QS Top MBA

Internships in Consultancy

Tue, 12 Feb 2008 10:56:00 +0000

Internships in Consultancy: Why you should swap the beach for the office

By Ross Geraghty

According to a 2007 survey by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), a survey of nearly 700 companies around the world found that 62% took on MBA students as interns over the summer months. Of these, almost three-quarters considered employing their interns before looking at external candidates for full-time roles. The typical company also reported that half of its new MBA hires would come from the internship pool.
It looks as if sacrificing the beach for the office over the summer is a useful time-investment for ambitious MBA students. And with demand for MBAs reaching new heights, the choice of internship is broader than at any time since the late 1990s. Major employers are competing for the best students and options are no longer limited to the very large organizations that provided opportunities in the past.

The London office of A.T. Kearney, one of the UK�s most prestigious consultancy firms, offers places to, on average, eight of its ten summer interns. Emmanuel Hembert, Principal at A.T. Kearney says: �We take summer interns for a period of between one-and-a-half and three months, recruiting them from the same schools as our full-time staff, (London, INSEAD and Manchester). They get the exact same training as all consultants, though it is shortened for the summer interns.�

In the best cases, interns gain valuable experience by immediately working on projects with clients so that they have a genuine experience of the life and work of a consulting and a client team. If you are looking for an internship, carefully consider the companies that can offer the mot productive hands-on experience.

Employability is another key word. Interns want to know that they might get a fulfilling position at the end of it, so be aware of the company�s reputation and statistics for employing interns before applying for a position.

The main idea of an internship is for the incumbent to have the time to assess the job and to decide if consultancy is a job that they really want, while the company simultaneously assesses the intern. Hembert says: �We need to believe our interns will be successful here. At the end of their stay there is an evaluative committee to decide who will be offered a permanent job. It�s a good way for both parties to see if they would like to work with each other.�

So are there percentage limits on internships? �There is no limit to how many summer interns we will offer full time positions to; it really depends on their performance - if they all excel we will make all of them offers. It is clearly less risky for us to hire someone we know than a hire through the normal recruiting process,� Hembert says.
The timing of applications for internships depends on the school�s individual recruiting period so you should know about this when applying for any business school. Work out how much time you have, what industry you�d like to work in, and start researching which companies suit you best.

For interns in consultancy, the challenge is to apply yourself to the real job of a consultant on the client side and to adapt very quickly to the company, the client and the project team. You are expected to perform at the same level as a normal consultant. As Hembert says: �It is very challenging and we put them through a rigorous program of work and development. A good intern is one who is eager to learn, who is adaptable and feels comfortable working directly with a project and a client immediately when arriving at A.T. Kearney. Successful interns are hands-on, analytical people, with a good strategic mind. Those are the types that will succeed.

We also look for a passion for learning, and a readiness to push into the unknown so that you are always developing. That means being entrepreneurial, taking the initiative and aiming to make a difference, not just theoretically, but in the real world. We need people who want to work alongside clients, rather than in some form of teacher/pupil relationship. It�s collaboration, not lecturing, that achieves results.�

The evolution of distance learning

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 16:11:00 +0000

In the past, some employers saw distance learning as a poor relative of face-to-face on-campus learning. Not any more, if the proliferation of distance learning courses and the increasing number of students worldwide taking on the challenge are anything to go by. Ross Geraghty looks into how the industry has quietly evolved into an education that is making students and employers sit up and take notice. Distance learning, the catch-all term used to describe any of a number of educational courses offered off-campus, from the recent innovations in web-based education to videos, DVDs, correspondence courses by snail-mail and by TV, has entered an advanced phase. The education style, which started off principally through snail-mail correspondence courses, has been going on for a long time. The pioneering Open University in the UK opened its doors in 1969 and, since then, a number of very advanced courses with a good deal of integrity have enabled people to earn life-changing or career-enhancing degree courses from the convenience of their own home.
The distance learning method suits a variety of people, those with families, who don�t wish to relocate, those perhaps with disabilities, people for whom it is simply not affordable to attend full-time classroom degree courses or for any number of other reasons. Amarja Pawar, Marketing & Business Development Manager at Advent International in Paris, notes that, �It also depends on which industry you are looking at. For example for hiring an auditor, it would not make much of a difference if the candidate has completed an online or on-campus postgrad degree.�
As with any kind of education, distance learning has its pros and cons, its supporters and its detractors, especially among the crucial ingredient at the end of the line in most education, the opinion of employers. During its early stages, according to Richard Wheatcroft, Master�s Programme Director at Open University in the UK, �employers didn�t take distance learning seriously. When we started in 1969 there was a lot of scepticism because employers didn�t have access to information about the courses. But through the 70s and 80s it became demonstrable that graduates were as well educated as those from face-to-face universities.� Recruitment expert Damir Latte, of global-workplace.com, agrees: �In the past, distance learning courses didn�t achieve high recognition. The courses were seen as the poorer cousins of the on-campus method and, in some cases, perhaps they were. The overall experience of attending university was seen by employers, who probably went through the on-campus education system themselves, to provide a rounded experience of networking and communication that distance learning courses couldn�t provide.�

Is Distance Learning for you?

With more recent technological advancements such as the Internet, audio-visual technology such as CDs and DVDs and telephony, distance learning has developed into a viable alternative to the quality face-to-face learning universities have to offer. It is as far from the realm of reams of dusty correspondence-courses packages landing on your doorstep as modern universities are from Dickens. Richard Wheatcroft says, �We call it �structured open learning� as it�s a complete package of carefully produced materials away from a base, with provision of all the support that would be expected from a face-to-face course. There are some great advantages. There is only a 15:1 ratio student:faculty ratio on Masters programs. There are face-to-face seminars every few weeks, a large electronic backup and electronic support from the library. You need a very strong infrastructure for distance learning and it�s hard to do it well on a small scale to enable students to be self-directed learners.� This self-motivation, or the lack of it, is what keeps some students from considering a distance-learning course. Some doubt their ability to get up and actually do the work, to force themselves to the books or the computer when TV or other distractions seem far more appealing. Those people may function better with external motivators, such as lecturers or peers and if they are honest self-assessors, distance learning may not be for them. For the self-motivated student - and it is important that you assess yourself and be realistic about this because it is definitely not an easier option over on-campus degrees - taking a distance learning course and balancing this with the rigours of work, life and family can work to your advantage in an employers eyes. Amarja Pawar says: �Employees can prove to employers that doing an online degree is just as intensive as doing an on-campus one. They should use it as a tool to explain to employers how dealing with current personal or professional obligations while doing a course online has honed them into a more capable, agile and dynamic professional.� Richard Wheatcroft agrees. �From an employer�s point of view, not only did the student get an education, they got it in their own time and proved the work and lifestyle balance. They have demonstrated their self-motivation. The concerns about distance learning these days have genuinely been dispelled.�

Accreditation

Perhaps the greatest danger in the distance-learning arena is the problem of accreditation. In recent years � and here is the Internet at its worst � there has been a boom in the number of �diploma mills� available. These seem to offer all kinds of amazing degrees for little or no work and quite a lot of hard-earned cash. Luckily, savvy employers will not buy it. All correspondents counsel against handing money to any organisations, be it distance or on-campus learning, without thorough research. Look out for and research your prospective course�s accrediting bodies. Are they the same bodies that accredit on-campus universities? Do they accredit some of the bigger universities worldwide?

The three main accreditors are AMBA (UK based and which only accredits MBAs), plus Brussels-based EFMD, which has an accreditation called EQUIS, and the AACSB in the USA. The last two accredit undergraduate degree courses and business schools in general.

Amarja Pawar notes: �The booming, fake, 'online universities' have done nothing but damage their respectable counterparts' reputation. The downslide in reputation is being sliced off by new-age and well recognised multi-program schools. The only factor weighing on online programs is the lack of universal and recognised accreditation and official rankings.�

�Students need to go to a school with accreditation,� says Richard Wheatcroft, �as it�s an external comment on what is provided to them and gives them the best chance of achieving success. It is also evidence to employers that the course has been adjudged to be a quality, worthy product.�

Recent trends now indicate that businesses are encouraging more and more employees onto distance learning courses. They have noted the need for a better-educated workforce and are prepared to assist capable employees to improve their skills while still retaining them in the workplace. Much of this is employee-driven. If you are in that position, suggest it to your boss, showing how it will benefit you and the organisation in general.

What to consider

If you have an option and are considering distance learning, the main tips you should bear in mind are:

Think carefully about your obligations. How much work is involved in the course? Can you realistically take it on?
Does missing out on the social aspects of on-campus education matter much to you?
What kind of person are you? Are you genuinely self-motivated or do you respond better to external guidance?
What kind of career are you interested in? It�s unlikely that a distance learning course in Medicine will work out but Accountancy would.
Do employers in your chosen field value your qualification? How to find out? Ask them and research on the Internet. If not, are they the right kind of forward-thinking company for you anyway?

The Top 5 Reasons for attending a QS World MBA Fair

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 17:12:00 +0000

CONTACT: Face to face contact with admissions staff is invaluable. These are the people who will not only be able to provide all the answers you need about their school but they are also the ones who will be reading your application. The value of being able to put a face to a name on an application form cannot be underestimated. Go prepared. Research the schools you are interested in meeting first and get a few decent questions for them. Take a business card, a CV and even a picture. They may not be requested but it cannot hurt to have them with you.
SELECTION: MBA fairs uniquely provide a choice of business schools to talk to under one roof. These come from several different countries and can provide a feel not only of the school�s culture but of the country�s culture if you are thinking of studying abroad. If you�re aiming for a specific or a group of schools, you can maximise your day and get to see their representatives all in one day, and of course the personal touch of meeting them is better than phone calls or emails.
VERSATILITY: You may find what you�re not looking for. Nunzio Quacquarelli, Managing Director of the QS World MBA Tour, says: �There will be programmes at the fair that actually suit you better than those you were aiming for. Personalised research, such as www.topmba.com/scorecard, is a great idea and allows you to narrow down a list of business schools that interest you. However many people attend our fairs to research Wharton or London or Chicago and end up finding out about programmes elsewhere that are a far better fit for what they want.�
QUALITY: The QS World MBA Tour brings hundreds of the best business schools from dozens of countries. This includes Wharton, NYU Stern, London Business School, IE Business School, INSEAD, IESE, Melbourne Business School, HKUST, Ivey, University of Hong Kong, RSM Erasmus, IMD. These are among the world�s most exclusive business educations and the list goes on and on.
SIMPLICITY: Simple online pre-registration through www.topmba.com <http://www.topmba.com> allows all of your details to be accessed by the schools you are interested in.

Executives head back to the classroom � Further education may be your best investment yet.

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 16:39:00 +0000

You may be sitting there thinking about how routine your professional world has become, yet thinking you have no choice but to follow the path you�ve chosen. You may be a consultant or a marketing manager or maybe a writer, and be convinced that you�re far too old to start anything new. After all, new careers are for eco warriors fresh out of college, tripping over each other on their way to destination boardroom. If you�ve convinced yourself that changing careers or going back to school are simply not options for established professionals, you may miss out on the one thing that will bring back that enthusiasm of a fresh graduate. Executive education may be what you need to surpass that career plateau. Whether it�s enrolling in an Executive MBA (EMBA) course or simply taking a 15-day course in management skills, education can only brighten your outlook, even if this just means meeting people outside of your regular network. The realm of executive education encompasses a huge range of options. You may want to improve your management skills with a leadership class, or focus on personal development. If you�re looking to pick up new skills, an almost endless list of courses exist, probably close to home. Finance, marketing, and information technology are just three of the myriad of courses available to executives.

The Executive MBA

Of course the Executive MBA is the mother of all business brush-up courses. And it is much more than a brush-up. The EMBA is a popular program amongst the over thirty-five group, as it arms the experienced with a targeted set of skills to match their often extensive business understanding. In comparison to the �regular� MBA programs, the EMBA is focused on the intricacies of senior management, often concentrating on quantitative methods to strategize to meet goals. Further, the executive programs are tailored to the professional with a tight schedule � weekend classes are the norm. Most EMBA programs are open only to those with comprehensive experience in the professional world. Many choices of courses exist, from 24-month programs to 18-month programs, to programs with specific focuses like global business. The Global Executive MBA at Duke, for example, focuses on this area by sending its students to �Asia, South America, Europe and the United States with Internet-enabled distance learning allowing students to live and work from anywhere in the world,� in addition to offering conventional classes. Arnold Longboy, Director of Recruitment and Corporate Relations at the Chicago GSB European campus near London�s Guildhall, reports an increase in interest amongst the more experienced: �We saw a record level of interest in our EMBA program last year and all indications this year lead us to believe that interest is growing.� Jason Price, Director of EMBA World, explains how the EMBA is much more than an MBA for older people: �The beauty of the EMBA is that you will not only study a company facing real challenges but the chances are that you will also have classmates who have worked in that company and were involved in senior-level decision-making.� Mr. Price completed an EMBA himself, at Fordham University in New York, after deciding that taking time off work for full-time study simply was not possible. The reward was phenomenal. �I feel the EMBA classes and projects are what helped me win the 2001 Microsoft Global Technology Award and build a solid and fast growing consulting firm.� The Executive MBA may just give you that extra push. Take, for example, a 43 year-old IT manager who wants to make it to Director status but doesn�t yet have the organizational or analytical skills to pull it off. This is exactly what the EMBA is for. Nunzio Quacquarelli, Director of QS, the educational and career specialist network, says the Executive MBA gives you the extra push you need to make it to boardroom prominence. �Particularly, after gaining a number of years work experience, the EMBA is maybe the only thing that will give you what you need to reach your professional goals. Entering an EMBA program after being in the professional world for a number of years presents you with a unique advantage over a 27 year-old with a lack of experience of business dilemmas and undeveloped management skills.� Alexandre Brown, who did his EMBA at the University of Chicago, confirms the value of the degree. �My EMBA enabled me to fulfill my dream of joining Rutberg & Co., a research-centric investment bank, specializing in assisting telecom and digital media companies.�

It�s never too late for a career change

Many professionals not conventionally grouped under the commerce field are taking up MBA studies. Some doctors and lawyers, for example, are now turning to business education to improve career prospects and propel them in a new direction. In fact, 58% of North Americans considering business school are looking for a career change, as demonstrated by the recent QS Applicant Survey in Table 1. Table 1: Reasons for MBA � North America

Education	Boost salary	Build professional network	Enable career change	Improve career prospects	Learn new skills	Start own business	Other
34.5	37.4	51.0	58.3	68.9	68.9	23.8	23.8

Source: 2007 QS TopMBA.com Applicant Survey Lawyers often have a support team of employees that need to be managed. Administrative support professionals, paralegals, and associate lawyers generally make up a medium to large sized firm, and the experienced lawyer or partner will have much better luck if he or she is equipped with the organizational and management skills to keep the team coordinated. In this case, the MBA would be an advisable step to take. Created for the experienced or �mature� student, the MBA programs focus on establishing organizational and analytical skills that extend beyond what the executive can learn in the �real world�. Quantitative and management skills not addressed in law school are major assets the lawyer will take away from business school. Some business schools have even incorporated EMBA programs to accommodate the unsuspecting MBA student. For example, �The Duke MBA, Fuqua's Health Sector Management program offers a new model for training managers with the breadth of understanding needed to lead this industry into the future.� This such program would be suitable for a doctor wanting the management skills and understanding of the infrastructure of health care to guide the system in an influential way. As a result of this increase in MBA interest amongst non-businesspeople like doctors, some schools have even gone so far as to combine postgraduate degrees with the MBA. Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem has developed a five-year program in which students can earn a joint M.D./M.B.A. degree. McGill University, in Canada, offers a joint MBA/law degree program �designed for those students who are interested in both the legal and administrative aspects of business. It gives them the opportunity to prepare themselves for careers in both private and public enterprises, government service, large corporations, and as management consultants.� MBA students from countries around the world are starting to represent a wider range of education and career backgrounds than the traditional marketing, consulting, accounting, and banking professions. While of course a massive number of MBA candidates come from such backgrounds, the likes of doctors and lawyers are now turning to MBA education to venture beyond their core skill set. So can business school really give you all the necessary skills to succeed in a completely new realm of work? If your previous career has presented you with excellent leadership and interpersonal skills, and the ability to thrive within a team, you may have an advantage over a new MBA with a business background. It�s sometimes these �softer� skills that make a difference. Furthermore, if your previous jobs were internationally-focused, you�ll have an edge on a candidate with localised business experience.

When time is money

For many executives, being away from a job for a fair amount of time (EMBA courses are usually one year in length and can require a lot of study time) is not an option. Rajeev Gaur, Vice President of Times Business Solutions, discusses the value of �compact� courses: �Leadership skills can even be improved after participating in a four-day program with a three-month follow-up.� Distance learning and online education is also a viable option. According to the latest survey of online learning in the USA, for example, more than 2 million Americans are opting for online learning, while on the Pacific Rim the amount spent on online learning is expected to triple by the year 2008. Business education � MBA programs in particular, are becoming accessible through online access. Where strength of faculty is given a 100% weighting (the user selects the relevant weighting on screen using a sliding scale) QS TopMBA Scorecard produces the following results for distance learning programs: Table 2 - Distance learning programs - ranked by: Strength of Faculty 1. Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University
2. Warwick Business School, University of Warwick
3. Goizueta Business School, Emory University
4. IE Business School (Instituto de Empresa)
5. Henley Management College
6. Manchester Business School, The University of Manchester
7. S.C. Johnson Graduate School of Management, Cornell University
8. Thunderbird, The Garvin School of International Management
9. Segal Graduate School of Business, Simon Fraser University
10. Aston Business School, Aston University Source: TopMBA.com/Scorecard Whether you simply want to enrich your intellectual capacity or gain a degree in order to change careers, heading back to class is usually a win-win situation. And even if it�s only to make you feel like a new graduate, it may be well worth doing your homework.

No degree is useless � Identifying and applying transferable skills can lead to endless career options

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 15:49:00 +0000

The days ahead are just what you�ve been waiting for since the day you stepped into secondary school. Uni! So you�ve done your hard work, selected a top university to study at and have become an undergraduate. You�ve chosen your field of study; whether it be History or Physics, it�s what you�re interested in and you�re eager to hit the books. There�s just one thing � in the back of your head (and in your parents� kitchen) you can�t help but hear �what in the world can anyone do with this degree?! �I love History but it doesn�t seem to lead to any lucrative prospects, or any prospects at all for that matter.� Don�t panic; opportunities are there and many recruiters don�t discriminate. What often counts is that the skills you�ve obtained during your university studies are applicable to a wide range of industries and jobs. Transferable skills are exactly that � skills that can be transferred! According to a study conducted by the University of Sheffield, the top attributes recruiters seek in a new graduate are: oral communication, teamwork, enthusiasm, motivation, initiative, leadership, commitment, interpersonal skills, and foreign language competence. And you thought your BA in English will serve no purpose! The top skills listed can be learned in a wide range of courses, and can be applied to an even wider range of careers.

What is a Transferable Skill?

According to Carnegie Mellon University, �Transferable Skills are non-job specific skills which can be used in different occupations. You may have developed them through course work, jobs, internships, volunteering, or just plain life experience. By communicating your transferable skills effectively, you can enhance your marketability and open yourself up to a larger sector of the job market.� Critical thinking skills, communication skills, the ability to prioritize to meet tight deadlines, leadership and problem-solving skills are a few of the many skills you will learn at university, and are not job-specific. You may have been told by many that Arts degrees are useless because they don�t lead to a specific career like Accounting or Nursing. Not true. Skills like channelling creativity, essay writing, and public speaking which you may acquire from your undergraduate studies are essential skills for a great number of positions.

How do I identify a Transferable Skill?

It�s a competitive world out there. When you have a few minutes to spare sit down and think of all the skills you have acquired thus far at university. A good way to identify said skills is to list your achievements. Keep in mind that while academics are important, skills you�ve picked up in other aspects of your life at uni can be just as useful. You may have created a student snowboard group or become a spokesperson for campus recycling. Such activities provide organizational and leadership skills that top recruiters place a lot of value on. Things like learning how to use specific software and researching facts and figures for an essay are excellent examples of transferable skills with high mobility. Even if you think a particular skill isn�t noteworthy, take account of it. Make a list of your skills and think of how you can apply these entities to certain jobs you may be interested in.

How do I �sell� my Transferable Skills?

