Hi guys,

I got an offer from Strathclyde for the MBM course and I have to confirm in a week's time. There are a few questions I hope you guys can shed light on;

- is it hard to find a job in London with the brand name?

- if I am looking towards switching industries to consulting (especially strategy consulting), would this course/name of business school help? I looked at FT but it doesn't really give the levels of consulting companies graduates from the course goes into. I tried using Linkedin filtering as how Duncan recommended but the result contradicts with FT (too few working in consulting). I also tried asking the school but they didn't really give good answers.

- How are job prospects in Scotland?

I already have nearly 2 years of work experience and I think applying for more opportunities for 2017 MiM intake may be too late, and I am not sure if it is still worth doing MiM by then (I would have 3 yrs of experience by then and since I am changing industries, I would need to start as entry level again).

To take this offer or not is something I find really hard to decide on and I hope you can provide some advice on this. Many thanks!

This hinges on the sort of work you want. If strategy consulting is your goal, then you need better options. The MBM leads to good, but different, outcomes (as you clearly know).

There are very few roles in strategy consulting and it seems you may not be well positioned for them now. Why not take the MBM, get into some other work, and then move into strategy consulting after an MBA in when you are 29?

Hi Duncan,

Thanks for your insight and I agree with what you say. I think I will need more work experience and a good GMAT score to hopefully get into a good MBA and increase my chances in strategy consulting. I think my new question would be: would the MBM increase my chances in finding a job in London, or would I mostly be looking to work in Scotland? Does the MBM have a good reputation in UK? How are job prospects in Scotland?

Thank you!

Obviously the MBM makes it easier rather than harder: It's a degree, after all. Looking at LinkedIn, it seems that graduates are more likely to end up in London than Glasgow (but there is not much data to go on http://bit.ly/1TP3EWk). I don't think the MBM is well known outside the organisations who hire a lot of MiM students. Job prospects are good in Scotland and, as you might have seen, disposable income here is higher than in England.

Hi Duncan,

I hope you are well. I hope I can get some of your advice before your 9000th post!

I also received a MiM offer from Cranfield. I believe it would be a better choice over Strathclyde if I wanted to work in the consulting field (potentially finance as well if I can't get into consulting in the short run) and find a job in London? How would you say is Cranfield's reputation internationally? Is Cranfield strong in careers support? I find the internship project quite attractive. Would you say this is a good opportunity that I should take?

Thank you!

Strathclyde is a safe choice but Cranfield would be my recommendation, other things being equal. Both are well-known business schools, but Strathclyde's greater scale as a university gives it a brand advantage in Asian markets. Careers services at both schools are excellent.

Currently the job prospects in Scotland and in the UK are shite. Forget finding work. We shall see... I completed a MBM last June, after a long wait at Strathclyde - there are no jobs in Scotland, and l had during my 7 month search, after sending about 1000 online applications (I am not kidding) only 5 interviews, and 3 of these were "not interviews but to get to know you meetings, to see if you actually exist..." I get the impression that online job hunting is not what it seems to be.

Concerning the MBM from Strathclyde. Well its okay, its not the greatest degree. Its a prestigious business school, no doubt about it, and the University administrative staff are very helpful - l got a 1/2 tuition fee scholarship. Its a good university.

However the business school is VERY WEIRD and populated with WEIRDOS. All the staff there are WEIRD. I had to literally wait 2 years to be assigned a thesis advisor, and the Dutch thesis advisor who was supposed to help me with the thesis did nothing of the sort, in fact he did everything to undermine me and deny me the right to sit the thesis. My mum had to phone the school to allow me to sit the thesis. I did complete it, "passing by the skin of my teeth" (that is not proper English l know...).

When l entered there were some 180 students, and now this year there are less than 30. UK business schools are facing a temporary decline - its not because of BREXIT, international students don't like the UK. The Indian stampede and the Chinese steady stream - student wise is drying up. Partly because back home, there are no jobs for foreign graduates anymore. The market is saturated with talent. Other reasons being that many of these so called international students work part time and study part time with security firms and also spy on the students in the MBM program - especially int Indians who try to see what you know and then tell the fat secretaries on the fourth floor! Be careful what you say and do, they have all kinds of ways of catching you out for plagiarism!

