Hi all, I am looking into doing an MBA at this year. Career wise it is what i need to move forward into a new career(from health sector and potentially moving out of this). My major concern is over what university to go with. I currently live and work in Limerick. The University of Limerick has an MBA programme, but how this qualification compare to others like Smurfit, Trinity or IMI for example? As it costs so much i want to make sure i make the best choice possible.
Any info or advice would be greatly appreciated.

This is a very reliable measure of the comparative standing of schools on a national basis (the scores don't make much sense on an international basis).
http://www.eduniversal-ranking.com/business-school-university-ranking-in-ireland.html

You really will be much better off making a big investment, because the difference in the outcomes from these programmes is very different. It's like hospitals: would you have the most important operation of your life in a hospital whose success rate was 124% of the average if you could go to Dublin and get a 400% better chance of success? Smurfitt is one of the top 100 MBAs in the world (http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/global-mba-rankings-2012).

The Limerick MBA is a part-time programme aimed at people in work already who are sponsored by their companies. There will be no serious careers support and employers will not be in the habit of recruiting MBAs from there.

Hi,

My name is Mark Cahill, I am a graduate of the University of Limerick MBA program and I graduated in 2008. I worked with Dell when I started my MBA and after year 1 I left Dell and have worked as a consultant since. I can't talk about the other MBA programs in Ireland, but the MBA in UL has accelerated my career and opened so many opportunities. It has also accelerated the careers of others in my class, quite a few have actually moved on from the companies they were with when they started their MBA. Not all of my class were sponsored by their employer and some were self-employed or entrepreneurs.

I funded my MBA and it was worth every cent.

The University of Limerick (as with most universities) has a careers division should you need this service.

I also deliver guest lectures on the MBA and other Business Masters degree programs in the field of Social Media Marketing which was based on my MBA Thesis.


Here is my Linkedin profile:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/markcahill

Please contact me should you have any questions.


Regards,
Mark.

I'd agree with Duncan that you'd be better off making a bigger investment: the return on investment on an internationally accredited MBA program is much better than something without accreditation, like the Limerick program.

I'd highly recommend seeking other options. The full-time program at Smurfit is the best in Ireland. However, if you can't take a year off of work, I'd look into Trinity's part-time option. They call it an EMBA but it's essentially just a part-time version of their full-time program, with classes on Monday and Tuesday evenings (and Saturday.) It would be a commitment (and something to discuss with your employer) in terms of the commute those two days a week but worth it in the long run.

Otherwise, IMI offers Henley's blended learning program through its campus - that's definitely worth checking out (or even just looking into online programs in general.)