When the time comes to start thinking about career options, take a look at the job market; visit job advertisement sites and make contact with recruiters at companies you are interested in; visit job fairs and your university�s career centre. Find out what specific characteristics recruiters are looking for and relate these characteristics to your own. Do you have these attributes the employer seeks? If so, make sure to communicate them to the recruiter. If you have achieved leadership status, make sure to include in your CV and cover letter how you achieved this and how such a skill can be applied to the position you want. Take mental note of the attributes you share with the desired ones so when you find yourself in an interview you can easily and naturally access and convey them. Some examples Research skills learned through collecting data for a Sociology paper can be used in a Marketing position where statistics are key to developing a Marketing plan. Teamwork and communication skills learned through working with a team in a Business class to create an advertisement can be applied to almost any job that requires teamwork � restaurant management and client relations are two good examples. Leadership skills learned through involvement with a student club are essential to many careers, including teaching, human resource positions, and business development.

Recruitment Consultants � The good, the bad, and the need-to-know

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 15:35:00 +0000

So you�re well on your way to achieving that undergraduate degree you�ve been striving towards for the past few years. Soon the day will come when you�ll have to get a job! Finding your dream job can be a bit of a challenge, and you may not get it the first time around. But that�s just a warning. You do have many options when it comes to job searching, and employment agencies are just one route you can take to pursue your goals. In some cities, like London, you may find that the majority of jobs advertised are coordinated through agencies. So are agencies always your friend? No one is always your friend. Here we list the pros and cons of utilizing an agency to help you find that dream job.

Pros

They do the legwork � After signing up with a recruitment agency you no longer have to spend your days in front of the computer sending out CVs and cover letters. They do that for you. More opportunities in one hit - Signing up with an agency gives you access to a large number of jobs the agency will be recruiting for. With one interview you will gain the opportunity to apply for numerous positions, and remember, recruitment agencies receive new vacancies every day. Help and Advice � Recruiters at agencies can help you perfect your CV and even tailor it for certain positions. The recruiter can make sure that your CV highlights particular strengths which will prove fruitful in a given vacancy.

Cons

Too many fish in the sea � Some large agencies receive an extraordinary number of CVs and they don�t always get read. Your CV may be excellent but it can still be overlooked unfortunately. Potential of being pushed around � You may come across that recruiter who tries to push you into a vacancy you don�t want. Don�t be bullied into taking an unsuitable or undesirable job.

Types of Recruitment Agencies

General � General agencies recruit across a broad range of industries. Sector Specific � These types of agencies recruit for a specific sector, like Media, I.T., or Human Resources for example. Domestic � Agencies that recruit for a local market.

International � Agencies that recruit for vacancies in a range of countries. High Street � High street recruitment agencies often recruit for vacancies within the immediate area of that branch. Many of them are sector-specific and some focus on graduate placement. Online � Such businesses are online-only. Some online agencies may have hundreds, if not thousands, of vacancies posted at any given time. Instead of making contact with a consultant the online variation makes you do a bit of the legwork.

A few tips

Assess reputation � You may wish to call up some companies you are interested in to see which recruitment agencies they use, if any. Ask your acquaintances who have used agencies and get feedback on their experience.
Research the role � Don�t waste your time or your recruiter�s time applying for a job you aren�t suitable for. Read the job spec carefully before asking your consultant to go ahead with the application.
Follow up � If your recruitment consultant says he or she will call you �next week� and doesn�t, call him or her. It�s good to know where you stand. If you have interviewed for a position and not heard back when your consultant said you would hear, give the agency a call. If they haven�t contacted you to update you on any new vacancies, call them and inquire.
Don�t settle for any job � Just because your recruiter says you are perfect for a particular position doesn�t mean you are. You know yourself. The first job that comes around probably won�t be exactly what you�re looking for and there is no reason why you should settle � especially now that you�re a graduate!
Keep relationships � This may be your first job but it likely won�t be your last. If possible, keep in touch with your �favorite� recruiter throughout that first job experience and update him or her on your career progress and whether you are happy in the position or want to start seeking a different one. This will set you apart from the crowd of anonymous job seekers.

First Impressions Last: Part Two

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 15:27:00 +0000

11. Learn about the organization: Read the handbooks. See what has been done and what hasn�t. Know where the organization started and where it seems to be heading. Find out where the First Aid boxes, Fire escapes, boardroom, kitchen, and coffee machine are and learn about what makes the company tick. Listen to the bosses about where the company is going as, for a while at least, you are going with them. Here is where your notebook comes in handy.

12. Avoid gossip, office politics and negativity: Don�t get sucked into negativity, beware over-positivity and avoid office politics and gossip. It is a sad fact that, sometimes, people spend too long at a company and can start to feel resentful. In my experience, these are often the first to speak to new starters, telling them about �how awful it is here� and �why didn�t you choose to work somewhere nice?� These people want nothing more than for you to agree and bitch and moan. Instead, thank them for their input and tell them that you�ll see how it goes but, for now, everyone seems helpful and you�re happy with how it�s going.

13. Run past the finishing line: 100m athletes are trained to finish the race after 110m. Do the same. Give an extra 10%. If work finishes at 5.00, leave at 5.20. It will make you noticed and will allow you more leeway on those occasions you do have to leave early � for a doctor�s appointment for example.

14. Keep Personal Time to a minimum: Ask if you�re allowed to use the phones to make or receive personal calls. Don�t use Facebook, personal email or MySpace. As a new starter this is important. If you�re unsure of where the division lies in your organization, ask your boss.

15. Track your accomplishments: Nobody else will, though it is hoped they notice. Keep a written reminder of everything you do right and, even, everything you do wrong.

16. Be organized: Set daily and weekly goals. Keep lots of pens and notepads handy and, at the beginning of each day, write down what you have to do that day.

17. Get used to networking: Networking doesn�t mean being false with people, though as in all walks of life you are going to have to deal with some difficult people and may have to keep your personal impressions to a minimum. Don�t be afraid to network, find out who people are, what they do, exchange cards and remember who they are in the future.

18. To think own self be true: Shakespeare said that. Be yourself. Some very clever people have had faith in YOU to do a job, so you must have something going for you. Now, enjoy yourself.

First Impressions Last

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 15:10:00 +0000

Your first week in a new job is likely to be a stressful and challenging experience for you and, despite the fact that you will have had some kind of work experience before, this is �it�. This is the job you�ve hunted for, in the career you want, at the organization that suits you and about which you�ve spent a lot of time, effort and money studying for. And if it isn�t, the song remains the same. You�re going to want to show your new employers you�re the right person for the job and that you can and will be a success story during your time there. Below is a list of tips on how best to deal with different situations. Of course each situation is different and not all people work for �companies� in �offices�, so these have been referred to as �organizations�.

Get into character: Most actors arrive at the theatre hours before the play starts to �get into character� early. They become Hamlet half an hour before going on stage. Similarly as a new hire you can remind yourself to make a good impression and to focus on the task at hand. Soon, this will become second nature. For now, remind yourself why you�re there, what you are, what you want to achieve and, above all, arrive early. If work starts at nine, start at 8:45.
First Impressions Last: Of course they do. The title of this article says so. For you this means looking presentable at all times. Dress professionally at first and, if you feel that you�re overdressed, take it down a tone or two. As a new-starter, always be above average in terms of professional look.
First Impressions Last: This works both ways because now you get to be the one to be impressed. The organization you are going to work for needs to make some impression on you too. What is the atmosphere like? How tidy or organized does the place look? Are there facilities for water or coffee? How do staff interact with each other and with you? Does the place meet your own professional expectations?
Don�t be afraid to ask questions: It is a good way to show your colleagues that you are thinking, trying to be involved and also allows them an opportunity to communicate with you. Questions are a great ice-breaker for new-starters. And by the way there is almost always more work to do so be proactive, take initiative. Don�t harass your busy boss but do find time to make yourself available to help where needed.
Carry a notebook: Keep a written record of important things, and try to learn as quickly as possible what to jot down and what to leave. It�s not the done thing to bury your face scribbling every last detail in a book while the CEO is telling you the history of the company but, at the same time, keeping a written record of important information will make yours and everyone else�s life a lot easier.
Learn names: Do this by repeating them back to the other person. This is an old sales technique. Humans are sub-consciously impressed when you remember their name first time of asking. When someone introduces themselves to you, try and repeat their name back to them twice in the first minute. If you mishear the name or it�s one you�re not familiar with, please ask them � they�re used to it � to repeat it or spell it for you. Better than continuing to get it wrong.
Keep smiling: And show team spirit. You may be a strong self-starter but, in your early days, show your colleagues that you have team spirit too as they will respond well to you, include you and improve your working experience during your time at the organization. Smile and the world smiles with you. And, it�s good for your health.
Trust your instincts without being too judgemental: Although first impressions last, don�t forget that people do coincidentally have bad days on the week you started, may be short-sighted or hard of hearing (they�re not ignoring you when you smile at them, they just can�t see you!) However, try and keep your own counsel. If someone says something to you that you don�t like, you don�t have to like it. Try to remember that you can�t please all the people all of the time, but neither can they.
Don�t try and make big changes: You may see a glaring error or problem in the organization. Now is not the time to tell the managing director (MD) that his precious marketing campaign is flawed. There is too much going on behind the scenes that you don�t know yet. This will change as you become a respected member of the team but, for now, listen more than talk and give your opinion when asked.
Find a mentor: Some organizations have mentoring schemes where you get paired up with someone whose role it is to go through the job, answer any questions you have, further your development and ease you into what can be a complicated situation. Many organizations don�t though, so see if there is anyone who can do this for you. Who do you get a good feeling from? Who seems helpful and willing to talk to you? Who do you feel you can trust?

More topuniversities.com job tips will follow in part two of First Impressions in next month�s TopUniversities.com Newsletter.

How to get the most of a Careers Fair

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 14:54:00 +0000

Researching graduate careers has never been easier, thanks to the Internet, and most companies spend a lot of time developing advanced sites to cater for an increasingly web-savvy population. Recruitment portals abound in most markets and the amount of advice available, online and in print, for the ambitious graduate job-seeker is thorough to the point of being overwhelming.

Combine this with the fact that the same careers advice is available to virtually everyone, means that gaining a personal edge becomes of increasing importance. �Meeting recruiters face to face at Careers Fairs is a great way of showing potential recruiters who you are,� says Tom Harrison, Head of Business Development at recruitment experts Global Work Place (www.global-workplace.com). �It allows you to find out the targeted information you want and gives you the edge over job seekers who don�t take the chance to get up close and personal with recruiters. There are people at Careers Fairs who will probably work in the department that reads your applications and decides who to bring to interview. Putting a personality to a name is a great head start.� Job recruitment careers fairs offer lots of benefits to graduates. If you�re ambitious and organised you can get a lot out of a career fair, including: � Honing your interview skills � Even if you aren�t offered a job, talking to prospective employers about graduate appointments gives you valuable confidence and experience of interviews.
� Expanding your network � Meeting job recruiters and even fellow graduates helps you build useful contacts for future reference.
� Learning industry information � Speaking to job recruitment professionals in your chosen sector is a great way to learn about the industry.
� Gathering information about companies � Investigating the kind of graduate placements offered by a company tells you a lot about that organisation as a whole. But how do you really get the best from a careers fair? Here are our Top Ten Tips:

1) Prepare � �Make sure you know which companies are attending in advance,� says Harrison. �Research them thoroughly, prioritize which you are most keen on and arm yourself with as much knowledge as possible about them.� Just as the eager graduate wants information about a prospective employer, the recruiters are looking closely at you as a candidate. Asking questions that you could have answered on a website will waste two sets of time and is one of the main complaints recruiters have at careers fairs.

