Dear Reputation Indifferent:
Our focus at iMahal is on the US, UK, India, and Canada. Thus we can not appropriately address studies in Australia; however, we do believe that the information we offer here is applicable to Australia as well.
Let us first address the issues of the quality of the MBA degree. Graduates from top-tier MBA colleges earn twice as much or more on average upon graduation as those from poorly reputed colleges. The US employers offer the highest compensation in the world to MBA graduates. Some of the finest MBA schools are in the US. Only the London School of Business in the UK, and the University of Western Ontario and University of Toronto in Canada business schools even compare with the quality of education at the top MBA schools in the US. The cost of the MBA is very high. These costs range from $15,000 to $45,000 per year in the US and UK, and from Can$15,000 to Can$30,000 per year in Canada. Virtually no financial aid is available to foreign students. One can legitimately question if getting an MBA from a no-name college is worth the investment of time, money, and effort.
Now let us address the issue of staying in the country upon graduation. The first requirement is that you find a job with an employer who is willing to sponsor you for a work visa first and for the immigrant status later. The chances of finding a job upon graduation from a top-tier MBA school far exceed those of graduating from a no-name school. Even local students have a difficult time finding a job with an MBA from no-name schools, let alone foreign nationals. Of the three countries - USA, UK, and Canada - only the US offers a 12-month "training visa" to foreign students upon graduation. During this period, you are free to seek gainful employment in the US for a period of up to 12 month, subsequent to your graduation. This also allows you to pursue the bureaucratic immigration procedures to obtain the work visa and immigration status.
MBA programs in the US and Canada are of 2 year duration. Some European schools offer MBA programs that last only 1 year. In the US, you can utilize a part of the "training visa" for summer employment as well. MBA programs in three countries start in the August-September timeframe. The admission cycle begins almost one year earlier.
The decision of selecting the country and college is yours and yours alone. You have choices and thus you have to make the decision. There is no universal answer for what is right. You have the information to make decisions based on your own goals and ambitions, constraints, and interests.
You can find the
List of Business Schools in the US, the
List of Business Schools in the UK and the
List of Business Schools in Canada in the
iMahal Education Channel. You would be expected to take the GMAT (Graduate Management Aptitude Test), a standardized entrance exam. You can use the
iMahal College Finder to find colleges that best match your performance and personal needs.
Dear Mentor:
