MBA Online Course

Jason Julien, Trinidad & Tobago

The Edinburgh Business School MBA experience far exceeded my expectations. In deciding to pursue my postgraduate studies I researched the various MBA options available and confidently selected the EBS program because of its flexibility, reputation and recognition.

The quality of the teaching materials was first-class, as they were well written and effectively communicated the complex concepts. In addition to presenting theory and practice, the authors fostered critical thinking with their narrative and encouraged independent thought.

Further, the attractive selection of elective choices available allowed for a broader academic encounter. The range of electives truly enabled both specialization and an in-depth understanding of the functional areas of management. I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the advanced subjects in my particular area of interest and easily transferred this knowledge into the workplace.

I highly recommend the EBS MBA program for any experienced professional seeking to further equip themselves for the challenges of today’s dynamic and competitive world. It truly provides a competitive advantage.

Parham Baseghi, Iran

I majored in Aerospace Engineering at the Sharif University of Technology some years ago but I'm not the type of guy who enjoys the governmental system (all the renowned companies were governmental). So I decided to teach English at Cavendish College Institute in Iran. After a while I realized that I needed to make progress to use my full capacity; that was what drew me to take my MBA at EBS. Having the opportunity to study at the weekends suited my purposes and although I faced some problems in my second year of living in Dubai, I enjoyed the programme and it broadened my horizons. It gave me the vision to fulfil what I was thinking of for a long time. I'm now in the construction business, enjoying a good knowlege of business. Directly and indirectly, I'm benefiting from my knowlege.

I highly recommend taking part in this programme if you really think that you have higher needs in your life that are not satisfied yet.

Gehan Colliander, Sweden

The will to get the “bigger picture” is what drove me to pursuit an MBA program. Credibility and flexibility is what led me to Heriot-Watt, Edinburgh Business School.

It has been a tremendous experience in every sense of the word.

For a mother, wife, a career woman and a person, the journey could be describe in two words: challenging and rewarding.

It took me over 3 years to complete the program, and thanks to the exposure an MBA enrolment at such a distinguished university gave me, I managed to move to the Revenue Management unit of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Regional office in Stockholm, to hold the strategic position of Pricing manager, Denmark & Iceland.

And now that I have graduated, there are no limits...

I would like to thank Edinburgh Business School and its distinguished professors and authors for well structured, flexible, and high standard program.

Mark Sobczak, UK

Studying at Edinburgh Business School provided me with not only a memorable experience, or a network of people whom have proved invaluable since graduating, but also practical and powerful aspects of business.

The courses were very relevant, with material being practical and delivered at an appropriate level by experienced and recognized experts in their particular area.

The facilities provided a learning opportunity that was second to none, whilst allowing a casual, constructive sense of informality to allow myself and others to grow and develop our skills.

The Business School and, in particular, the MBA programme provided an opportunity to meet like-minded professionals, which has proved invaluable as we have progressed in each of our respective careers although still staying in touch.

Bethia Scott, Chile

When I was looking for an MBA I knew it had to be one that I could do from anywhere in the world and one that would allow me to study at my own pace. I am not typical of the average person who pursues their MBA. I am an expatriate wife who has lived in 5 countries on 4 continents. As our lives as expatriates will be coming to an end soon I wanted to update my qualifications to something I could use when we eventually settled down and I was living in a country which would allow me to work. Edinburgh Business School offered me the options I needed. I knew the reputation of the University as my husband had received his Civil Engineering degree from there. I sat all my exams at the British Council in downtown Santiago. It was a major shock to have to sit an exam after so many years out of university but they did become easier the further I was in the programme. The University does a good job of providing its students with access to the professors through their online administration board. They also provide access to past exams which is an excellent way of ensuring you are ready to answer the questions and that you know your course work. There is also a student internet site that allows you to interact with other students and ask questions or form online study groups which make you feel less isolated.

I felt a real sense of achievement on gaining my MBA. I am confident that when I do go and look for work that having an up-to-date MBA from Edinburgh Business School will go a long way in helping me find what I want.