2) Focus � Harrison says, �Let the companies you are interested in know you have researched them, and that you know more than just the name. Tell them you�re knowledgeable about something specific that might be newsy and topical, knowledge of the CEO�s career, the history of the company, their financial results, the corporate culture, corporate social responsibility policy, something like that.� Linking your interests with them as a potential employer immediately puts you ahead of other less prepared and less focussed attendees.

3) Rule yourself in (not out) � Most recruiters will already be advertising so identify the kind of person your selected company is seeking. Read careers sections online and print adverts in newspapers and see if you might be a good fit. Also you can get an idea if the company is the kind of place you would like to work in. �Rule yourself in,� says recruiting consultant Craig Coltrane, �but don�t rule yourself out. Talking to a company�s representatives will allow them to find qualities in you that you may not recognise in yourself. Never say �I can�t do it.� Leave it to them to say that later on in the process.�

4) Don�t overload recruiters � Company representatives will be pleased to meet you �after all, that is what they are there for - particularly if you are well prepared. But they can�t devote the whole event to you. Make sure that you keep your questions focused and relevant and prepare an �elevator pitch� in advance, which will give them the salient facts about you, your background and your goals in no more than two minutes. Feel free to bring evidence of your qualifications with you, but keep them in your bag unless they are asked for. �Take a CV, perhaps with a picture, and a business card or personal card to make it easier for the recruiters to remember you,� says Coltrane.

5) Know your objectives � Tom Harrison says, �No matter how amazing you are, you are unlikely to be offered a job at a careers fair. A more realistic objective is to agree to some kind of post-event follow up, an agreement with a recruiter to some kind of post-fair contact with a view to an assessment day or interview. This means if you walk away from a stand at a fair with a specific agreement for them to contact you, or vice versa, then you have succeeded.�

6) Look the part � Fairs aren�t a platform for formal admissions, but they could be the first point of contact with your target company. Consequently, it makes sense to look and act in a professional manner. That doesn�t mean you have to turn up in a formal business suit, but it�s probably best to leave your t-shirt and old pair of shorts at home.

7) Evaluate � A lot of successful applicants say that they knew the right company as soon as they talked to its representative; so, trust your instincts as much as your research. Make sure that you assess the people you meet � are they interested in you and your questions? Can they answer those questions easily and authoritatively? Do they seem professional? Meeting people face-to-face like this is as much about you making a judgement as it is about them providing you with relevant and comprehensive information.

8) What to do if the representatives can�t help you � On some occasions a representative might not know the answers to questions you�ve spent a long time researching, and might refer you to their website or other source of information. If you feel that you aren�t getting the answers you want, try and get the name and contact details of the individual at the company that you should be talking to. �After the fair,� Tom Harrison advises, �you can contact them, using the name of your contact at the fair and that they referred you to them. Personalizing correspondence is crucial and will really help you to stand out.�

9) Value yourself � This may sound flippant but it is important to remember that most recruiters have invested a lot of time, effort and resources into attending the fair. They have done so in order to meet, frankly, YOU. Therefore you don�t need to be going to the stand cap in hand or begging for their time. Be yourself, show your personality and remember that careers fair are beneficial to recruiters and candidates alike.

10) Enjoy! � An engaging smile at a careers fair, as in all walks of life, will endear you to people. Try not to exhaust yourself (there is a tendency at these fairs to cram every minute of the day with exhausting information) and take regular breaks to assess what you�ve learned. Don�t overburden yourself with leaflets. Take only what you need. And, above all, enjoy yourself.

What is Medical Studies?

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 14:49:00 +0000

Becoming a doctor is a dream for millions of students (and their parents) around the world. Studying medicine can lead to a career as a doctor of course, but it doesn�t have to be this cut and dry. Many graduates of medical studies programs at top universities around the world pursue careers as specialist consultants � whether it be as psychiatrists, podiatrists, dermatologists, sports medicine professionals, or another specialist on the long list of other possibilities a university degree in medical studies can prepare you for. Some graduates go on to the research field, utilizing their expertise to research medicine�s many facets, including possible cures for illnesses like cancer and AIDS. Medical Studies is learning to help the human race through advances in medical technology and methods of prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

Are Medical Studies for me?

You know if you want to study within a top university�s Life Sciences department, and you will probably know whether Medicine is for you. You will be inquisitive, analytical, good at science (particularly biology and chemistry) and maths, and like to communicate with people. Becoming a doctor requires great dedication, as does the undergraduate degree you may study as the first stepping-stone to becoming a medical professional. You will have no aversion to putting in extra hours into your studies and will want to help people. And of course, if you want to be a doctor you will not be afraid of blood and guts!

What programs are available?

Medical Studies and related fields are extremely competitive, as the discipline attracts the best and brightest, particularly if you are seeking admission to the most highly ranked universities for Life Sciences (Cambridge, Harvard, Oxford, Imperial, and Stanford according to the 2006 THES-QS World University Rankings). Be ready to study hard for your entrance exams. If you are considering studying abroad, it is essential that you make sure the country in which you intend to work following graduation will acknowledge the qualification you obtain. �Medical Studies� is a broad term. It is used loosely to refer to the branch of Life Sciences relating to medicine. In the UK, the first three years of what many call medical school is referred to as Pre-Clinical Studies and prepares you for further studies in Medicine while often awarding a Bachelor�s degree. The MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) degree in the UK (Australia, China, South Africa, New Zealand and a variety of other countries also use this system) is equivalent to the MD (Doctor of Medicine) awarded in the US and Canada. In the US, you are required to achieve a Bachelor�s degree (which takes four years) before applying to medical school, while in the UK the medical degree is considered to be an undergraduate degree, even though you have to study medicine for six years before beginning an internship in the medical world. While many medical school applicants to top universities in the US have undergraduate degrees in a scientific field, some have studied completely different disciplines � like Sociology or English for instance. Let�s not forget Dentistry. Curricula again differ from country to country so do your research. In the US, dental school consists of a four-year undergraduate program. Some schools dedicate the first year to overall medicine, noting that the mouth is an integral part of one�s physiology.

What are the career prospects for a graduate of Medical Studies?

Graduates of medical programs have such a great number of options it would be almost impossible to list them all! Doctors, dentists, academics, researchers, pharmacologists � the list goes on. A huge field is of course research. Many doctors become researchers who dedicate their career to developing new treatments to ailments or preventative methods we can use to better our health. Biotechnology is also a very common career area for graduates of medical programs. Biotechnology utilizes cells, genes, and bacteria to create new food and drugs, and to prevent the spread of disease. Biotech engineers are responsible for creating artificial limbs and solving crimes through DNA analysis. Careers in the Biotechnology field usually fall under manufacturing or research. Specialities include molecular biology, genetic research, physical science, and chemical analysis, among others, and technicians are employed at a wide range of outlets � from hospital laboratories to pharmaceutical companies.

What is education?

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 14:37:00 +0000

Hopefully right now you�re wondering why in the world would someone ask me, a new undergraduate at a top university, this question? We know what education is but do we know what the educators themselves have gone through to gain the qualification they now have? A university degree in education can be fulfilling, even if you don�t intend on becoming a teacher. Degree courses vary, but most top universities focus firstly on the basic subjects you may end up teaching in a primary or secondary school � History, Mathematics, English, and Politics, for example, in addition to issues relating to education. The Sociology of Education, Gender and Education, and Philosophy of Education are examples of such courses the Education student can take throughout her undergraduate career.

Is education for me?

If you are looking for a rewarding career with lots of time off, teaching is for you. The profession is also known for having excellent job security and it is often easy to find teaching positions � unfortunately, teachers are scarce in many countries, including the UK. While it is an extraordinary feeling to be able to have a positive impact on youth and the future generations to come, teaching is challenging and can come with its fair share of stress. Rowdy adolescents who refuse instruction will always be present. Accordingly, if you�re the type of person who feels stressed in faintly difficult situations, you may want to rethink a career as a teacher. And obviously, you have to be a �people person� with absolutely no reservations about speaking in public. With this said, the rewards that come from teaching tomorrow�s leaders are immeasurable.

What courses are available?

Most universities ranked within the World University Ranking�s top 200 universities offer undergraduate degrees in Education. The University of York, for example, takes a social science angle in its BA in Educational Studies. Students in this course explore the history of education and the sociological effects on the evolution of teaching. Similarly, The University of Auckland, which gives students the opportunity to study abroad at one of 90 universities allows the student to either major or minor in Education, and gives the student who may not want to teach a broad education that many of its graduates use in city planning or governmental positions. If you�re looking for a more hands-on approach, Cambridge�s Route 2 of its BA in Education is geared towards the student who wants a job in either a primary or secondary school. During part of the course, students are sent to schools for work experience for a taste of what their future career may hold. And with the right grades, the Cambridge Education graduate will be granted the PGCE certificate to teach. If you�re looking to study in Canada, the University of Western Ontario offers the Bachelor of Education for those wanting to teach primary or secondary school, or technological studies, and courses focus specifically on the level of education you intend to lead.

What are the career prospects for Education graduates?

Of course, many Education graduates become teachers! Primary and secondary schools are destinations for many Education graduates, but remember, additional qualifications like the UK�s PGCE sometimes are also needed. If you study abroad or are contemplating teaching abroad after obtaining your undergraduate degree it is a good idea to check whether your qualification will entitle you do work in the country of your choice, or whether you will need an additional course or certificate. Many also take the degree because it provides a broad education while giving you that option of teaching later down the road, even if you aren�t interested in teaching right away. Those with Education degrees are found in a wide range of career roles � from Advertising Copywriter to Journalist to Publicist to Charity Director and much much more. An Education degree is an excellent base from which to launch a great number of careers.

Do I need work experience to get into business school?

