Hello everybody,

My name is Cristóbal, Im a 29 years old industrial engineer from Chile, South America, and my plan is to apply in a full MBA 2021 program in UK, for 12 months.
Im not looking for staying in UK, after completing the program, since both my job and my girlfriend's are here in Chile, so basically my goals are to study an MBA to complement my studies, and to improve my backgrounds for my job, here in Chile, but also to have a good time living one year abroad, in a nice and fun city (We have automatically excluded studying in London, since its high cost of living).

So as you can see, my plans aren't to study in one of the top, most prestigious, universities in UK, and therefor im planning not to spend too much money on the tuition fees.
My budget for the MBA program is £ 15-20k.

Having said that, the results of my preliminary investigations are the following universities, for which I would appreciate very much if you could give me any feedback of them, and about the cities, whether if they are just fine or if the totally su*k:

1. University of West England - Bristol (£ 15k)
2. University of Bolton (£ 13k)
3. Nottingham Trent University (£ 18k)
4. University of Essex (£ 20k)
5. The University of Buckingham (£ 17k)
6. University of Brighton (£ 19k)
7. Cardiff Metropolitan University (£ 9k)
8. Leeds Becket University (£ 15k)
9. University of Suffolk (£ 16k)
10. Coventry University (£ 17k)
11. Birmingham City University (£ 15k)
12. Bornemouth University (£ 15k)
13. Anglia Ruskin University (£ 16k)
14. University of Westminster (£ 19k)

Of course I don't want to waste my money, and Im looking to have the best possible education, but also combining that with cost of living, cities attractions, etc.

Thanks in advance!
Best regards,
Cristóbal

I don't get this at all. Why the UK rather than somewhere you could afford a better education? Why an MBA at a below average school rather than an MSc at a better school? 

I don't get this at all. Why the UK rather than somewhere you could afford a better education? Why an MBA at a below average school rather than an MSc at a better school? 

If you are limited to that list, then perhaps Essex.  It's accredited and the parent university is legit / included in world university rankings (which might matter for international students).  

If you are limited to that list, then perhaps Essex.  It's accredited and the parent university is legit / included in world university rankings (which might matter for international students).  

Probably Southampton.  That £80k salary number they publish on their website looks impressive.  

Probably Southampton.  That £80k salary number they publish on their website looks impressive.  

I suggest you go to Linkedin, search for Southampton alumni in Chile (there are 116 of them on Linkedin).  They might be your best resource.  You can do the same for the other schools.  Unfortunately, if you want to make the best choice, there is no shortcut other than rankings (which are just starting points).  You would have to ask people who went through a similar experience to get an idea if a particular school fits you or not.      

Also, MBA salary data is a good proxy for the caliber of students in the program.  Higher salaries mean the school has, on average, better student quality.  Having interesting  classmates is always a good thing.  

Newcastle stands out to me on this list. QS and Economist rank might be useful. Focus on AMBA accreditation to avoid Freshers. 

If you want a year abroad, take a year abroad. I don't think any of these schools would have much impact in finding a job in Chile. 

A Spanish school like IESE, given that it has a partnership with PAD, might be a better choice in increasing the reach of your network. Or Cornell or Queen's, given their roots with the EMBA Americas program.