Eric van Duijn, Switzerland

So you are curious, you would like to know more about ‘business’, about its mechanics and interconnections? You want to know about Finance, Accounting and Strategic Planning, not just the short version, but the full story? You are ambitious and willing to invest a lot of your energy and feel attracted by the fact that your goal – an MBA – is demanding to achieve?

In 1997 my answer to all these questions was yes. I was working for a very fine aviation company and I had an excellent job as First Officer. But I was looking for more. EBS had exactly what I needed: an ambitious, challenging road to a fully recognised Master in Business Administration. As my spare time was highly irregular, the possibility to study wherever I was suited me ideally. I had been shopping around for a while looking for distance learning degrees; I had been in contact with several institutions, with rather mixed results.

Edinburgh Business School stood out with its fair pricing policy, with the possibility to start with just one course (a modest risk if things would not work out according to my plan), and with high academic standards compared to other programmes.

After buying the first course I felt unsure: is this it? Where does the information provided in the text modules come from? Is this sound, how do they teach this at other universities? I checked out some other universities, bought some books and came to a simple conclusion rather quickly. What was presented by EBS was top quality. It not only represented state-of-the-art knowledge but even went on to teach it in a very professional way. Straightforward, the important concepts first, clear explanations. I started feeling sorry for the full-timers I had interviewed and enjoyed the freedom to choose my own path and pace at EBS.

Studying was tough, my time available to study decreased steadily as my employer kept me more and more busy. I aimed at ten hours per week on average, which was just about manageable with two kids, some military flying duties and my job as copilot. When the company I worked for called me for a transition course to captain I had to take a break with my MBA course. That promotion would not come for free and would demand full attention for quite some time, I knew. No problem with Edinburgh Business School: I waited half a year before buying my last two courses and graduated a year after becoming a captain.

The progress thereafter was fast, too fast maybe – but you would have to ask my family about that. Within a few years I got promoted to Fleet Chief, a management position responsible for the safe operation of our airplanes. The job put to test all contents of everything I had studied at Heriot-Watt: the company went into a steep nose-dive, restructured several times, went bankrupt. We had to draw up new plans for a restart, lay off employees, set up completely new operations and find ways of merging culturally with another company. As Fleet Chief I was in charge of some 240 employees at that time and I was doing everything to keep my fleet together. More restructuring, more lay-offs, then the sale of the enterprise. Finally the recovery and thanks to the general economic upturn in aviation some positive results. Every book on my shelf came in as a good guide, as a valuable source of sound information.

Would I do an EBS MBA again? Yes, I would! And today I would go to Heriot-Watt without hesitation. The programme is worth every minute of time invested. The concepts and contents are useable in industry – I can tell.

Olivier Bianchi, Canada

When I enrolled in the EBS MBA programme, I had a hectic schedule and was traveling extensively for business. I was in sales, working and living in Montreal (Canada) and wholesaling mutual funds for an investment firm. At that time I needed a MBA programme that had the flexibility and also the quality that I expected from the most reputable MBA programmes. My research led to me to the Edinburgh Business School.

My busy travel schedule prevented me from attending regular evening classes and carrying heavy books around. I therefore found the modular courses and the online help to be very convenient. I wrote three exams in Montreal. I then had the opportunity to move twice for professional reasons - when I moved to Toronto I was able to write my exams in Toronto and when I relocated to Paris (France) I wrote another 2 exams there. The transition was seamless. The support staff in Edinburgh was fantastic and made everything extremely easy. I wrote my final exam – Strategic Planning – back in Toronto. I graduated in 2003.

I also found the programme to be extremely well designed. It really helped me to cement my business knowledge and gave me the tools that I needed to analyse, assess and solve the business challenges that I face every day.

Nzuki Waita, USA

The choice to pursue the EBS MBA in 1997 was an easy one. At the time I was working for ITOCHU Corporation, one of the world’s largest Japanese trading houses, in their Nairobi Liaison Office. I was eager to commence my MBA studies but was finding it extremely difficult to locate an MBA programme that was flexible enough to accommodate my heavy travel schedule. My job required me to travel frequently throughout Africa, Japan and South East Asia. I loved my job and was not willing to take the time off to pursue the MBA on a full-time basis.

