Miguel L’Heureux, Canadian, sitting in a sunshine classroom with a Mac on the desk was preparing a coming presentation on how to promote a Canadian home product among Alibaba online e-commerce eco-system. “When I was looking at my options in terms of my future development, I could have gone back to Canada but I decided actually to study Mandarin full time. I thought it would help me in my future. I want to, in the next twenty years, be in a very good position when it comes to working in a large multi-national company. And it's going to be a skill that will help me no matter where I am. Being in China itself is an adventure. It is very different from where I come from. And to me, having to adapt to that and having to embrace the culture, it really been revolutionary to my life.”
Heegol Lee, South Korean, executive secretary of CEO in LG Electronics told whichmba.net, “I love Shanghai because I think it is the future of China, it will help me and my son as well to see how China will develop in the future. Actually, my company gave me a chance with a sponsorship to come to Fudan and study. They actually gave me an option, whether it could be a school in the States or it could be a school in China. Because Shanghai is the center of Asian economy, I chose Shanghai and the company was very much supportive.”
Both of them were enrolled in Fudan Full time International MBA, which is co-operating with MIT Sloan Management School. Their peer who are coming from India chose Fudan as well. He thinks that today and the days to come, the limelight is getting shifted to the East.
As the Chinese economy continues to boom, an increasing number of university business students, both Chinese and foreign, are opting to seek a Master in Business Administration (MBA) at Universities within China to increase their knowledge beyond the bachelor's degree level.
"For my masters program I was in Beijing first, and then I came to Shanghai for the second half," said Valerie, an American student completing her MBA in China. Some of the MBA programs in China attract foreign students from many different countries studying not only business, but also Chinese language. These students are eager to study in China, known worldwide as the place to go for growing businesses.
Many job seekers hoping to climb the executive ladder are finding that they are more likely to be hired by multi-national firms, and their skills are more marketable, if they have an MBA listed on their resume.
"There is a demand for talented and qualified people who also know China in some way, "said Ying Zhao, Managing Editor of whichmba.net, who knows companies demand well. "The demand is not only coming from traditional MBA graduates hires as multinationals, investment banks and management consulting companies, but also coming from Chinese startups which are growing very fast."
Some of these MBA programs have connections to Shanghai, other courses are in Beijing, while still others are completed through online learning, with help from high speed internet connections.
With quite a few programs to choose from, overseas potential MBA students are challenged in trying to find out which business school is right for them. How long is each program? What city are they located in? And very importantly, how much do they cost?
Here is a look at some of the programs out there for those thinking about getting MBA's in Shanghai, as well as some of the other cities in China.
Full-time MBA English Programs in Shanghai
Program Name: Fudan University IMBA Program (MIT)
Location: Shanghai
Language: English
Program Detail: http://www.whichmba.net/business.do?actionId=BrowseProgrammeDetail&languageVersion=EN&programmeId=programme00100607
Tuition: RMB269,800
Length of program: 2 years
Additional Information: Fudan International MBA Program was launched in 1996 through collaboration between Fudan University School of Management and MIT Sloan School of Management. The program aims to cultivate professionals with an international perspective and entrepreneurial spirit, well-adjusted to the demands of economic globalization in China and the rest of the world. The Curriculum of the IMBA Program is jointly developed by the two schools, with the objective of equipping senior managers with both an international perspectives and an understanding of the Chinese economy and market.
Program Name: Fudan University S3 Asia MBA
Location: Shanghai, Seoul, Singapore
Language: English
Program Detail: http://www.whichmba.net/business.do?actionId=BrowseProgrammeDetail&languageVersion=EN&programmeId=programme00100611
Tuition: RMB299,800
Length of program: 2 years
Additional Information: The S3 University Alliance (S3 UA) was initiated by Fudan University, Korea University and National University of Singapore in May 2006. S3 Asia MBA was launched within S3 UA by School of Management at Fudan University, Business School at Korea University, and Business School at National University of Singapore in Feb.2008 with aims to meet the growing needs for global and Asian business leaders with global vision and insightful understanding on current economic change in Asia.
Program Name: Shanghai Jiao Tong University IMBA Program
Location: Shanghai
Language: English
Program Detail:http://www.whichmba.net/business.do?actionId=BrowseProgrammeDetail&languageVersion=EN&programmeId=programme00100702
Tuition: RMB268,000
Length of program: 2 years
Additional Information: Shanghai Jiao Tong University Antai College of Economics and Management is widely recognized as one of China's leading business colleges. Rated 34th among global MBA programs in 2018 by the Financial Times. Antai College of Economics and Management is the first college in China mainland to be triply accredited by Association of MBAs(AMBA), EQUIS, and AACSB. Antai is located in the heart of Shanghai, China undisputed business capital, and is consistently ranked among the Top 5 business schools in China. Antai offers both a full-time international MBA (IMBA), and a part-time MBA programs in Chinese.
