This is a transcript summary of the expert chat that TopMBA Scorecard runs at regular intervals throughout the year. This is a live expert chat that took place on 17 February 2007 with Mr Kirt Wood, director of marketing and admissions at RSM Erasmus University. Questions were sent in by respondents from all around the world.
Q: In your opinion what are the advantages and weaknesses that a 34-year-old senior executive could have in the application?
A: Likely, you will be looking at Executive MBA offerings rather than full-time MBA offerings. In any case, age and experience are what they are. You will clearly want to leverage your age and experience in an MBA program best able to increase your network and add the skills sets you feel are missing.
Likely, we would want to discuss your situation in closer detail and see if you are not, in fact, a candidate for the RSM OneMBA, a global MBA designed for managers with nine years of experience and average age of 37. I recommend you start with our website. This is where you can get all the goodies and general information. www.rsm.nl/mba
However, the Executive MBA is defined mainly by the profile of its candidates. They tend to be relatively confident in their experience and professional skills. Executive MBA's are not quite "career changers" the way FT candidates are (gross generalization here!). Executives are looking more to gain skills they may be missing, increasing their professional networks and repositioning themselves within their current companies.
There are two executive programs at RSM, both very strong and very well ranked in Europe. You will see both of these at the site I just gave you. Most interesting, also, is the OneMBA that is a consortium Executive Global MBA with UNC Chapel Hill, EGADE, Chinese University Hong Kong, RSM and the FGV in Brazil.
Q: I am a professional working in sales for six years. I am planning to have my MBA on marketing. When answering the essay questions, do you suggest that I should mainly emphasize my marketing abilities although I have no significant work on or should I only reply as is but mentioning that I want to specialize in marketing?
A: Best plan, reply to the question specifically. We need to know what you've already done and what your experience has been. Indicate that you intend to "career change" and that the marketing specialization interests you. Then, we will clearly understand your angle.
Q: Do your students stay in the Netherlands once they graduate or do they find jobs elsewhere? What percentage finds jobs outside the Netherlands?
A: We offer several MBA programs. Two of which are executives that draw from multinationals located in the Netherlands. So, a vast majority of our executives do, in fact, work in the Netherlands. However, only 50% of these executives come from the Netherlands.
The Netherlands offers tax breaks to multinationals and we find an abnormally high concentration of European and international company headquarters here. This is the basis of our corporate business school portfolio.
These companies recruit heavily and directly on our campus and, in many different sectors and industries.
For full time MBA participants, we have alumni working all over the world. Our brand visibility is, of course, very high in Europe but varies in the differing areas of the world. Ironically in Asia we have very strong brand recognition in many countries. In the US, moderate to high. So, we see alumni working, pretty much, wherever they choose globally.
Q: How do you explain the recent slip of RSM in the Financial Times rankings? Why do you not make efforts to attract more talented candidates by raising the GMAT barrier for example?
A: This is a complex question to answer. In short, there are many rankings, of which the Financial Times is one. It is important for international brand visibility, but may not necessarily be the ranking we feel best reflects our strengths. We are not pleased with the recent drop in the overall ranking, but are certainly not devastated. Several other top schools have dropped as well and we see some new schools on the scene.
Feel free to explore others, or view the "composite" ranking in the FT. Much more interesting, I think; and rankings are rankings. Often very political.
We are concerned of course about the elements of quality for admission to our program. GMAT is only one element. We value it mainly as an international standard and we look closely at the qualitative section because we have very rigorous academic standards (especially in the initial finance and accounting courses) and feel the test helpful to assure no dropouts and that people will keep up.
More critical to admissions, however, is motivation and coherence of career objectives. These never factor into rankings but remain key to the success of our alumni in the long run.
Q: I'm a student of the pharmacy faculty at Istanbul University. After I finish school I would like to attend a health MBA program. But the important thing is for me to attend this program after finishing school. Could you please advise me the best schools that offer a health MBA (for medicine and pharmacy students)?
A: I can only think of Vanderbilt University in the US (Tennessee) that runs both a health/medical MBA as well as one for lawyers. Very innovative. Check them out. This being said, why not explore a generalist MBA (of which most MBAs are one!) and then gear your projects and internships in the health sector?
Q: Is there any specific reason that you do not show the career statistics of RSM in your website? All schools do so.
A: It's in there. You missed it. Sorry it was so hard to find. Here's the link. If you have a problem...let me know. We also report our career stats on Business Week online (among other international guides)
http://www.rsm.nl/portal/page/portal/RSM2/companies/Searching%20for%20Ta...
Q: I intend to take a full-time MBA. Do you believe that this provides more intense learning or do you recommend the part time one?
A: I always favor the full time option mainly because it permits more self-exploration and personal and professional development. The investment of time is greater - the expense is not, necessarily. But MBAs always say they get SO MUCH out of the MBA experience this way.
The choice is not an easy one but will assuredly come to you if you ask the right questions and many of them.