The EBS MBA proved to be a flexible, well-respected course with examination centres in all the cities I regularly travelled to. I particularly liked the fact that the EBS MBA is not for everybody. It requires a lot of self discipline, focus and determination to complete this intellectually demanding and arduous programme. I also loved the fact that I could immediately apply business concepts gleaned from the various courses to real-life work situations.

I am currently based in Washington DC working for a reputable international development consulting firm and I am still able to apply my valuable MBA skills on a daily basis. Thank you EBS!

Edwin Mungadzi, South Africa

It took me a long time (more than a year!) to decide on which MBA course to study. I eventually chose EBS for two main reasons:

1. The distance learning facility and flexibility that the programme offers its students.

2. The opportunity to study with an internationally recognized institution with impeccable standards that are formally recognized and whose course content is highly regarded for its quality and relevance by both current students and graduates.

I received my first course material in December 2004 and planned to complete the degree in as short a time as I could manage. My approach was to tackle a set of three modules at a time, starting with the ones that I was more comfortable with in order to gain confidence. The challenge was in managing the long hours of study required for success with a busy deadline-driven work schedule plus family time (wife and two kids aged 9 and 7). I committed to my study timetable, which entailed reducing my Saturday rounds of golf per month from the usual four to one and studying for at least 4 hours per day during weekdays (from 8pm, when my kids go to bed, to midnight).

It was a lot of hard work but I will forever be grateful that I’ve done it! The course has definitely sharpened my skills at work and this should catapult me to greater heights.

I would recommend this course to anyone who wants to study towards an outstanding and relevant MBA whilst in full-time employment.

Nivine Mohamed Rushdy, Egypt

In December 2002, I started a challenging educational journey with the Heriot-Watt MBA program. The journey took me into deep waters, experiencing the pain of despair and the joy of success.

The Heriot-Watt program offers a comprehensive syllabus that facilitated studying while working on a full-time basis. The strategic management edge gained through studying this MBA was applied directly to my work at Xceed Contact Center and helped me move to the reputable Kharafi Group after completion.

This program was in no way stress-free but I can comfortably say that it has addressed most of the challenges of the business world in an organized and comprehensive manner.

I would recommend this MBA program to those who wish to grow their career and enhance their prospects.

Tam Cho Yan Ide, Hong Kong

Working and studying simultaneously really is not an easy task! But it is crucial to enrich my knowledge for business development. I graduated from the Heriot-Watt University MBA in 2003.

Because I got my Bachelor Degree and Postgraduate Certificate in the technical field, I had no strong knowledge about business-related subjects; I think I made a good decision to study this MBA. Although I have been working in the sales and marketing field for more than ten years, this knowledge really played important role in helping me to analyse the raw data for accurate decision making.

The Heriot-Watt MBA is very flexible in the selection of courses as well as the duration for completion. I travel for business frequently, so distance learning is really suitable for me. I always studied when waiting for a flight in the airport, inside the train, subway, hotel room and public area. I called this "Discrete Time Multiplexing": combining separate pieces of time for studying. I found the textbook sufficient to understand the subject. My hardworking effort paid off and I finally got my MBA with distinction. This is really a fantastic experience.

Proneeta Roy, India

I have just completed the nine-paper MBA degree with EBS, and I can honestly say that it was a unique experience. After completing my Bachelors in Management Studies in India, I was looking for a course that would complement this background, and I was lucky to have found this. It suited my needs perfectly. I’ve done the course from one of the learning centres in London, and I’ve never regretted my decision. The University was very helpful whenever I required any assistance. They have a great set-up for their students. Always willing to answer any queries and completely accessible by e-mail, I never felt disadvantaged for not studying at the EBS campus myself. Also, it was nice to see what a keen interest they took in how the learning centres were ensuring quality education. We were regularly sent questionnaires to test the ability of professors, which shows the university’s genuine concern for the welfare of their students. Another thing that I found very satisfying was that I was able to choose the pace with which I could complete the course myself. There was never any rush or any strict schedule put in place by EBS.

