chinese community, Hong Kong students should not have too much trouble settling in.
“Hong Kong has always been a global location, and we are a global school based in a global business city,” says Simpson. “So there are some similarities.”
Practical support is also available. “We have a good portfolio of scholarships and bursaries available to students on all programmes, especially the MBA,” Simpson adds.
A dedicated career-services team helps students to find new career opportunities after graduation.
And, given that the school’s student body is drawn from 120 countries, graduates go on to benefit from connections with over 34,000 alumni across the globe.
