Application Deadlines
Round 1: September 21st, 2016
Round 2: January 4th, 2017
Round 3: February 24th, 2017
Round 4: April 21st, 2017

If you’re someone who is looking for a truly global MBA experience, London Business School has to be high up on the short list. First off, London is one of the world’s greatest cities, a European capital of both culture and business. Secondly, it’s a great jumping off point for all points Europe. And third, the school attracts an annual incoming class of about 400 MBA students from 59 nationalities who are globally minded by nature.

No matter where they hail from, most of them have either taken their undergraduate degrees from outside their native lands, accumulated significant work experience away from home, or traveled extensively around the world. From day one what they share in common is a profound interest in the true global economy and how one gets ahead in it.

The full-time program can be completed in as short as 15 months, by taking fewer electives, or as long as 21. Most opt for the full 21-month length of the program largely because they like it so much. The program begins in late August each year with orientation and a leadership module running throughout September. This is followed by three study periods: Autumn Term (October to December), Spring Term (January to March), and Summer Term (April to July).

Students learn chiefly through structured lectures and case discussions, sometimes alongside tutorials or workshops. Group work is also an essential part of all courses.

In the first year, students develop core knowledge and skills and gain a thorough grounding in business frameworks and general management concepts. They attend lectures in groups of approximately 75 and work in a study group of six or seven. At the end of the first year, students can put learning into practice through a range of options for summer break including summer internships.

During the second year in the program students choose between nine and 12 electives which include science, technology, and real estate electives at University College London. As part of the MBA curriculum, students also have the option of studying on international exchange for a term at one of more than 30 partner schools worldwide.

Every London Business School MBA must achieve competency in one language other than English by graduation.

Rankings Analysis: London Business School recaptured its number one standing in Poets&Quants’ 2012 ranking of the top 50 non-U.S. MBA programs, slipping ahead of last year’s best school INSEAD which fell into second place.

The most important ranking news for LBS this year occurred with the release of the 2012 Bloomberg BusinessWeek ranking of international schools. LBS moved into first place on the list, up from fifth place in 2010. The school leaped ahead of four higher-ranked rivals to steal the No. 1 spot from INSEAD, the French business school that had claimed the top spot for six of the 12 years that the magazine has been ranking international programs. LBS’s victory represents only the third changing-of-the-guard at the top of BusinessWeek’s international ranking and the first time ever that a U.K. school has topped the list. It’s the major reason why LBS moved into first place on the P&Q list.

The most surprising news on the rankings front came in 2012 when The Financial Times’ new global MBA ranking placed London Business School fourth best in the world behind Stanford, Harvard, and Wharton. London had been on top of the FT list for three consecutive years. The three-place decline, however, could largely be attributed to Europe’s economic troubles. “Average alumni salaries three years after graduation were lower in 2012 when compared with the previous year for 16 out of the 23 European schools listed. This compares with increases for 26 out of the 48 alumni groups from U.S.-based schools, ” the Financial Times reported.

Forbes, which ranks schools on the basis of return-on-investment, says that London is the best two-year international MBA program outside the U.S. LBS also retained its number three ranking in The Economist’s 2012 list among non-U.S. schools.

Source: poetsandquants.com