The course itself was great. It was designed to suit students of any nationality. It was a comprehensive course, and I honestly feel that it has enhanced my knowledge of how organisations work. I have retained all the study material, which I find very useful whenever I need to refer back to them to understand the current situations I face at work. It has helped my professional life tremendously, in understanding the working of my organisation, its people, managing difficulties, understanding the language that different people from different departments speak, etc. This course is really something that I will always be proud of having completed, and I would recommend it without hesitation to anyone considering it.

Natalie Jones, Barbados

I chose this MBA programme based on three criteria: flexibility, popularity and range of programmes available. The specialism in HRM was perfect for me, and I liked that this programme did not require me to submit periodic assignments, only self-study and examinations as frequently as my work schedule would permit. This was important to me. I was able to schedule my exams according to how heavy my workload was and pace my personal study schedule to suit.

Good programme, great flexibility, with online and electronic study resources to help me along the way.

Sam Easaw, Malaysia

Without doubt, the MBA programme at Edinburgh Business School was the most stimulating educational and empowering experience. The programme has been rejuvenating, enlightening and invigorating. I gained specific tools for sharpening my organization's strategic focus, which made me think deeply about the impact of global competition, and how the lessons learned from other industries can be applied.

The human dimension was particularly valuable and helped me reflect on my role and my future career. The whole experience was first-rate, helping me to continuously learn new business skills, get a broader base of knowledge and wider issues of business responsibility so that I could help the company move forward on various initiatives

The strategic frameworks were very effective, and I will be able to use them to improve the execution of our strategy. I am now highly capable of delegating, coaching, effectively communicating to higher levels; I also have a better understanding of the various perspectives on organizational issues, and creating a work environment that is team-oriented with an immense amount of fun. In general, the MBA programme stimulated many new ideas and methodologies that will prove useful for both leadership and management roles.

The quality of the faculty is world-class. The programme blended real business cases with current research findings. My gain has been an awareness of the complexity of growing a business in revolutionary times. This programme addressed many issues that I am currently struggling with – rewards and recognition, strategy, power and organizational behavior – and provided courses of action.

The programme and instructors brought up stimulating issues on today's business and current business practices. I learned how 'the company culture' can greatly impact the execution and the performance of the company. I will definitely consider the MBA one of the best investments I have ever made.

Arkadiusz Kowalczyk, Poland

My adventure with the Edinburgh Business School MBA programme started a long time ago, in 1999. It was the year when the Internet bubble seemed to grow indefinitely and all the IT jobs seemed to be secure. And it was exactly the time when I started asking myself whether a pure IT education was going to be sufficient for me in the modern world. The answer was ‘no’.

I decided to investigate the local MBA market in Poland. All the programmes, even those offered by the top business schools in Warsaw, required attendance to lectures during evenings or over weekends. At that time I was travelling on business almost every week for a couple of days. I could not afford more time out. I was freshly married and my wife was expecting a baby. A friend of mine mentioned the EBS distance learning course being designed for people who wanted to study at their own pace. He mentioned that one needed to be very self-disciplined to be able to make it. Well, I decided I would be.

The first experience with Accounting was tough – the concepts, taught in English, were difficult, but as I continued reading, everything was becoming more and more logical. I signed for a session in June 2000 and when my son was born in April I realised that I could not cope with both tasks. I had to become a full-time daddy for a year. I attempted it again in June 2001 and I passed the exam, reaching 87 points. It encouraged me to go for more.

Over the course of the next 4 years I managed to keep my job, keep my wife, pass another 7 exams, welcome my daughter, born in 2002, to the world, build a family house and move in. At the end of the MBA course I was promoted to become an IT manager for the Europe, Middle East and Africa – a true success that would not have been possible without completing the EBS MBA.

Ehud Ben-David, Israel

My EBS MBA is one of the most effective and beneficial decisions I have ever made with regards to my studies and career.