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 13:10:00 +0000

Unlike most educational courses, for MBAs, almost without exception, you will need at least three years work experience in a managerial role, and in some cases, this figure can be even higher. It is a rare MBA course indeed that will accept very recent graduates onto their MBA courses and they usually only do so for the most exceptional and talented students. There are a few reasons for the need for having experience under your belt before starting the MBA: reasons that benefit both the business schools themselves and you as the aspiring MBA student. First of all, without experience, can you be sure that you are cut out for and genuinely interested in a career in business? If so, what field are you best suited to and what are your long-term goals? With the time as well as the financial commitment (some courses cost over US$100,000 if you factor in the sabbatical from your earnings as well as the costs of the course, relocation and so on) you will need to be absolutely sure that you are doing the right thing by yourself when undertaking an MBA. Additionally, you will want to know that, when participating in the case studies and peer group sessions that an MBA course consists of, you will be able to play a constructive and creative part in the discussions amongst people who, most likely, have spent quite some time in a managerial position. Nunzio Quacquarelli, Managing Director of QS is one of a chorus of voices urging caution against trying for an MBA with no work experience: �Even if you are an exceptional student, and schools are fighting over themselves to offer you a place on an MBA, we advise against this. It�s not that you won�t benefit from such a course, but you simply won�t get the most from it. You won�t be in a strong position to know exactly what you want, and to contribute fully to the programme. For your MBA course, experience is key.� Business schools, like the companies who employ MBAs, are also fighting a �war for talent� and are in quite serious competition to find the best graduates for their courses. In this respect, business schools spend considerable resources tracking down and recruiting the most appropriately talented individuals. This equals a higher success rate for their MBA graduates into the world�s top companies, greater prestige for the school and, ultimately, a positive cycle of excellence the same as any other business would aspire to, including the opportunity to charge more for the education they offer. While your academic background is critical � you�ll need a good first degree and GMAT scores to even be considered for the best courses � it is your personal qualities and work experience that will allow you the best chance of being accepted on an MBA course. During case studies for your marketing module, for instance, you will need to bring your experience to the table and pass on your knowledge of your particular industry to your peers. The world�s top business schools believe that diversity of work experience, as well as background and nationality, breeds an atmosphere of international �peer-learning�. You will benefit as much from your peers as from lecturers when studying an MBA, many of whom see themselves as guides or facilitators of discussion. However, the trend is towards an increasingly younger MBA intake. Statistics from the QS MBA Applicant Research 2007, where almost 5,000 aspiring MBAs were surveyed, show that the average age for people entering MBAs was down to 26.8 on average in 2007 (25.9 in Asia) compared with 28 in 2005. Incidentally, the average work experience amongst Indians is a little over two years, compared with the USA where people have a little more than five years pre-MBA experience. Simon Stockley, Dean of the Full-Time MBA Programme at Tanaka Business School at Imperial College in London, concurs: �Though the average experience for an MBA at Tanaka is 7 years, the trend is increasingly moving towards less experience because people want to graduate younger and get on with their careers. It�s a global marketplace so people are feeling they need to get their MBAs younger and still have time to relocate. However we are also finding that applicants of the right quality for us are also getting younger.� A career in business may not preclude doing an MBA, though the chances are that, without work experience, your application will be unsuccessful. If you are in that position and you want to go straight into graduate business education, Masters programmes are more likely to be the route for you. If you�ve had a few years in work and you want to move to the next stage, check out the MBA. You can also personalize your selection of the best business schools in the world, according to the criteria that are most important to you, not to faceless newspapers or magazines, by searching QS Search and Scorecard on www.topmba.com/scorecard.

Business schools aim to cut corruption in Asia

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 13:02:00 +0000

The Anti-Corruption Asia Summit set to commence in Hong Kong on 22 January 2008 is publicized as the �first and only Anti-Corruption conference in Asia aimed at corporate in-house counsels and ethics professionals.� While this is an excellent step forward in combating corrupt business practices in Asia, it is seen by many as well overdue. China, alone, has notably been rife with corruption; in fact, some estimate that between three and five per cent of the country�s GDP in recent times has been produced through corrupt practices - the most recent exposure being Zheng Xiaoyu. The former Chief of China�s Food and Drug Administration was executed in July this year after accepting bribery, which resulted in multiple deaths from tainted food and pharmaceutical products including cough syrup, toothpaste, and pet food sold in America. The good news is that many business schools in Asia and around the world are now tackling this issue from the ground up. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and ethics in general are now fundamental to many curricula in the world of MBA education The International MBA program at National Chengchi University (NCCU) in Taiwan is one university addressing the issue. In addition to the Asian Ethics course offered as part of the MBA program, the university is soon to introduce Confucianism & Leadership, which accordingly will apply the moral, philosophical, political, and social principles of confucianism to contemporary business. Those who choose to do their MBAs in countries located in Europe or North America, but want to take up work in Asia after graduation, have a multitude of choices that undoubtedly address CSR. New programs have recently been launched at Nottingham University Business School and the University of Geneva. However, it is the top tier schools that are achieving greatest recognition in the field of CSR. Tuck School of Business, in the US, has launched several conferences on the topic and corporate governance is a mandatory core course as well as being integrated within many other subject areas at the school. Dean Paul Danos says, �We take corporate governance very seriously at Tuck. We aim to instil good practices with our students, which will stand them in good stead throughout their careers.� Tuck also offers the course �Doing Business in Southeast and Central Asia�, which teaches MBA students �how to deal with the many facets of pressure, corruption, and influence in a foreign environment; how to deal with the problems of having one central headquarters and yet operations around the region; and issues of dealing with and understanding a myriad of different ways that business is both organized and exercised.� As the Asian economic boom hits the world market harder and harder each year, foreign investors who have assessed the business case for corporate governance will demand honest practices. Business schools have taken a big step towards encouraging tomorrow�s investors to reject dishonest business, and we can only hope for positive results.

MBA Recruiters pass unique verdict on India�s business schools

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 12:48:00 +0000

Indian business schools are stepping up to the plate, according to some of the world�s biggest recruiters of MBA graduates, an exclusive report says. The QS Global 100 Top Business Schools Report 2007, released this month, provides exclusive feedback from 489 prestigious international MBA recruiters on the world�s best business schools. The recruiters, from dozens of different services and industries, include such names as Accenture, Goldman Sachs, Johnson & Johnson and Bank of America. These are the blue chip companies setting the standards they expect from the world�s business schools, and which provide the yardstick against which others are measured. The report shows that India�s business schools are achieving greater recognition amongst the international business community. The �ABC� of Institutes of International Management at Ahmendabad (12th in Asia Pacific), Bangalore (9th) and Calcutta (17th) all featured strongly in the report with IIM Bangalore cementing its place in the Top 10 of Asia Pacific business schools for the second year running. A strong placing by the Indian School of Business (20th) also ensured that India had a strong presence in the report. As the �War for Talent� rages on, a business school�s reputation, amongst the world�s recruiters and MBA candidates, is of paramount importance both to business schools and the people who hope to attend them. For the best students, attending a school at the highest echelon of the industry, means those with access to the world�s largest MBA recruiters, has never been more important. The success of Indian schools in this kind of survey is great news for the country�s many thousands of MBA aspirants as well as international students who wish to study overseas in places like India. The report is totally unique in that it ranks the most popular schools by region and discipline. As well as the strong regional showing by Indian business schools, they also featured particularly strongly in the International Management and Finance disciplines. Indian schools did not perform quite so well in other fields such as Marketing and Entrepreneurship, however. Although competing with some of the top US and European schools, this may be a concern to the Deans of India�s biggest MBA providers. Biren Patel, Regional Director of QS, says: �Overall I think this report is an endorsement that Indian business schools are really getting their act together and are doing things right. It shows that global recruiters, not just local ones, are looking closely at Indian schools and graduates of those MBA programmes, and are seeing the quality and value of the education those schools provide.� Human Resources decision-makers have the most objective and informed opinions as to which are the �best� business schools, and this makes them ideal candidates to respond to such a survey. Nunzio Quacquarelli, Managing Director of QS and author of the report, says, �When HR managers choose from which business schools to recruit, they will draw from a wide range of information sources, evaluate their experience of MBA alumni currently working at the firm and canvass their opinions, assess the quality and efficiency of schools� career services and the reputation of the school, globally and locally, look beyond rankings and examine the facilities, the course content and the quality of students.� QS also offers a unique personalised ranking system called QS Search and Scorecard (www.topmba.com/scorecard) which allows MBA aspirants to select business schools according to their own preferred criteria, such as Return on Investment, School Specialization and Budget.

Controversial MBA employers use Corporate Social Responsibility as leverage for recruiting top talent

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 11:55:00 +0000

A recent survey of would-be MBA students showed that some of the more controversial industries that recruit business school graduates � such as tobacco, oil and defense � come low down the list of priorities for MBA aspirants. The service industries, particularly banking, finance and consulting, are still significantly more likely to attract a business school graduate.

This is not-news until you consider that, according to figures released in the QS International Recruiter Survey 2007, salaries for Master�s graduates in pharmaceuticals, energy and aerospace/defense pay salaries comparable with those in the service industries more on the traditional MBA career trajectory. This suggests that it is not low salaries that are keeping MBAs away.
Table 1.
Average Reported Salaries in EU and North America, at different levels of higher education

	4 yrs Exp	Masters	PhD	MBA
Consulting / Prof. Services	$72,129	$65,121	$77,415	$99,154
Media / Entertainment	$53,637	$46,927	$63,745	$97,295
Financial Services / Banking	$66,231	$62,937	$73,002	$93,515
Pharma. / Healthcare	$68,182	$71,287	$72,346	$89,671
Transportation	$50,805	$50,967	$53,933	$88,750
FMCG	$66,528	$45,286	$52,710	$87,329
Manufact. / Automotive	$64,447	$60,716	$70,466	$86,988
Aerospace /Defence	$62,500	$70,000	$97,500	$85,000
Energy	$64,351	$65,074	$70,761	$83,100
Telecoms / High Tech.	$57,500	$72,500	$75,000	$82,500
Public Sector / Non-profit	$66,478	$66,478	$73,188	$82,398
Retail	$56,326	$63,541	$72,388	$79,833

