Which MBA?: A Critical Guide to the World's Best MBAs (12th Edition) [Paperback]

George Bickerstaffe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2001

...Buy Which MBA, of course. The MBA is becoming a business necessity for anyone wanting to explore new career opportunities, accelerate personal development and increase their salary. Taking an MBA isn't a decision that anyone takes lightly; there is too much to consider. How am I going to finance it? how do I choose the right programme? how long will it take? where should I take it? etc. Which MBA? sets out to answer the questions that every prospective MBA student should ask, offering advice and guidance to individuals and organisations in assessing the opportunities available to them. This new edition also covers how business schools are keeping up to speed with the Internet revolution, including the many schools which are setting up incubator units to allow students to implement net companies as part of their course work.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"With more than 800 business schools in Europe and the US offering MBA programmes, the choice can be bewildering. How do you weigh up the reputation of the school, programme content and the method of delivery?" - The Times"

From the Back Cover

Revised and restructured, the twelfth edition of Which MBA? offers a fully comprehensive and authoritative guide to MBAs worldwide.

Based on extensive research by the Economist Intelligence Unit, including on-campus visits, advice, and quotes from current students or recently graduated alumni, this book presents an unbiased, detailed assessment of all the key issues to consider before embarking on an MBA.

It sets out to answer all the crucial questions asked by prospective MBA students and provides essential information, including:

* Coverage of the many ways of gaining an MBA, especially as the majority now involve part-time study and distance learning
* Entry requirements, application details, advice on references, GMAT, and interviews
* The huge impact that the Internet has had on all types of MBAs
* What to look for when choosing a school and how to get into the school of your choice
* Advice on how to finance your MBA, including availability of sponsorship and financial aid
* Comparative data on tuition fees and starting salaries of graduates
* How to use your MBA to get a better job

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Financial Times Management; 12th edition (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0273653393
• ISBN-13: 978-0273653394
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,882,235 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Most in-depth b-school guidebook I've seen, August 7, 2001

By 

r404k (Atlanta, GA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Which MBA?: A Critical Guide to the World's Best MBAs (12th Edition) (Paperback)

I'm wondering why nobody ever thought to write a b-school guide like The Fiske Guide to Colleges (or Insider's or Barrons top 50) with in-depth reviews of schools and programs? I'd like to know what students and alumni think of their professors, classmates, atmosphere, class asignments, internship opportunities, recruitment on campus, etc... Alas, no b-school guide I've seen provides all those insights about which you can read before shelling out $$$ to visit some of the schools you're interested in. Oh, well...

Mr. Bickerstaffe and the people from the Economist's Intelligence Unit summarize some of the interesting facts about programs, students, atmosphere, recruiting, location, job prospects, etc. for a good selection of U.S. and international b-schools. Each school is given about 2-3 pages. If you're looking to go to b-school outside of the U.S., this guide is absolutely indispensable. If you're living outside of the U.S. and want to got to a US b-school, you may want to check out another guide that will have more than the top 30-50 schools this guide has. If you're looking at top U.S. b-schools, this guide will provide you with more in-depth information about programs than any other b-school guide I've seen. It includes not only facts (which are available pretty much everywhere on the web), but distilled views and opinions of the real people who've at least visited (if not attended) the schools in question. Be warned, however, that quite a few U.S. b-schools are not included in this guide (most first- and second-tier schools are in there).

I should add a bit about the structure of this book. The first part (100 pages or so) gives advice about selecting a business school and application process. The second, more voluminous part is comprised of the actual school descriptions. The second part is divided into four sections: UK schools, rest of Europe schools, North American schools (not just the US schools, although they definitely predominate), and the rest of the world schools.

If there were more opinions from students, alumni, and recruiters included in this volume, I would have given it 5 stars. Given the competition, however, this is still the best b-school guide your money can buy (which is not necessarily to say that you should spend $...+ on a guidebook if the money is tight).

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not bad for a quick start, March 19, 2003

By 

"jjlegarda" (Spain) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Which MBA?: A critical guide to the world's best MBAs (14th Edition) (Paperback)

This book gives a lot of usefull information about a lot of MBA programs, but I found a lack of top ten U.S. schools. Some of them are missing, there is a huge gap between the best schools and those ranked below. (Some of them are ranked below #100).

I prefer this book than browsing the net because at a glance you can have interesting information of many, many MBA's and the information is well organized. GMAT means, ratio applications/accepted, strong subjects, deadlines, number or students, main features, % of student body, all the basic information to get to know what an MBA may you offer and wheter it's appealing depending on your targets.

The europen chapter is better than anyone. The U.S. chapter is not wide enough, but not bad.

If you are deciding to which MBA you should apply, this book will help you to shorten your starting list and focus on 10 to 12 MBA programs. Then which one to choose it's up to you

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good International, Bad USA, January 24, 2003

By 

John Stafford "johnstafford" (Bristol, RI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Which MBA?: A Critical Guide to the World's Best MBAs (13th Edition) (Paperback)

This series used to contain "raw comments" from students which I found very interesting. Now, Business Week is the only one that publishes them.

Interesting statistics, good summaries. But pretty duplicative of any other book, web site, WSJ, BW, etc.

Except for international. Very highly recommended if you're looking at international schools off the beaten path.

Getting long in the tooth.