The merits of the EBS MBA programme are split into two:, flexibility and educational value.

On the flexibility side, as a very busy professional travelling a lot, the programme has allowed me to complete it and graduate taking into account the busy schedule and demanding tasks of business life.

On the educational side it had contributed enormously to my knowledge and understanding of the different management aspects of business life, covering all the disciplines today’s managers are required to have in order to succeed and advance in their career, starting from marketing, financing, economics, organisational behaviour and so on.

The most important value of this programme is that it is not just a theoretical one, but actually very pragmatic and business-oriented. The materials in the programme have been implemented on a regular basis ever since.

John & Sylvia Lankhof, Germany

As a young married couple with international careers in a global company we needed a serious yet flexible MBA. The flexibility of the Heriot-Watt MBA was really put to the test for us when we moved in 2003, 3 years into our MBA together. We had started with the birth of our first son in 2000 as a husband and wife team on our MBA. When news came in 2003 that John had an opportunity to take an assignment in Japan we did not want to say no. We knew this might happen, and for this reason had opted for Heriot-Watt; we were doubly pleased to find out that the Examination Centre in Osaka would be but a 15-min JR ride from our home in Ashiya. Being able to continue so easily was doubly helpful for Sylvia as she took on a PR and Finance role at a local school, to test her hard-won new skills.

Heriot-Watt delivered serious study and global flexibility.

Ricardo Ortiz, Uruguay

Through its distance learning MBA programme, EBS has allowed me to pursue and finally achieve a coveted degree. The flexibility of the approach along with the user-friendly textbooks – written by authorities in each field – provide the student with the opportunity to set the most convenient working rhythm. This feature is especially relevant for those who are already working. The material covers modern subjects and provides up to date information making it exciting and challenging to move through the pages. A fine support and feedback system is available to the student, even on a personal basis. One can easily clarify facts by e-mail and also the friendly website is a clear advantage.

An MBA degree is necessary for career advancement and we can say that a degree from EBS carries a lot of prestige.

For people with a tight job schedule like myself I strongly recommend enrolling in EBS’s distance learning programmes.

Xuchen Zhang, China

On a normal Thursday in June 2005, I commenced my MBA study with EBS with zest. The straightforward style of EBS and Heriot Watt convinced me to set down my selection after nearly one year of business school investigation.

I enjoyed my study with EBS a lot, although it was hard for me to arrange my time due to a heavy load of daily work. The time spent with my dear classmates and absorbing knowledge from the courses encouraged me to success.

Being a middle manager, I have accumulated plenty of management experiences that exist like independent rings. The courses designed by EBS are bunching together those independent rings. Thus the knowledge, combined with my own experiences, forms a strong support helping me stand on a new height to view my work and even my life.

When I adapted what I learned from OB to view my staff, help my family members to analyse their puzzles, so-called troubles were readily resolved. My company is applying the procedures to strengthen risk control of projects. The Project Management course helped me to understand the core idea of those procedures. Well, I am ready to look up to another height, with the help of continuous study with EBS.

Peter Dowling, New Zealand

I began studying for my MBA with Edinburgh Business School shortly after the birth of my second child. The distance-learning option meant that I could study at home while still being available to help with the kids, and ensured that I wasn’t a stranger to them or my wife by the time I graduated. With the support of my company, I was able to study flexibly and apply my learnings to real situations as I went along.

Completing the degree equipped me with the tools to handle a broad range of business issues, and was an important factor in my moving to a senior management role within Reed. In addition to teaching me all-important lessons in people and organizational management, the MBA has enabled me to take a strategic view on where our business is now, and where we need to go. In particular the international marketing module that was one of my electives has helped in my close involvement in some major export initiatives.

Studying with Edinburgh Business School provided me with the knowledge and the confidence to take my career ahead, without sacrificing a work–life balance, and has left me with a desire to keep on learning and stepping up to new challenges.