Source: QS International Recruiter Survey 2007 Employers in controversial industries are fighting the war for talent in an already highly competitive marketplace, where salaries, international opportunities and job satisfaction are high in several other competing sectors. Not only are they competing with all of those other major MBA-recruiting industries but many are up against a public perception of their industry that is not entirely favourable. �I looked at careers in the defense and oil industries, though I didn�t consider the tobacco industry for personal reasons,� says one MBA. �But at the time there was one news story after another, very negative ones, especially about the arms industry, not so much about oil. I just thought the lifestyle working for that industry would be problematic on some levels, even though salaries were competitive and the offers enticing.� Equally, though, there are those who find such industries uncontroversial. Another MBA, who works for Shell, spoke on condition of anonymity: �There is nothing particularly controversial about the oil industry. It is legal and everyone here is doing their very best to find ways of extracting oil in environmentally friendly ways and to give back to the communities they are in. In many cases oil companies are directly contributing to employment, taxes and increased affluence in third world countries.� The tobacco industry also finds itself in a difficult position. While most western countries are busy finding ways to help their populace stop smoking, and anti-smoking regulations have come into effect in almost all western nations, enticing educated people into the industry is no simple task. Michelle Healy, Regional Head of HR in Europe for British American Tobacco (BAT), the world�s second largest tobacco company, says: �Our industry is not a straightforward one. It is at times very controversial, with a lot of differing public opinion, which presents an additional challenge for us to communicate our vision, about what it is like to work for a tobacco company, that people understand our core strategy and our responsibility strategy and our role in global society." Indeed, many of the controversial employers, particularly those whose products have a direct and known impact on human health, such as tobacco, defense, pharmaceuticals and energy companies, embrace their controversial nature and see it is part of their mission to communicate what they see as common public misunderstandings. Mike Turner, CEO of BAE Systems, formerly British Aerospace and the UK�s largest defense manufacturer echoes BAT. �We recognize that ours is a controversial industry and respect the rights of individuals to have differing opinions to our own. But we often find that those opinions are not based on a full understanding of the issues. Through a program of engagement with serious stakeholders on our CR (Corporate Responsibility) agenda, we aim to better inform and provide a basis for intelligent discussion and debate.� In various guises, CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) or CR is beginning to form an essential part of many big business schools curricula. Most are embracing the movement towards increasing awareness of a company�s responsibilities to the communities and to the social network or environment that they operate in. The website Beyond Grey Pinstripes � Preparing MBAs for social and environmental stewardship provides a ranking of business schools around schools that provide courses featuring social and environmental content. Rich Leimsider, Director of the Center for Business Education at the Aspen Institute in New York, says: �We know that there are thoughtful people in the controversial industries such as the defense and the energy industries. These are people thinking about the impact their organizations have on communities and on the environment. Our hope is that people from the schools we review, with a strong social and environmental awareness, continue to go into those kind of industries.� The study, which lists the top 5 as Stanford in the USA, ESADE in Spain, York (Schulich) in Canada, ITESM (EGADE) in Mexico and Notre Dame (Mendoza) also in the USA, indicates the level of seriousness with which business schools are addressing the CSR issue. "In today's business climate, taking a leadership role on complex global issues reflects a commitment to expand the limits of current research and teaching," said Meghan Chapple, business education manager at the World Resources Institute. "Stanford is one of only six schools that have reached a new frontier of innovation on social and environmental issues in business. This institution is forging a path for tomorrow's business education that will account for the relationship between business, society, and the environment." Recruiters themselves are taking CSR seriously and are using this as a tool to attract talent. The argument is that, as companies on the more contentious side of the industry, often with a public image problem and more bad press than good, these companies arguably need CSR-savvy MBA graduates more than the others. It is here that such a graduate can make the biggest difference and to start imposing socially responsible leadership on the company. Rudi Kindts, Director of Human Resources at BAT, says: �I know employees for whom the decisive factor for joining the company has been its adherence to CSR principles. Corporate Social Responsibility is a core part of how we do business since we believe that because our products pose risks to health, so it is all the more important that our business is managed responsibly. I think there are not so many companies where you can get so close to making CSR part of your daily work regardless of what function or position you work for.� BAE Systems, which produces weapons for use against targets on land, sea and in the air, could not find anyone to comment about either their CSR or their recruitment policy of MBA graduates. However Corporate Responsibility is one of the main tabs on the BAE website which mentions the word �responsible� no fewer than six times in ten lines. Regardless of an individual�s opinion on the arms industry as a whole, it is clear that BAE Systems want us to believe they are CSR-minded. However the high salaries afforded to qualified people in the defense industry, particularly to PhDs, equally suggests that the most qualifies people are not exactly queuing round the block to work in companies whose business involves manufacturing arms used in conflicts they may not agree with. There is a lot of general opposition to the arms trade and there have been several high profile allegations of unethical practices and dealings with unethical regimes. Could it be that an MBA graduate weighs up her choices, looks at defense, oil and tobacco and decides that banking and consultancy, even with their own beds of roses, might be a preferable lifestyle choice after all?

Sports and Tourism Enthusiasts Turn to the MBA

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 11:52:00 +0000

So you want your MBA. You have a knack for business and want to enhance that skill to make the most of it. The thing is, you don�t just want to pursue a �regular� MBA, but instead something different, something more specialized. And by specialized, you don�t mean consulting or marketing. You share an interest with many soon-to-be MBAs � tourism or sports are your passion. The good news is that many business schools are taking this demand seriously. San Diego State University�s Sports Business Management MBA program is an excellent example, and not just because the school has partnered with the San Diego Padres. With 12 months classroom education and four to six months putting what you�ve learnt to practice through an internship, as a graduate of this MBA program you are set to join the ranks of sports managers, marketers, and team consultants, to name just a few of the possible career paths you may take. The University of Liverpool�s MBA (Football Industries) has been going strong for a decade. Many of its graduates have become executives within the football industry, particularly on the Marketing side of the goal post. According to the University of Liverpool, those with a background in finance, law, media, marketing, retail or IT will be best suited for a career in the football industries, that is, after completing an MBA. ESSEC�S Hospitality Management MBA, which can be taken over a one or two-year time period, depending on the student�s preference, �uniquely combines business school management education with an in-depth understanding of the hospitality sector.� The University of Gloucestershire and the University of Surrey, both in the UK, offer MBAs in Hospitality, as do numerous other business schools across the world � from Australia to California. If sports or tourism aren�t your passion, new MBA programs in fields like construction and even the wine industry are cropping up everywhere. Business schools are taking note that commerce needs to be conducted in a huge range of sectors, and luckily a great number of MBA hopefuls have interests in varied fields.

Q & A with women in senior management at Barclays Bank

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 11:42:00 +0000

Name: Serena Vaturi
Qualification: Bachelor Computer Science, MBA SDA Bocconi
School of Study: Universit� degli Studi di Milano
Year of Graduation: 1987, 1993
Current employment: Barclays Global Retail & Commercial Banking Italy IT & Operation Director. Responsible for efficient functioning of bank operations, ensuring coherence among process tools, organizational structure and service level.

1) What are the challenges of being a woman in a senior management position?

I believe women have innate strength in some key skills � such as empathy � required by leaders in today�s world-class companies. I feel that the most important area is people development: women generally find satisfaction and fulfilment in seeing their people grow, improve and develop managerial skills. Women are also usually firm believers in teamwork, which I believe is the best approach to guaranteeing more effectively problem-solving. I also believe that, in today�s competitive environment, lateral thinking and creative solutions are critical ingredients for success: our female intuition combined with our professional skills can yield optimal results! Last but not least, passion is a vital ingredient to achieve results, to build solid teams and to just have fun doing what you�re doing.

2) How did your MBA prepare you for your career in senior management?

I have a Bachelors degree in computer science, therefore the MBA has provided me with a greater knowledge and understanding of the other business areas like marketing and finance. In addition to this, I have acquired a solid background knowledge of a wide range of industries. Most notably, I believe an MBA helps to improve your decision-making skills, teaching you to combine analytical skills with judgement and organisational capabilities. Having said all this, I must also include that the MBA allows you the opportunity to build interesting and useful relationships.

3) Have you experienced a change in perception within the workforce surrounding women in senior management positions?

During the last few years, women in senior management positions have been strengthening their trust bond with colleagues, thanks to the Equality and Diversity programme promoted by John Varley, Barclays Group CEO. In particular, in Italy a lot of initiatives have been organized to support women�s professional growth, such as skills training, discussion groups and a female mentoring scheme, a programme that enables women to recognize other women in the company as mentors of their professional growth. The Equality and Diversity Programme is proving to be very successful within the whole company. As women today, we can aspire to contribute to Barclays� sustainable competitive advantage.

4) How do you maintain a balance between your senior management position and ensuring a work/life balance?

All the above mentioned are key points for a senior role, however, much depends on your partner and family. With their support, patience and appreciation for what you are doing, we can often find the right equilibrium for us as a family. Whenever that fails, a smile can go a long way!

5) How do women with MBAs ensure senior management positions are attainable?

An MBA provides a deeper understanding of management roles for both women and men. Therefore, it helps to achieve high-standard results in line with one of Barclays Guiding Principles, Best People. That means developing and upgrading talented colleagues (regardless of their gender) and differentiating rewards and doing what�s needed to ensure a leading position in the global financial services industry. My best advice on a winning formula would be to focus on priorities, execution and overall results.

New ranking system offers alternative as traditional business school tables decrease in importance, candidates say

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 12:05:00 +0000

London, September 2007

According to the 2007 QS TopMBA.com Applicant Survey, the world�s largest survey of potential business school applicants, static rankings systems are no longer a major factor behind a student�s choice of MBA program, slipping to 9th of 13 choices.