Q: I am a consultant working with Oracle on the IT front with customers. I have about five years of experience in the IT industry and now I want to make a transition to finance. Can you please let me know the opportunities that RSM provides for this career shift?
A: We have many career changers. For IT to finance you would likely want to gear your summer projects and internship towards finance to gain experience and improve your CV. This is possible, but will involve a considerable amount of work on your part. Competition for finance positions is stiff but salaries are great if you land the right job.
Our network links will offer you finance opportunities in the Netherlands (maybe do your internship with ABN AMRO, Rabobank or ING) and then seek permanent positions post-MBA in the Netherlands or London. We strive very hard to keep good corporate relations with finance institutions and these can be found in our employment report online.
Q: What does the corporate world really want in an MBA student?
A: We hear tons about the ability to REALLY manage well in international teams. Mobility, flexibility, and an ability to critically analyze, make decisions and then, MOST important, implement (or deliver as the case may be). This, then, should be reflected in an MBA curriculum and structure of the program. We think we have a very innovative and competitive formula with respect to meeting corporate needs.
Q: Rankings don't reflect specific sustained competitive advantages. In your opinion, what are the specific strengths of RSM? What makes you different?
A: I see RSM as very unique in the world of MBA's. We are a boutique program with a very limited number of full time MBA's each year (110). We like this number. This gives us the chance to work VERY closely with our participants in their personal and professional development.
Check out our website for our innovative research and application to the MBA of social and corporate networks (Karen Stephenson) and PLD (Professional Leadership Development) (Dave Bond) and the work of curriculum integration and cultural issues (Bill Collins).
Q: Does RSM offer internships and if yes, what are the duration and the location of the offers? Is it limited to Netherlands only?
A: Of course. Best place to start with our many corporate and issue related scholarships would be at www.rsm.nl/mba. Then send on specifics to scholarships@rsm.nl
Q: Which is a better place to do an MBA - the UK or US - considering job prospects and every issue related with career growth?
A: Politely, neither. Why not explore the value-added of doing an MBA in Asia or Continental Europe, or Australia?
We are located in the Netherlands and think that we have a lot to offer, defining ourselves from both of these two parts of the world. We have, naturally, many alumni who have taken their careers to the US and UK post-MBA.
Q: I am a government employee working in the Washington DC area and I will start an Executive MBA program in April. I find myself (as usual) to be pretty young for the program I am about to go into. I am only 26 but most people in the program are 30+.
Here are my questions: What is your advice to someone who would like to make his MBA experience the most fulfilling?
Also, what types of applications of knowledge would you suggest in order to make the MBA a reality (not only from the admission stand point but from the perspective of applied and applicable knowledge)?
Answer: In all fairness you likely would not have been considered a candidate for our Executive MBA programs for the very reasons you cite. Now, you find yourself a bit in over your head.
I recommend you reassess your choice of MBA before it's too late. Perhaps you can defer for a year (or two?) and see if you can gain a bit more professional experience. You seem to lack a bit of confidence as well (perhaps not, I can't be sure) and this confidence is a clear differentiating factor between a full time and an executive MBA candidate.
Full time candidates have solid professional and personal experience but know full well their limitations in the workplace. This is why they've chosen to take a professional "break" and reinvest in themselves. Upon leaving the full time MBA they are solid, confident and ready to go!
Q: What is the policy of RSM regarding candidates with an unusual background (no business related background, for example natural sciences, psychology, history)? Do you encourage them to apply to RSM?
A: We are all about "TOTAL DIVERSITY". An MBA, if approached correctly, can help all kinds of people do all kinds of things. We've had musicians, artists, Olympic athletes, small -business owners, philosophers (ha!), and studio artists, lawyers, vets, and doctors. We welcome ALL types of people and a discussion about what you hope an MBA can do for you.
Q: How do I get a fully sponsored MBA course, being an international student?
A: Fully sponsored. I don't know of top MBAs that fully sponsor. RSM certainly does not. However, many MBAs offer scholarships that cover various parts of your MBA as well as tuition fees, but only a limited percentage.
You will have to explore your local sources of financing (including scholarships, grants and loans) as well as those of the MBA program you target. Having a strong application and profile will help open up opportunities with the MBA program. Most MBA's have a patchwork of financing sources to do their MBA.
Q: I want to start my MBA next year, should I still go through the application this year, can I defer and for how long?
A: Take your time. Fill out your application next year when it is best, complete and strongest! In the meantime you can be speaking with alumni and participants, building your MBA network and preparing to get the most of your MBA feeling good that you have done your homework and feeling that you've made the right choice. Then, deferral is unnecessary.
Q: I noticed in the Financial Times 2007 that RSM has an amazing rate of 99% of students employed within three months. How do you see the European job market, specifically Netherlands, for experienced MBA students above 34 years old?
A: The numbers speak for themselves. We've done very well and will likely see the results appear in the rankings three years from now.
Our alumni are working all over the world, but our links in the Netherlands, mainly with big multinationals is exceedingly developed and strong.
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