Israel Mwanza, Zambia

For me studying the Heriot-Watt MBA was quite challenging but manageable. I had to strike a balance between my tight work schedule as someone responsible for financial reporting at Zambia National Commercial Bank Plc and finding time to study. I completed the MBA programme in 18 months. The materials are written by very renowned and experienced professors from American and European universities.

The MBA really equipped me with soft skills and moulded me into a more complete professional who can ably handle every aspect of business in any industry. I am so versatile that I can efficiently and effectively manage both front office and back office operations.

Armed with the Heriot-Watt MBA, one gains a greater insight of an integrated picture of business and how the various operational and support units complement each other to make an effective whole unit.

Heriot-Watt produces graduates who take a systematic approach to business issues in arriving at decisions rather than the reductionist approach or silo effect where managers make sub-optimal decisions that are not in the best interests of the organisation as whole.

Mohamed Adel Hassan, Saudi Arabia

It was a hard time for me to manage distance learning and my daily job requirements with long working hours. However, now after I have accomplished the nine MBA courses and graduated from EBS, I can feel how it was worth that time and more!

Every subject has contributed to a better understanding of my job as a sales manager.

Marketing, Strategic Planning and Consumer Behaviour gave me a clearer insight into company marketing and business strategy and the real needs of our customers.

Accounting and Finance enriched my personal finance decisions as well as the business ones.

Influence enabled me to better influence decisions to my favour at the office as well as in my family!

Organizational Behaviour made me better at building successful sales teams.

Project Management taught me how time, quality and cost are essential dimensions that a successful manager should master.

Economics enabled me to make a fortune from the stock market!

Deborah Thompson, UK

Carling don’t do MBAs, but if they did, I’m sure it would be like doing one with the Edinburgh Business School. Imagine deciding you want to do an MBA on a Monday, and sitting on your couch reading through your first module by Friday. By this stage you don’t have to have decided which of the nine modules you will be studying – you can have ordered just one, or all nine, or anything in between. The modules themselves are very readable and clear, with well-worked examples and test questions. You can study them at home, in the bath, on the train or even in your lunch hour. And boy, are they addictive! I found once I started I couldn’t put them down.

When you have read and understood them; and feel confident enough to prove it, you simply apply to sit the relevant paper – at a venue to suit you, in one of four “exam taking weeks” spread throughout the year. After that it’s back to studying for the next subject, whilst keeping one eye out for the postman to deliver those keenly anticipated results. You can take as many papers at one time as you wish and take as long as you need to prepare for them (within a maximum of seven years from registration.) When it’s all done and you have nine scores of 50% or above, you can head off to Edinburgh for a delightful ceremony and a few days with the parents! Oh, and when you get back to work, the prospects for promotion suddenly seem brighter, you can surreptitiously add those coveted three letters onto your business card, and ... well; mine’s a pint please barman! (Oh and by the way; it doesn’t do your marriage prospects any harm either!!)

Prem Prakash Sewpaul, Mauritius

I work at middle management level for the National Airline Company of my country. I am also occasionally involved with audio visual companies as a freelancer. Coupled with the demands of my personal life, the overriding consideration for my choice of an MBA programme was flexibility.

My concern was also to find an accredited Business School which would increase my employability internationally.

EBS was therefore an easy choice for me as it is a prestigious establishment which was offering the best distance learning solutions from my shortlist of available options. The way the programme is designed has enabled me to take 2 modules per semester and complete it in 2 and a half years.

The user friendliness of the course material also contributed to the relative ease with which I completed the programme. The quality and availability of material over the websites was also of a great help. The packs are comprehensive, well organised and uniform in their formatting, reducing the teething problems of adapting to the following module. I could therefore focus my efforts on studying rather than looking for syllabi and collecting information from a variety of sources. This of course does not exclude the need to carry out research and collect complementary information.

The courses' pertinence and applicability to work have considerably improved my performance at work as has been noted by my superiors.

The difficulty of studying part time and the main challenge of distance learning from my point of view is to keep the flame burning and find the motivation to conclude the programme once you have started. I would like to note the crucial role of the Glamis Business school in Mauritius, which has created a community of EBS students providing quality courses and support to students. I have been happy to feel part of the community of students which has gathered around the Glamis Business School and it was paradoxically almost heartbreaking to have completed the programme.

