本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛Below is some information about MBA in Canada. That some posts I wrote on a forum for some friends. I think they are also helpful for you to get some ideas about MBA programs in Canada.
*The reasons of getting an MBA.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
MBA is a very flexible degree, which can serve either broaden your knowledge of business or sharpen you in a specific field, such as finance or marketing.
When people think about getting an MBA, their reasons varied. Some people want to learn some management skills to become a middle level manager. Some may want to change their career. Some simply just think MBA is a good way of making big bucks.
The common reasons of being an MBA may include the following:
- Want to change career;
- Want to find a good job;
- Want to shift from individual contributor to managing others;
- Want to get skills to start one's own business;
- ( For our new immigrant ) Want a advance degree of North America to get a job in the new country;
- Want to do something useful ( or maybe challenging ) to kill the 3 years of time in Canada and maybe can use the degree later on ( maybe back to China or in US )
These are all good reasons to get an MBA, of course there may be thousands of others. So you must make sure what you want from an MBA.
For your personal case, there are some other important issues you should take into consideration. Do you have enough fund to support the MBA study ( typically it will cost you a lot of money )? Do you want to get the degree now or at some later time? etc..
* The MBA programs in Canada.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
There are about 20 to 30 MBA programs here in Canada. Below is a link to the web site of most of the programs. ( It is an old link. Some of them may not work, but most of them still work).
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/hub_pages/careers.shtml#MBA
The tuition fee varies from school to school. The the rule is simple, good MBA programs, such as Ivey and Queen's, ask for very high tuition fee, typically around $40k and same price to residence and non-residence. Other MBA programs' tuition fee are significantly lower, especially for residence. The fee for these programs usually below $8,000.
About the question whether it is easy to find a job for an MBA student, I don't think I am so qualified to answer this question ( maybe someone with an MBA degree can answer this question ) , cause I have not start my MBA study yet . The only thing I can tell you is from the statistics of MBA survey. From the MBA alumini survey, more than 90% of the MBA graduates got their job within 3 months ( impressive number, right? ) and the starting salary is not bad. You can see the data from the MBA rankings.
I will talk about the MBA rankings with you some later time.
* Rankings for Candadian MBA programs.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is a post that I have post on this forum before. I revise it and post it again here. Hope the information can help your MBA hunting.
There are 3 rankings ( anyone knows more? ) that available for Canadian MBA programs, the Canadian Business ranking, the Finacial Times ranking and the Business Week ranking . Below are the URLs for these rankings.
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/magazine_items/2000/oct30_00_MBAintro.shtml
http://career.ft.com/ft/gx.cgi/ftc?pagename=View&c=Article&cid=FT3OI56DAEC&live=true&tagid=IXLA49TZYBC
http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/00/#nonus
Below is my view of MBA rankings.
1. MBA ranking is just 1 critiria when you choose which MBA program is right for you. You should also look at some thing else, like the reputation of the University, the focus of each program, etc.
2. You should look for as many rankings as possible to get a whole picture of it. For example, Financial Times rankning, since it is a MBA ranking conducted by Financial Times magazine of UK, it is not well known in the US. But it is still a good reference, because it is a world wide MBA ranking. The rankings I found available for Canadian MBA programs are Financial Times, Canadian Business and Business Week.
3. Look at the detail ( every catagary ) in the rankings and find out which are important for you. For instance, I think the % of female students and faculty in Canadian Business ranking is not so important to me. If you get rid of this 2 catagary by yourself, the ranking will be a whole new story.
Below is a list of most recent rankings for MBA from those 3 rankings.
CANADIAN BUSINESS // Finacial Times // Business Week
1. Queens // Ivey of UWO (19) // Ivey (5 of top 7)
2. York York // York York (35) // U of T ( 7 of top 7)
3. UBC // Mcgill (37) // Belo// w are 2nd tier
4. Ivey // U of T (46) // Queen's
5. Simon Fraser // UBC (59) // York
6. Victoria // McMaster ( 80) // McGill
7. Manitoba // Queen's (87)
8. Wilfrid Laurier // Alberta(95)
9. Alberta // Concordia (98)
10. Dalhousie
After read these rankings, I think you will have some ideas on Canadian MBA programs (of course, also on how different the ranking are) .