Benchmark: North America	North America	Latin America	Europe	UK	Asia
Career placement Record	1	3	3	3	3
Quality of Academic Staff	2	2	2	2	2
School Reputation	3	6	6	1	9
School Specialisation	4	4	5	10	5
Return on Investment	5	5	4	4	6
Student Alumni Profile	6	8	11	6	10
Accreditation Status	7	7	7	9	8
Financial Aid	8	1	1	7	1
Recent School Ranking	9	9	10	5	11
Teaching Style	10	10	9	8	7
Convenience of Location	11	13	13	13	13
Affordability	12	11	8	11	4
Course Length	13	12	12	12	12

To compensate for this decline, QS Quacquarelli Symonds, the company behind the World MBA Tour, has created an innovative personalized ranking system, QS Search & Scorecard, allowing candidates to emphasise their own school selection criteria.� School selection criteria are of varying importance to people so it follows that static rankings tables for business schools will not be appropriate to everyone,� says Nunzio Quacquarelli, director of the World MBA Tour and organiser of the research. �QS Search & Scorecard allows aspiring MBAs to personalize their business school search by selecting their own criteria. Many find programs that they may not have considered before and that are more appropriate for them.� The report�s co-author, Ross Geraghty, adds, �QS Search & Scorecard allows the candidate to formulate as many personalized rankings as they wish, and to narrow down their list when they see the same school names appearing several times.�The QS Applicant Survey received responses from 5,000 aspiring MBAs, who attended the Fall 2006 and Spring 2007 World MBA Tour. For the third year running, benchmarking the US responses as the world�s largest MBA market, traditional business school rankings slipped in importance. The most important factor was a school�s career placement record followed by quality of academic research and school reputation. Carlos Rodriguez used QS Search and Scorecard to narrow down his shortlist of potential business schools. �Scorecard has great content about business schools. The ROI section is a really good one, the strength by program also. Scorecard is really helpful in the way that all the information is organized. The big problem when you try to do rankings by yourself is that you have to read almost the entire web site of each university that you are interested and it becomes a never-ending task. Thanks to TopMBA.com I had the opportunity to discover many programs that I�d never heard of before.� QS Search and Scorecard uses information from over 280 top schools and allows potential students to �weight� key criteria such as return on investment, strength of faculty and diversity of student body to create a �personalised� ranking tailored to their own individual needs and abilities. Potential candidates visiting the QS World MBA Tour in 2007-08 can go online and trial TopMBA Scorecard 2007 at www.topmba.com.

- Ends -

For further information contact:

Ann Graham
PR & Marketing Coordinator
QS
Email: ann@qsnetwork.com
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7284 7235 (Direct)
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7284 7202 (Direct) OR Simona Bizzozero
Media Relations Manager
QS
Email: simona@qsnetwork.com
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7284 7248 (Direct)
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7284 7202 (Direct) Notes for the editor: The QS TopMBA International MBA Recruitment and Salary Report 2007 consists of an enormous amount of data in reader-friendly tables for media, recruiters, and anyone interested in business education. There is a great deal of information that can be accessed, by nation and by region and by job specification. QS provides guidance for higher education and career choices. With exclusive events, publications, research and interactive web tools, QS links undergraduate, graduate, MBA and executive communities around the world with recruiters and education providers. Our communities include: TopMBA.com,TopUniversities.com, Global-Workplace.com. The QS team of over 80 individuals from the four corners of the world represent the experience and goals of the achievers we aim to assist. They include internationally recognized experts in the higher and business education arena. QS operates globally from offices in London, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo, Beijing, Sydney, Washington DC, and Johannesburg.

New ranking system offers alternative as traditional business school tables decrease in importance, candidates say

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 12:05:00 +0000

Benchmark: North America	North America	Latin America	Europe	UK	Asia
Career placement Record	1	3	3	3	3
Quality of Academic Staff	2	2	2	2	2
School Reputation	3	6	6	1	9
School Specialisation	4	4	5	10	5
Return on Investment	5	5	4	4	6
Student Alumni Profile	6	8	11	6	10
Accreditation Status	7	7	7	9	8
Financial Aid	8	1	1	7	1
Recent School Ranking	9	9	10	5	11
Teaching Style	10	10	9	8	7
Convenience of Location	11	13	13	13	13
Affordability	12	11	8	11	4
Course Length	13	12	12	12	12

- Ends -

World's Most Exhaustive MBA Applicants Research Published

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 11:45:00 +0000

London, September 2007 The QS TopMBA.com Survey of MBA Applicant�s 2007, the most comprehensive survey of international trends among aspiring MBAs in the world has been published by Quacquarelli Symonds, organizers of the QS World MBA Tour. The survey analyzed responses from almost 5,000 prospective MBA applicants from 33 countries who attended the QS World MBA Tour in Fall 2006 and Spring 2007. It provides journalists, business schools and recruiters with a unique insight into the mindset of the international business leaders of the future.

Nunzio Quacquarelli, Managing Director of the QS World MBA Tour says, �This is the largest survey of the mindset and aspirations of MBA applicants ever conducted. The results provide detailed insight into the status, attitudes, goals and ambitions of MBA applicants worldwide, on an annual basis, and how they and the employment/education market for young professionals is changing. This allows valuable insight into the changing trends of worldwide MBA applicants.� The survey�s detailed findings, divided into categories such as course location & duration, finance options, gender, salary expectations and many more, are all cross-referenced against other criteria. Now it is possible for the first time to suggest, for example, which are the top five destinations preferred by Chinese MBA students, how Argentinians propose to fund their courses, what are the most important criteria to North Americans as opposed to Asians when choosing a business school and what are the a nationality�s salary expectations.

Example of findings:

The mean age of respondents has dropped from 28 in 2005 to 26.5

Women considering an MBA have less work experience than men
UK respondents head the salary table with France, USA and Germany next
Two-year courses are now more popular than one-year courses
Australia is now a more popular destination for MBAs than France

The Report�s co-author Ross Geraghty says, �We�ve condensed an enormous amount of data into reader-friendly tables and chosen those we think are the most relevant for the media, business schools, recruiters, and anyone interested in business education. However there is much more information that we can access, by nation, by region and even by city in the cases of those we visit as part of the QS World MBA Tour.

Example table: Gender Comparison

Years of Work Experience	0-3	4-6	7-9
Women	57.5%	24.3%	9.1%
Men	49%	27.3%	11%

Source: TopMBA.com Applicants Survey 2007

- Ends -

For further information please contact:

Notes for the editor:

About QS
QS provides guidance for higher education and career choices. With exclusive events, publications, research and interactive web tools, QS links undergraduate, graduate, MBA and executive communities around the world with recruiters and education providers. Our communities include: QS TopUniversities.com, QS TopMBA.com, QS Global Workplace.com. The QS team of over 80 individuals from the four corners of the world represent the experience and goals of the achievers we aim to assist. They include internationally recognized experts in the higher and business education arena. QS operates globally from offices in London, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo, Beijing, Sydney, Washington DC, and Johannesburg.

World's Most Exhaustive MBA Applicants Research Published

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 11:45:00 +0000

Example of findings:

The mean age of respondents has dropped from 28 in 2005 to 26.5

Women considering an MBA have less work experience than men
UK respondents head the salary table with France, USA and Germany next
Two-year courses are now more popular than one-year courses
Australia is now a more popular destination for MBAs than France

Example table: Gender Comparison

Years of Work Experience	0-3	4-6	7-9
Women	57.5%	24.3%	9.1%
Men	49%	27.3%	11%

Source: TopMBA.com Applicants Survey 2007

- Ends -

For further information please contact:

Notes for the editor:

World's Most Innovative Leadership Forums come to London

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 11:30:00 +0000

London, September 2007

The London date for the world�s most innovative Business Forums targeted at tackling diversity and issues has been announced. The QS Diversity in Leadership Forum and the QS Women in Leadership Forum are free, exclusive events, taking place in Central London on September 25th & 26th 2007.

These invitation-only events are the only one of its kind and brings together talented candidates from diverse ethnic backgrounds with companies and organistions in business, technology, finance, engineering and law. Candidates register for the event at www.qsforums.com.

Attendees can:
�   Meet representatives from the Cabinet Office
�   Network with recruiters from about 20 major companies including Barclays, Taylor Wessing and Bloomberg;
�   Attend free and valuable seminars on topics such as: Why I don�t Play Golf; Why Diversity Matters; Influence your way to the top, and many others;
�   Ask personalized and targeted questions of the country�s most professional recruiters.

Nunzio Quacquarelli, Managing Director of the QS Leadership Forums says, �The Leadership Career Forums are an excellent networking opportunity for women and minority groups in the UK to meet some of the nation�s leading blue-chip companies, government departments, life coaches and CV experts, all under one roof. Last year�s event was a resounding success and over 89% told us that the event was either �Very Useful� or �Extremely useful�.�

In order to keep the standard of attendees high, the events are �invitation only� and the venue will only be announced during the registration process. Those invited will be part of an elite group of highly motivated and ambitious people from all walks of life, who will show the world that one�s background or gender is no hindrance to reaching one�s professional potential.

Registering for the event is simple. Visit www.qsforums.com to be included in the selection process.

- Ends -

For further information contact: Marcos Angelides
Marketing & Logistics Co-ordinator
QS Forums
Email: marcos@qsnetwork.com
Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7284 7264 (Direct)
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7284 7201 (Direct) OR Ann Graham
PR & Marketing Coordinator
QS
Email: ann@qsnetwork.com
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7284 7235
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7284 7202

Notes for the editor:

World's Most Innovative Leadership Forums come to London

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 11:30:00 +0000

- Ends -

Notes for the editor:

Meeting people still the best way to discover international graduate schools

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 11:18:00 +0000

London, September 2007

The Internet certainly has its advantages for students seeking Masters and PhD degrees internationally, but nothing replaces good old-fashioned face-to-face contact, according to the London-based team behind the QS World Grad School Tour, the world�s largest series of international graduate school education fairs.

Peter MacDonald, Director of the QS World Grad School Tour elaborates: �We have conducted research that indicates that though the popularity of the Internet for basic research into graduate schools is now well established, the opportunity to meet universities face to face at education fairs, through representatives or alumni interviews and other kinds of presentations are just as important.�

The QS Graduate Applicant Research 2007 indicates that behind the use of the Internet as a research method, attending education fairs, meeting admissions directors, education agents and alumni still remain as amongst the most important ways of making a decision about where to study a graduate degree.

Kristen Williams, Executive Director of Graduate Admissions at George Washington University (GWU) in Washington DC attends education fairs all over the world: �As a university we still like to meet people and find out about their personality and whether they are a good fit academically and personally for our graduate programs. Attending education fairs and having alumni meet students is therefore still very important.�

The QS World Grad School Tour brings with it more than 40 US and international graduate schools Cass, Columbia, Kings College London, the University of Melbourne, Bocconi University to venues in North America, Asia, Europe and Latin America.

Full details of the QS World Grad School Tour North American events can be found at www.topuniversities.com/gradschool

- Ends -

For more information contact:

Ann Graham
PR & Marketing Coordinator
QS
Email: ann@qsnetwork.com
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7284 7235 (Direct)
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7284 7202 (Direct) OR Simona Bizzozero
Media Relations Manager,
QS
Email: simona@qsnetwork.com
Tel: +44 (0) 20 728 47248 (Direct)
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7284 7202 (Direct)

Notes for editors: The QS World Grad School Tour offers a unique opportunity for potential graduate candidates to meet admissions officers of the world�s top universities face-to-face at venues around the world. Candidates can register for free at www.topgraduate.com Now in its seventh year, the Tour will be visiting 40 cities in 26 different countries in the Fall 2007. QS provides guidance for higher education and career opportunities, supporting high achievers to progress towards their future goals. The QS team includes internationally recognized experts in the higher and business education arena and operates globally from offices in London, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo, Beijing, Sydney, Washington DC, and Johannesburg.