Alexandre Dziouba, Australia

Three years after migrating to Australia from Russia and settling down in my job as a metallurgical engineer in an automotive company I became interested in undertaking some business study.

Our training department has offered me a MBA distance learning program with Heriot-Watt University, as several managers from the company were already studying it at the time.

It took me four and a half years to complete nine courses, starting and completing a new course every six months.

The distance learning was a new concept for me and I found it completely different to the traditional university education as in my first university in Moscow.

However, in my situation only the distance learning could provide me with the combination of full time employment and study at a pace determined by me.

I found that all the courses were comprehensively prepared and excellently presented in the course textbooks.

As in any study, sitting an exam was a stressful experience every time and I found that the use of the past years examination papers was an essential tool for a successful preparation.

The highlight for me was a graduation ceremony in Edinburgh, which I attended at the end of 2000.

The MBA program has significantly broadened my knowledge and I do recommend it to anyone interested in high quality business studies.

Vibha Dineshkumar Shah, Kenya

The MBA with EBS is one of the most useful courses one can embark on. Personally I have enjoyed this course more than others that I have pursued. I found it very stimulating, challenging and satisfying.

When I graduated as a pharmacist from UWIST, Cardiff, Wales, I had not acquired any business training. The degree course had focused mainly on the drug aspects. Yet most pharmacists graduating at that time aspired to be small business owners.

When I commenced my ACCA course, I was happy to acquire the skills and abilities required by an accountant. However, in any business, an accountant – although an essential element of the human resource capital – has acumen in only one area of the business. For me, the MBA opened up the doors left closed by previous qualifications.

In the first place, it was very convenient to study at my own time and pace. I could manage my hectic schedule and yet fit in more than the 200 hours of study required by each module.

Secondly, each module is presented in a manner that is very easy to assimilate. In modern terms, the course is extremely ‘user-friendly’. I enjoyed tremendously each of the seven courses I studied, and the elective courses presented a wide choice to suit any personal aptitude. In fact, while studying some courses, I felt that I was actually sitting in a live class – for example, economics.

Furthermore, the courses I found difficult presented a challenge that one had to surmount. In fact, finance and financial risk management, which I found the most difficult, secured my best marks! I would recommend studying for the Master of Business Administration with Edinburgh Business School at Heriot-Watt University to anyone. It is simply the BEST!!

Fadi Moubarak, Lebanon

‘Efficient and great immediate impact to my career’: this is how I would summarize my experience and the programme. The way the courses are designed and delivered is extremely efficient for somebody who has a senior and very demanding business role and yet needs to develop their academic skills. The course design is fit for any kind of background and is very easy to understand because it is based on real-life examples.

Having an engineering background, and having reached a management role in my career, the EBS MBA programme offered me exactly what I needed to be able to take my career to the next level, and this has opened a range of new career paths that were not possible before.

Koh Tong Huat, Singapore

I decided in 1998 to undertake an MBA course after I was promoted and given marketing responsibilities – a significant departure from my professional training as a certified public accountant. Given that I had to travel regularly and extensively throughout Asia, I had to select an MBA programme that was not only widely recognised internationally but also had a flexible study schedule with a wide choice of core/specialised subjects that could be tailored to fill my knowledge/skills gap. I did fairly extensive research about the MBA programmes then available in Singapore and only the EBS MBA appeared to fully meet my selection criteria.

All the course materials were a joy to read – concise and written in a style that makes for easy comprehension by non-English native speakers like myself. The course was supplemented by tutorials conducted by the marketing agent in Singapore – useful for in-depth discussions and interaction with fellow coursemates. I was able to pass all the core/specialist subjects at the first attempt – a clear testimony to the depth and quality of the study materials.

There is no question that the EBS MBA has significantly broadened my knowledge/skills set and this, in my mind, has made me a better all-round manager – able to discharge my professional duties and responsibilities far better than I could have without this qualification.