What sets your MBA apart from other programmes?

 CUHK Business School launched first MBA program in Asia depuis 1966. We are also the first school to receive AACSB accreditation in Asia. While we adopt a world class top ranked US style MBA (30th Worldwide in Financial Times 2015), we have always built learning elements about Asia especially about China, hence we have more courses related to the Asia era and economic structure than probably any other school in Asia. We have devoted a few decades to develop course about China at the MBA level as well some curriculum and research which is highly related to the Asian Economy, such as about Family business, entrepreneurship, China Finance, Luxury brand management in Asia, etc. East meets West, be able to excel in the East and the West is our motto.

Why should prospective students choose to study in Asia, at your business school?

Asia economies is likely to dominate the world in 21st century, understanding Asian business based on a solid Western management education is a must for any young professionals , regardless of where they are from. In other Asian business schools, you will still learn the typical western management theories, strategies, Finance, marketing theories and models. In fact, this is more of less the same for the top 50 schools in the world. However, in our school, apart from the above, we have the Eastern side of the knowledge and network for our students.  They could learn more about management culture, style and way of doing business in the East.

Who is the ideal candidate for your MBA programme?

Our ideal candidate should be a genuine global leader and a global citizen. In the past, most MBA graduates in Asia will work for Multinational Companies, major western consulting firms, US and European Investment banks in Asia and Fortune 500 companies, helping them to expand business in Asia. We are no different, some of our senior alumni eventually made to the board in London, New York and Paris. This trend will still continue, however, the other important phenomenon is we will see a substantial number of MBA graduates in Asia joining the HQ of major Asian companies working from Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore and Tokyo, helping all these Asian companies to go through their rapid globalization until the time when they are as competitive as any Fortune 500 companies. Again, ability and potential to excel and lead in both contexts will be our ideal candidate.     

How is your business school programme different from that of European and American schools?

The core structure and curriculum are similar, as a top ranked business school; we all have to comply with AACSB standard. We have exchange programs with nearly 50 top business schools worldwide, most of them are within top 100, we have to be consistent in program design, structure and teaching process. The different part is those China and Asia unique courses that we put into the program, such as China Finance,  China Supply Chain management, luxury brand management in Asia, Entrepreneurship, Leadership in China, etc..

How diverse and international are your MBA cohorts?

We typically will have students coming from 18 to 20 countries, with diverse cultural, industrial and functional background. We have a broad choice of electives and concentrations; therefore it will attract a diverse group of students even though they are pursuing different kinds of direction and interest.

What is your programme’s ROI?

ROI for MBA should never be considered as a percentage or a number. It is about developing global leaders who are always ahead of the rest and the game; they will all have substantial return both from a monetary and non-monetary stand point. Our long history and 30000 alumni from our school tell it all.

Where does the faculty/teaching staff hail from?

CUHK Business School’s faculty consists of teachers from about 15 countries. We also focus on finding the appropriate industry practitioners to teach MBA courses, rather just focusing on pHD. For example, our main teacher in the Management consulting area is a former partner of BCG in Hong Kong. 

How does the curriculum adapt to the shifting world economy? Does it bother you that China’s economic growth appears to be slowing down? Should it worry your future MBA students?

There are definitely more emphasis on innovation, entrepreneurship, analytics and big data. We have also recently introduced MS in Business Analytics and set up Bid data research centres. Innovation, disruption and creativity would be the key to 21st century leadership and MBA graduates. We cannot just produce people who chase after bonus at i-banks, and there aren’t much out there. The so called China slow down does not affect us at all. Even China’s growth may have slowed a little bit, it is still stronger than most countries who are struggling with many other economic and political issues.  Pretty much all our 2015 graduates are employed.

Tell us about your alumni networks, how powerful are they? How do they benefit your graduates?

The CUHK Business School has over 30,000 alumni spread all over the world, with a majority of them in the Asia Pacific region. We engaged the recent alumni thru month newsletter, quarter events and regular events in different countries. They will form informal groups, and network to help the younger students. Some will serve as advisor to student clubs. Our senior alumni are senior/top management of MNCs or successful entrepreneurs who run listed companies or family business. They will normally serve as mentors to the new/current students and provide coaching/mentoring about industry knowledge, cultural differences in Asian business, network, helping them with job hunting, mock interviews etc. Many of them will offer internship to the current students and sometimes serve as an angel investor to start ups of our students as they see fit.