* How MBA programs evaluate their candidates
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here I can just share some of my personal experiences with you.
I applied for the top 5 MBA programs in Canada. I got admission from 2 of them, rejected by 1 and I canceled 2. During my interaction with these programs, I feel Ivey of Western Ontario and Queen's are doing things in a very professional way. You can always get their feedback in time and they really process every application carefully and comprehensively.
I think, comparing to Ivey, U of T's MBA is more focus on applicant's academic background. I was rejected by it fairly quick, after 1 week they received all my application material. I was really upset at that time. But, when I thought about it afterward, I realised that the process that programs select their candidate is also the process you choose a program. If you are strong and still do not get admission from a certain program, that just means the program does not suit you well.
So, my suggestion is you'd better contact each program you want to apply in person by calling them, attending its seminar or attending an MBA forum. Make sure what their criteria are ( sometimes they are differnent from what are listed on the booklet or their website). By doing this, you can not only save some application fee, most importantly you get a better chance to find a program that suit you well.
* Job Hunting Statistics for MBA gradutes
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have heard from so many friends who are still in China said MBAs are hard to find a job in North America. I just wonder where is this rumor come from.
Since I have not start my MBA study yet ( it will begin this fall ), I can't tell you whether it is easy to find a job for an MBA. But the truth is:
1. From MBA statistics, over 90% of the MBA students find a job within 3 months. This figure maybe different from school to school, the top MBA programs have even better figure.
2. The competetion of entering an MBA program, especially the top ones became harder each year. The top programs can only admit 10%-20% of their applicants, this means MBA are getting hotter and hotter in Canada.
Besides, the tuition fee rose dramatically these years. For example, the tuition fee of York MBA was $8,000 3 years ago, $15,000 two years ago and $30,000 now.
But from another aspect, some industries, such as consulting and investment bank, have a special preference to MBA graduates, and these are all dream careers for even Canadians. From the history data, we can see that about 1/3 of the student went to consulting firms, another 1/3 entered investment bank and fiance.
----------------------------------------------------------------------更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net
*The reasons of getting an MBA.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
MBA is a very flexible degree, which can serve either broaden your knowledge of business or sharpen you in a specific field, such as finance or marketing.
When people think about getting an MBA, their reasons varied. Some people want to learn some management skills to become a middle level manager. Some may want to change their career. Some simply just think MBA is a good way of making big bucks.
The common reasons of being an MBA may include the following:
- Want to change career;
- Want to find a good job;
- Want to shift from individual contributor to managing others;
- Want to get skills to start one's own business;
- ( For our new immigrant ) Want a advance degree of North America to get a job in the new country;
- Want to do something useful ( or maybe challenging ) to kill the 3 years of time in Canada and maybe can use the degree later on ( maybe back to China or in US )
These are all good reasons to get an MBA, of course there may be thousands of others. So you must make sure what you want from an MBA.
For your personal case, there are some other important issues you should take into consideration. Do you have enough fund to support the MBA study ( typically it will cost you a lot of money )? Do you want to get the degree now or at some later time? etc..
* The MBA programs in Canada.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
There are about 20 to 30 MBA programs here in Canada. Below is a link to the web site of most of the programs. ( It is an old link. Some of them may not work, but most of them still work).
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/hub_pages/careers.shtml#MBA
The tuition fee varies from school to school. The the rule is simple, good MBA programs, such as Ivey and Queen's, ask for very high tuition fee, typically around $40k and same price to residence and non-residence. Other MBA programs' tuition fee are significantly lower, especially for residence. The fee for these programs usually below $8,000.
About the question whether it is easy to find a job for an MBA student, I don't think I am so qualified to answer this question ( maybe someone with an MBA degree can answer this question ) , cause I have not start my MBA study yet . The only thing I can tell you is from the statistics of MBA survey. From the MBA alumini survey, more than 90% of the MBA graduates got their job within 3 months ( impressive number, right? ) and the starting salary is not bad. You can see the data from the MBA rankings.
I will talk about the MBA rankings with you some later time.
* Rankings for Candadian MBA programs.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is a post that I have post on this forum before. I revise it and post it again here. Hope the information can help your MBA hunting.
There are 3 rankings ( anyone knows more? ) that available for Canadian MBA programs, the Canadian Business ranking, the Finacial Times ranking and the Business Week ranking . Below are the URLs for these rankings.
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/magazine_items/2000/oct30_00_MBAintro.shtml
http://career.ft.com/ft/gx.cgi/ftc?pagename=View&c=Article&cid=FT3OI56DAEC&live=true&tagid=IXLA49TZYBC
http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/00/#nonus
Below is my view of MBA rankings.
1. MBA ranking is just 1 critiria when you choose which MBA program is right for you. You should also look at some thing else, like the reputation of the University, the focus of each program, etc.
2. You should look for as many rankings as possible to get a whole picture of it. For example, Financial Times rankning, since it is a MBA ranking conducted by Financial Times magazine of UK, it is not well known in the US. But it is still a good reference, because it is a world wide MBA ranking. The rankings I found available for Canadian MBA programs are Financial Times, Canadian Business and Business Week.
3. Look at the detail ( every catagary ) in the rankings and find out which are important for you. For instance, I think the % of female students and faculty in Canadian Business ranking is not so important to me. If you get rid of this 2 catagary by yourself, the ranking will be a whole new story.
Below is a list of most recent rankings for MBA from those 3 rankings.
CANADIAN BUSINESS // Finacial Times // Business Week
1. Queens // Ivey of UWO (19) // Ivey (5 of top 7)
2. York York // York York (35) // U of T ( 7 of top 7)
3. UBC // Mcgill (37) // Belo// w are 2nd tier
4. Ivey // U of T (46) // Queen's
5. Simon Fraser // UBC (59) // York
6. Victoria // McMaster ( 80) // McGill
7. Manitoba // Queen's (87)
8. Wilfrid Laurier // Alberta(95)
9. Alberta // Concordia (98)
10. Dalhousie
After read these rankings, I think you will have some ideas on Canadian MBA programs (of course, also on how different the ranking are) .
* How MBA programs evaluate their candidates
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here I can just share some of my personal experiences with you.
I applied for the top 5 MBA programs in Canada. I got admission from 2 of them, rejected by 1 and I canceled 2. During my interaction with these programs, I feel Ivey of Western Ontario and Queen's are doing things in a very professional way. You can always get their feedback in time and they really process every application carefully and comprehensively.
I think, comparing to Ivey, U of T's MBA is more focus on applicant's academic background. I was rejected by it fairly quick, after 1 week they received all my application material. I was really upset at that time. But, when I thought about it afterward, I realised that the process that programs select their candidate is also the process you choose a program. If you are strong and still do not get admission from a certain program, that just means the program does not suit you well.
So, my suggestion is you'd better contact each program you want to apply in person by calling them, attending its seminar or attending an MBA forum. Make sure what their criteria are ( sometimes they are differnent from what are listed on the booklet or their website). By doing this, you can not only save some application fee, most importantly you get a better chance to find a program that suit you well.
* Job Hunting Statistics for MBA gradutes
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have heard from so many friends who are still in China said MBAs are hard to find a job in North America. I just wonder where is this rumor come from.
Since I have not start my MBA study yet ( it will begin this fall ), I can't tell you whether it is easy to find a job for an MBA. But the truth is:
1. From MBA statistics, over 90% of the MBA students find a job within 3 months. This figure maybe different from school to school, the top MBA programs have even better figure.
2. The competetion of entering an MBA program, especially the top ones became harder each year. The top programs can only admit 10%-20% of their applicants, this means MBA are getting hotter and hotter in Canada.
Besides, the tuition fee rose dramatically these years. For example, the tuition fee of York MBA was $8,000 3 years ago, $15,000 two years ago and $30,000 now.
But from another aspect, some industries, such as consulting and investment bank, have a special preference to MBA graduates, and these are all dream careers for even Canadians. From the history data, we can see that about 1/3 of the student went to consulting firms, another 1/3 entered investment bank and fiance.
----------------------------------------------------------------------更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net