Dear Duncan,
You are superb and really doing amazing work! Highly commendable indeed! You have been a great foreign education expert providing much great help to the needy. I have read many of the queries by the prospective students and your advices / valuable inputs to them.

I am from India, age 35 years, with ten plus years of managerial level corporate experience (includes Indian corporate and MNCs). With an engineering background I have also completed a full time post graduate diploma in management to change my domain into management as I like management and currently working into sales in India.

But now I am much keen to pursue a one year MBA / Masters abroad that would provide me an international exposure and mobility post the same. Due to a limited budget (@ USD 55,000 - 60,000 including tuition fees and living expenses partly from my personal savings and majorly educational loans), I am thinking of UK (seems affordable) or so but only from schools with a good reputation (as I can invest only one year and apart from English I don’t know any other international language). I have not yet given my GMAT/IELTS and have planned in the coming two months. Considering my profile I need your expert help on the following two of my confusions:

1) I want to pursue MBA specialization strategy or leadership (considering my experience and post MBA placement prospects of the school)? So which UK based B-Schools shall I target apart from Warwick and Manchester? Lancaster (I seem to like the study abroad time in St. Gallen) or Edinburgh (I seem to like the study abroad time in Kellogs, USA) or Cranfield or Strath or Bath or Birmingham?

2) I have also liked the contents of the Masters programme in Sustainability by HEC Paris. Is it a good bet for me to consider (website shows 100% placement prospects) as I also like working in / for social sector? (not knowing French language will be an obstacle for campus – placement for me?)

I really need your expert help / advice as I consider taking admission for 2016 intake and my next steps rely on your guidance totally and I am sure I will get it from you only.

Again, thanks for all your posts which have been really very helpful to me and I am sure to so many many many of them and it's a very superior help you are providing for people like us who are confused about admissions in global colleges. Thank you very much in advance.

The MBA here is normally not a degree with formal specialisations: you take electives, but most people don't get an MBA in x or y. Here, a specialised degree is an MSc. So, if you want an MBA pick the right MBA for the role you want, and don't pay attention to whether there are formal specialisations

If you want to work here, read:
How to use LinkedIn to find the best school www.find-mba.com/board/33571

Do you need to speak the local language? www.find-mba.com/board/34713

Best schools for international students' placement http://www.find-mba.com/board/41143

The international exchanges are not available to every admitted student.

I like the HEC programme, and mentioned it in a useful post here: http://www.influencerrelations.com/1329/is-sustainable-business-selfish-or-altruistic Of course you will really need to speak great French if you want to work in France. That 100% placement will not be 100% in France.

I would suggest honing your career goals: switching into the "management" domain is somewhat insubstantial -- you should focus instead on either (1) which industry you want to work in, and/or (2) which functional area you are interested in.

If you were looking to transition into something specialized, like supply chain management, then a specialized MSc might work.

Usually, Aa ranked MBA is usually the best choice, though, in terms of career progression and salary increase.

Dear Duncan,
Thank you very very much for your reply! I appreciate!!

(By specializations, I wanted to say/mean the same..about the electives in MBA)

Among the colleges I stated, the contents (core as well as electives) of Cranfield MBA seems to very much perfectly suits my needs and liking..its content is majorly focused on strategy and leadership.

1st choice) So Cranfield MBA is top on my preferred choice of list as it is also continuously listed in the last five years FT rankings (previous three years post MBA employed at 3 months percentage being - 90%, 87%, 100%). Renowned and also included in the list of colleges with best RoI by some surveys too.

2nd choice) Second is Warwick MBA..for it contents which meets my choice as well as continuously listed in the last five years FT rankings (previous three years post MBA employed at 3 months percentage being - 92%, 95%, 96%). Renowned and also included in the list of colleges with best RoI by some surveys too.

Can you please guide / help me to choose from the below five B-Schools (I assure you I wont ask more further questions on this):-

A) Strath MBA..has few subjects related to my liking (as per website- also has specialist MBA..with a specialism in Leadership Studies – with Leadership Trust. Studied on a flexible learning basis, this specialist MBA is designed to fit with participants’ demanding work responsibilities and is normally taken on a modular basis over three years, but can be done in two years or longer than three years, depending on your circumstances). Well known and also included in the list of colleges with best RoI by some surveys too.