Meeting people still the best way to discover international graduate schools

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 11:18:00 +0000

- Ends -

For more information contact:

Admissions Directors of the World�s Leading Business Schools come to London

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 10:18:00 +0000

London, September 2007

The QS World MBA Tour, which visits 48 cities in 32 countries this Fall, is again bringing future MBAs what they want � the opportunity to meet face-to-face with 120 business school decision-makers from around the world.

Over 98% of prospective MBA students surveyed rated the QS World MBA Tour either �useful� or �very useful�, according to the 2007 QS Applicant Survey, and �meeting admission officers and alumni� was rated the second most important school selection criteria, ahead of �researching the school web site�, �rankings� and �school brochures�.

Competition for places at top business schools is escalating. Paul Danos, Dean of Tuck, observes: �Today� applications are up for over two-thirds of all business schools and the demand for graduating MBAs is through the roof.� To gain an edge, MBA hopefuls need to make an impression on MBA admissions officers and the QS World MBA Tour represents the most convenient step in the application process � the opportunity to ask intelligent, tailored questions on topics like personal fit, career opportunities, school specializations and financial aid, and to make an impression � face-to-face.

Peter Johnson, Director of Admissions at UC Berkeley�s Haas School of Business, agrees that first impressions can contribute greatly to an applicant�s success: �We look for candidates who can clearly articulate their post-MBA career goals, and have a good understanding of how our MBA program will help them to achieve those goals.� Following each fair, Johnson�s team follow up personally with candidates short-listed for their potential.

The Wharton School will attend all venues of the Tour in 2007. Thomas Caleel, Director of Admissions comments on the Tour: �We have met a large number of candidates suitable for The Wharton School.� During the nine years that Wharton has been attending the Tour, the percentage of international students at the school has increased from a low of 28% to a high of 38% of the class. Deise Leobet of Instituto de Empresa in Spain agrees: �We always attend the whole tour. The candidates are excellent and it�s a great way for them to learn about what makes IE different.�

Candidates can register online to attend the QS World MBA Tour by visiting: www.topmba.com

-Ends-

For more information contact:

Ann Graham
PR & Marketing Coordinator
QS
Email: ann@qsnetwork.com
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7284 7235 (Direct)
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7284 7202 (Direct)

OR

Simona Bizzozero
Media Relations Manager
QS
Email: simona@qsnetwork.com
Tel: +44 (0) 20 728 47248 (Direct)
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7284 7202 (Direct)

Notes for Editors:

Participants of the QS World MBA Tour, which visits 48 cities in 32 countries between 17 August and 11 December, 2007, include 17 of the top 20 US business schools and all of the leading European business schools. The US schools travelling with the Tour include: Berkeley, Chicago, Columbia, Cornell, Duke, Georgetown, Michigan, Tuck, UCLA and Wharton. From Europe, participants include SDA Bocconi from Italy, HEC and INSEAD from France, IESE, ESADE and IE from Spain, IMD from Switzerland, Rotterdam from the Netherlands and London Business School, Manchester, Bath, Cambridge, Cranfield, Imperial, Oxford and Warwick from the UK. At each location, leading local MBA providers also take part.

Admissions Directors of the World�s Leading Business Schools come to London

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 10:18:00 +0000

-Ends-

PO Intro

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 10:12:00 +0000

Intro Copy: Download print quality images, review our news and announcements, speeches and special...

QS Education Trust

Tue, 29 May 2007 18:20:00 +0000

QS Education Trust - birth of a non-profit movement for international education advancement QS Quacquarelli Symonds is dedicated to encouraging talented individuals to benefit from an international higher education and, to this end, has for many years provided funds towards educational scholarships for young people. To formalize this charitable commitment, in 2005, QS founded QS Education Trust - a non-profit trust company - with a prime objective of providing a conduit for these scholarships and with the mission of becoming the world�s largest independent community-based provider of postgraduate scholarships: QS Education Trust

provides and sources education scholarships for international students.
organises the QS Asia Pacific Professional Leaders in Education Conference, - the committee of which consists of a combination of senior university sector officers and senior staff of QS Quacquarelli Symonds.
promotes other philanthropic and social aspects of international education on a global scale and with a special focus on Asia.

QS pivotal role in bringing together officers from universities, graduate and business schools, government and NGOs from around the world makes it uniquely placed to foster an international education community with a global outlook and to encourage the provision of merit based scholarships, with a special focus on candidates from emerging markets.

Already a major source of scholarship with ambitions to be a world leader

All QS APPLE delegate fees are paid to QS Education Trust. Each year any surplus revenues are reserved for scholarships for students entering higher education outside their home country. The organising committee of QS APPLE is developing a role in the selection of the winners. Over the last four years 24 individuals from all over the world have benefited from these scholarships � 8 from Asia, 3 from Latin America, 8 from Europe and 5 from North America � to support their study at prestigious institutions such as Columbia, Stanford, IESE, University of Navarra, Universita Luigi Bocconi, Cambridge and others. QS Education Trust scholarship scheme is independent and free of any political allegiances, though we work closely with government ministries throughout Asia, Europe and the Americas. The scheme is community-based because any university can offer full or partial scholarships through QS Education Trust. The only condition is that the institution should travel on the QS World Grad School Tour or QS World MBA Tour, so that we can raise awareness through our in-country advertising and promotional campaigns. Schools already offering scholarships through the QS Education Trust community include:

Wharton, University of Pennsylvania - USA
University of Chicago - USA
Instituto de Empresa - Spain
Politecnico di Milano - Italy
University of Geneva - Switzerland
Ashridge Management School � UK
Nijenrode University � Netherlands

QS Scholarships for Leadership, Community Involvement, and Innovation.

A new set of business school scholarships, launched with awards worth around US$1.3 million in 2006, drew its first winners from countries as diverse as China, Malaysia, Turkey, Chile, Italy and the USA. The scholarships, available through the QS World MBA Tour, the largest international programme of business school information events, include awards from QS for Leadership and Community Involvement. The 2006 winner of the QS US$10,000 scholarship for Leadership was Tiffany Kanaga, a US citizen who attended the QS World MBA Tour Fair in London and who is now studying at Columbia Business School. The five winners of QS US$2,000 scholarships for Community Involvement in 2006 were:

Yue Tu from China
Saul Casadio from Italy
Sekar Shanmugan from Malaysia
Cenap Mert T Yerzioglu from Turkey
Eduardo Olivares from Chile.

�QS Scholarship winners are united by their demonstration of responsible leadership and community commitment, in very varied circumstances,� says Nunzio Quacquarelli, managing director of QS. �All of these young people have done something remarkable in their lives. Take, for example, Eduardo Olivares who worked as a counsellor in Chile helping people to escape severe poverty by setting up their own small businesses, and Yue Tu who cycled more than 2,500 miles across China to raise money for charity.� Also in 2006, the QS World Grad School Tour promoted a US$10,000 Scholarship for Innovation which will be awarded in June 2007.

Vertu Et Devoir Fund for Underprivileged Children in Asia

In 2007, QS Education Trust committed US$10,000 to a growing fund for underprivileged children and education related projects in Asia and is also working in partnership with it. Vertu Et Devoir was formed by former students of the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus, Secondary School in Singapore, an all-girls school founded by the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus Order (CIHJ) established in 1662 in France. Nuns and other religious and lay persons associated with the order have been involved in the education of children and the operation of orphanages around the world. Vertu Et Devoir is non-aligned and non-denominational. It supports underprivileged children and education related projects and institutions, commencing with projects in Asia and, thereafter, other parts of the world. Vertu Et Devoir is managed by volunteers working to raise funds from educational institutions, corporations and individuals and offering these funds to groups working in education and with children. QS will regularly publicize the work of Vertu Et Devoir and its supporters through its products. In return for a donation of US$2,000.00 or more, QS will publicize your support for Vertu Et Devoir and its work by displaying your institution�s logo in a special area of the following:

QS Top Grad School Guide 2008 edition
QS APPLE Website - www.qsapple.org (duration: 1 year from date of donation)
QS APPLE Program Book 2007
QS APPLE Marketing Materials 2007/8

Donations should be sent in as early as possible to take full advantage of QS
marketing activities. Additional information on Vertu Et Devoir is available upon request from
Mandy Mok - mm@qsnetwork.com - to whom pledges of donations should be sent. Wider objectives for Asian international education advancement As well as its current priorities in Conference organisation, Scholarships and the VEDF project, further Asia-focused objectives of this community are to:

encourage cooperation between Asian universities
grow the numbers of international students within Asia
enhance relationships and activities with universities outside Asia
develop pan-Asian quality standards in research, teaching and administration
support professional development of administrators within the Asian university sector
provide an effective voice on significant issues in international and Asian education
improve and promote best standards and practices in international and Asian education programming & administration
establish and maintain a professional network among international and Asian education leaders.

Tiffany Kananga

Tue, 29 May 2007 18:19:00 +0000

Q1 How did you become aware of the QS Scholarship opportunities?
I attended the MBA World Tour in New York in February 2005. I later visited the Tour�s website to learn more about the business school application process and discovered the QS Scholarship opportunities. Q2 How did you find the process of application, selection and award?
I found the process to be exceptionally simple and straightforward, from application to selection to award. I was very impressed with QS and their MBA scholarship process.

The QS Scholarship has helped enable me to shift my focus from how I would pay for my education to what I would do with it.

Q3 How did the award of this scholarship affect your choice of a program?
I had already committed to Columbia Business School at the time of the scholarship award. Q4 What has been the main benefit of receiving the award?
The QS Scholarship has helped enable me to shift my focus from how I would pay for my education to what I would do with it. I am very grateful to QS for helping me maximize the plethora of opportunities available to me at business school.

Q5 How will the completion of your graduate program affect your future and has winning the scholarship made a difference to your prospects?
Upon graduation I hope to return to investment banking. Being a QS Scholarship recipient is an honor that potential employers appreciate and value.

Q6 What are you doing at present?
I have completed the first year of my MBA program, and will spend the interim summer as an investment banking intern. Q7 What advice can you offer prospective graduate students in selecting their graduate program?
Prospective MBA students should reflect upon their strengths, weaknesses, and goals, and seek a program that matches their aspirations and interests while providing opportunity to grow.