Program Name: SJTU-MIT CLGO-China Leaders for Global Operations Program
Location: Shanghai
Language: English
Program Detail:
Tuition: RMB 298,000
Length of program: 2 years
Additional Information: Modeled after the highly successful "Leaders for Global Operations" program by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), China Leaders for Global Operations (CLGO), an international program jointly operated by Shanghai Jiao Tong University, MIT and many leading multinational companies, has been established to assist global companies in strategically building and retaining a team of leadership talent. CLGO offers China’s only dual-degree, graduate-level academic program. The CLGO program brings together the rigor and technical expertise of SJTU’s two engineering schools and the cutting-edge theory of the SJTU Antai College of Economics and Management, plus the real-world experience of the CLGO industry partners.
CLGO is focusing on developing a special type of leader for China, who can apply both managerial and engineering expertise to global manufacturing and operations for sustained profitability and success. Companies that join CLGO can use the program not only to recruit these high-potential leaders, but also to learn best practices that lead to sustainable talent development over the long-term.
Program Name: China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) MBA
Locations: Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen
Language: English
Program Detail:
Tuition: RMB408,000
Length of program: 18 months
Additional Information: To support China's economic development and to further China's integration into the world economy by preparing highly competent, internationally-oriented business leaders capable of working within the Chinese economic environment, while adapting to the driving forces of business globalization, international competition, and international co-operation. From the CEIBS mission statement. Associated Universities include the University of Navarra in Spain, the HEC School of Management in France, the University of Michigan in the USA, and the Otto Beisheim School of Management in Germany. The Financial Times ranked the CEIBS program as the 8th in the world in 2018.
Full-time MBA English Programs in Beijing
Program Name: BiMBA at Peking University Full Time MBA
Locations: Beijing, China
Language: English
Program Detail:
Tuition: RMB 260,000
Length of program: 1.5 years for full time students
Additional Information: Founded in 1998, Beijing International MBA at Peking University is the first foreign MBA program in Beijing formally approved by the Chinese and Peking University, represented by China Center for Economic Research (CCER) at Peking University. BiMBA was ranked top in "China's Most Valuable Business School" by Fortune (Chinese version) and Forbes (Chinese version). PKU-Vlerick MBA offers both full-time MBA and part-time MBA programmes since 2008. PKU-Vlerick MBA degree is granted by the Vlerick Business School, partner school of BiMBA, which belongs to a select group of business schools in the world that hold all 3 major international accreditation labels in the world of management education: EQUIS, AMBA and AACSB.
Program Name: CKGSB MBA, Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business
Location: Beijing
Language: English
Program Detail:
Tuition: RMB 409,000
Length of program: Approximately 14 months, full-time.
Additional Information: Founded by the Li Ka-shing Foundation, the CKGSB MBA Program is committed to providing a high quality business education to future business leaders both in the Greater China region and around the world. The MBA program is a 14-month full-time program which develops up-and-coming, ambitious professionals, turning them into global business leaders with a strong understanding of China and world economy by providing them with world class teaching, unrivaled alumni network, and unparalleled China insight.
Program Name: Tsinghua-MIT Global MBA, School of Economics and Management, Tsinghua University
Location: Beijing
Language: English
Program Detail:
Tuition: RMB 198,000
Length of program: 2 years
Additional Information: The Tsinghua MBA program aims to cultivate future management elite with international viewpoints and high-standard sense of social responsibility, who will make extraordinary contributions to both China and the world’s economic development. Associated with Northwestern University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and 48 other partner schools, it is one of the first economics and management schools in China.
Program Name: Guanghua MBA, Guanghua School of Management, Peking University
Locations: Beijing, Shenzhen
Language: English
Program Detail:
Tuition: RMB 188,000
Length of program: 2 years
Additional Information: Ranked as one of the most influential MBA programs in China by the World Executive Group. Guanghua's mission statement: To advance management knowledge and develop business leaders for China and the global society. The program has both full time and part time courses.
Full-time MBA English Programs in Guangzhou
Program Name: School of Business, Sun Yat-Sen University-Shidler College of Business, University of Hawaii MBA Program
Location: Guangzhou, Hawaii
Language: English
Program Detail:
Tuition: RMB180,000
Length of program: 18 months
Additional Information: The first 10 months course work will be conducted in Sun Yat-sen University, and another eight months course work will be conducted in University of Hawaii. After graduation, the students will be awarded an MBA degree from University of Hawaii and a course certificate from Sun Yat-sen University. A total number of US$300,000 scholarships are offered to USIMBA applicants every year.
For more information and ranking of Full-time MBA in China, please click here.