To be honest its a good program. It has the right balance of subjects, and modules are up-to-date, skills wise. Its a good program hands down. Its very much a UK styled business program. That is not a bad thing. The teaching is okay, its quick, you have to attend all the lessons, and they compress courses into two week slots. That is good, with exams soon afterwards. Two major hurdles with the program is, one the "team work" issue, (avoid Indians as they are more apt at spying and informing the secretaries!) and two, the "know it alls" - people who have insight into the program from other international students who provide notes and thesis guidance to them. While the teaching is "good" its not great. The teachers leave out a lot of the skin and meat, while briefly teaching you the bones.

In my class l estimate that around 60% graduated with a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Management, and 40% with the Masters, so its very very competitive and difficult, as the program is high paced and you have no idea what is going on all the time. I had the luxury of having worked for my parents (who are completely bonkers - honestly they are, l love them but they are not normal), so l was already prepared for chaos, high tempo teams and debating what has to be done. And l had already completed a PGDip Business from an Australian uni. I don't come from a engineering background - they are the best cheaters. I come from a social science background.

Concerning work with an MBM - l came back to Cyprus and found out that many employers covet the MBM, and while they like it, nobody wants to hire you. Firms say l am too educated, and they would not like to employ me, however they are willing to take me on pro bono (for free) without registering me with the labor office or paying my social security, as a full time intern without pay. I have had the eyes of EY pop out here, and l got great emails and great career guidance - but no work. I have been looking for work since my under-graduate degree and l have had no luck. These are desperate times...

I forgot to add - the MBM is a AMBA accredited degree, which is a UK accreditation body.

UK MBAs are substantially different from US MBAs in content and philosophy.

Compared to my Australian PGDip Business, which was designed around Australian issues, the UK MBM was dedicated to UK / British type business problems. We on the MBM studied "EGG" a online financial company, while in PGDip Business we studied a New Zealand thermal underwear company - both were outsourcing goods and production in different ways, in different markets. So programs reflect their country of origin - that is the case with the MBM too. That is great if you come from the Far east, as you come with a new way of thinking about business. Most Far Eastern programs "emulate" the US MBA style. The MBM is NOT an MBA - it is a stepping stone toward the MBA.

The UK AMBA views the MBA as a practitioners degree, you practice what you do, and the MBM reflects that too - however its not a fully fledged MBA. If you do complete the degree, l would advise you to focus on things that suit your previous education, as that is where the MBM can complement your skillset in. I would also advise you not to jump into a MBA afterwards and focus on developing other skills. One of the French graduates, completing the M1 (BSc Hon) from Montpelier, who then completed the MBM at Strathclyde recently started to study for a PGCert in Creative writing - while he works in a international marketing role - it seems a strange combination, but its because a lot of his work, is to deal with specialized English speaking journalists and writers, who write articles for high end Millionaire magazines.

I think if you do go for it, you will not regret it.

The problem l forgot to mention is that team work - there are many team simulations don't work. They just don't work, because unlike a normal organization, where there is direct control from a line manager, that does not exist - instead there is gossip, secret back stabbing and spying going on in the teams. Many Indian students are not engaged in the team work, and are more interested in informing on you - as it was in my case. The teams suck - they are not representative of modern SME's or multi-nationals that adopt a matrix structure. That is one weakness in the program. Another weakness in the program is that there is no career development and advise which is a big issue nowadays, like l had with my PGDip in Business. I personally think that Strathclyde should push 4 modules online, in addition to their good MBM program, and once those modules are complete, and they have been graded - then you can join the program. However that would make the program more expensive, and longer than other competitor programs. I actually think the AMBA which has the idea that not to regulate and let schools self regulate programs they accredit is the way to go, should only offer their AMBA accreditation to the MBM program where 4 modules placed online, and 12 modules taught at the Uni. The reason why l believe this is a good thing, is that, it can allow schools to access students before they come, and they can better gauge their skills level, while also enhancing the scope of the program. Like teaching about employment relationships and career management, digital business, international trade law (not WTO rules) and maybe something else. Bob is my uncle! I also believe that pushing four modules online would prepare students to work independently and not depend on other team members to do their work for them (as was the case in Strathclyde), giving them the taste of what lies ahead. Many international students come to party and not study - this is not a party school, the work load is high...

While l can write a lot about this program, during the period l was there, all in all its a good program. Finding work with the MBM is a wholly different kettle of fish. The point l am trying to make is that the MBM is one stepping stone, and that continuous learning is now becoming the norm in companies. Today companies hire you for a short time, and you need to work to keep on building your skill-set.

[Edited by Jan Doedens on Jan 07, 2018]