But my worry with Strath - was not listed in FT 2012 rankings..and its previous three years post MBA employed at 3 months percentage being - 66%, 61%, 84% only.

B) Lancaster MBA...has few subjects related to my liking (also as per website- it ranks 1st in the world for corporate strategy). It is also continuously listed in the last years FT rankings (previous three years post MBA employed at 3 months percentage being - 95%, 98%, 93%). Not - included in the list of colleges with best RoI.

C) Bath MBA..has few subjects related to my liking.
My worry with Bath MBA - it was not listed in FT 2011 and 2012 rankings (but its previous three years post MBA employed at 3 months percentage being - 99%, 85%, 90%). is also included in the list of colleges with best RoI by some surveys too.

D) Birmingham MBA..has few subjects related to my liking.
My worry with Birmingham MBA - it was not listed in FT 2013 and 2014 rankings, its FT 2015 post MBA employed at 3 months percentage being - 73% only and also not- included in the list of colleges with best RoI by some surveys too.

E) Edinburgh MBA..has few subjects related to my liking.
My worry with Edinburgh MBA -- it was not listed in the last three years i.e.FT 2013, 2014 and 2015 rankings. But is included in the list of colleges with best RoI by some surveys.

Thank you very very very very much in advance!

Without your guidance, getting into foreign colleges is much tougher.

and that You also liked the HEC Programme (thank you) and even if I do not get placements with companies in France (as I don't know French), after reading through the article (thank you very much for the article link), I will try my best to apply as the programme is really nice and within my budget too. Thanks to you again!!

[Edited by mbaukmscfrance on Jul 15, 2015]

Read my profile page to find out about how to get additional help, if you need it. Otherwise, you have picked out some good programmes. Take a look at Best schools for international students' placement http://www.find-mba.com/board/41143

Thank you very much for your advice and efforts, Duncan! I look forward to your professional help.

@Maury
Sorry for thanking you late for your answer. As an option I had also thought about something specialized, like MSc SCM, but then I seem to like the MSc Sustainability from HEC, Paris much.

Hello @mbaukmscfrance. I'm applying to the Msc Sustainability from HEC for the 2016-2017 term, are you applying for 2016 as well or are you currently taking the Msc? Did you receive any further opinions on the programme?

@ Alicia,
Currently I am concentrating only on GMAT and want to give my best shot and get into top B School to pursue my MBA (preferably Cranfield/Warwick). I have not applied for HEC MSc nor I have received any further opinions apart from the link (the best one) provided by Duncan.

Cranfield versus Warwick is a really hard choice now. The Cranfield programme is better designed, but I think Warwick's lead is hard to break unless Cranfield does something really strategic.

Ohhh. is that so!!..its getting bit tougher to decide. Warwick is leading...I thought it might be Cranfield..but Duncan I hope then Cranfield is good too as a second preference?

Personally, I would pick Cranfield because of the more extensive four-term structure and Cranfield's nature as a graduate university means that MBAs can fit in better and make more of the experience. I don't think either is a bad choice.

Hi Duncan, Thank you so much for your above reply about Cranfield MBA. I loved the Cranfield's program design too. But without GMAT, nothing will fall in place perfectly. Hoping for the best!

[Edited by mbaukmscfrance on Dec 07, 2015]

Personally, I feel the Warwick MBA is held back by the need to keep the full-time and distance-learning courses on the same structure. Too much individual assessment, too little team work and too many block week courses in contrast with Cranfield. The one advantage at Warwick (beyond the sense of greater hunger and individualism at Warwick) is PIM membership, meaning that you could perhaps add an international exchange semester on to the end of your degree. That seems very tentative on their website but it might swing things for me.

Its delayed from me, but still thanks Duncan for your reply!!

Dear Duncan and friends,
In the edu fairs that I attended I am advised to pursue MSc Digital Marketing in UCD (as it is one of my preferred school) since it is a very good program with very good placement opportunities and I cant meet their GMAT requirements for MBA. I am confident with The Bath MBA and Univ of Birmingham MBA application, but in event by any minute chance if I cant make it, then shall I apply to MSc Digital Marketing to be on safer side?

I know nothing about that programme but, considering UCD's weak employment stats for the MBA and MiM I suggest you validate the claim about placement.

Yes Duncan! Thanks much. Also if its about MSc then should I try in Cranfield or Warwick or HEC or any other top school?

You are looking at such different options that I think you need to refocus on your goals.