MBA with African slant equips leaders
The postgraduate degree has proved its worth and is constantly revised to meet current demands
When it comes to an MBA, the world seems to be divided between those who have, wish they had, or plan to have an MBA, and the sceptics who question its value.
Since Harvard introduced the first MBA programme 108 years ago with a core of 33 students, the degree has grown in stature and popularity to become arguably the most wellknown and talked-about postgraduate degree in the world.
The MBA, however, has been repeatedly attacked for lacking relevance to modern business, for being too “academic”, too theoretical and divorced from real-life business practice and situations. In response to such criticism, many MBA programmes have evolved in an attempt to better suit their local context and the changing global business world. For an individual, from both a time and financial point of view, an MBA is costly. The toll on the personal life of an MBA student, whether full- or part-time, can be enormous, even life-changing.
Given the intensity and rigour of the course, it has proved its value as a springboard for millions of people wanting to advance their careers or be well equipped for leadership positions in all sectors.
In a 2012 Prospective MBA Student Survey Report by the networking company MBA Connect, 77% of respondents cited the nonfinancial returns of career advancement, either through a promotion or taking on greater responsibility at work, and 90% cited becoming a better and more effective leader. In another survey conducted by the United States-based Graduate Management Admission Council, almost 94% said they would still pursue a graduate management degree if they had to do it all over again.
The challenge for business schools is to ensure that they consistently meet the needs of the aspirant business leaders of the future. To do this, they need to keep pace with the business community, ensuring that, far from being a rarefied place of learning, they engage rigorously with the day’s economic, political and business issues and the movers and shakers. They need to keep pace with the evolving technological environment and the intensifying challenges of an economically unpredictable world.
Like many other MBA prog r a mme s , t h e Wi t s B u s i n e s s School’s (WBS) has been redesigned and shaped to better reflect our socioeconomic context. Africa has some of the most challenging and fastestgrowing economies in the world and what is required is a new generation of skilled managers and business leaders to oversee the development of these economies appropriately and effectively. The WBS is continually interrogating its function as a leading African academic institution delivering relevant and leadingedge content.
As a result, it has introduced two new areas of research into the curriculum this year through two new chairs — African philanthropy and the Telkom chair in digital business, both of which are a first for the continent.
The WBS has a sound reputation among the local and international business and academic communities. The programme has the highest number of graduating MBAs in Africa — more than 6 800 to date. Over the past 48 years, 3 500 MBA alumni have landed leadership positions in South Africa and around the world.
The WBS is accredited by a number of leading international organisations, including the Association of MBAs, and is listed as one of the top 100 best schools for executive education. It is the only African business school to be part of the Partnership in International Management, a student exchange programme for international study at more than 63 business schools around the world.
At the beginning of 2016, the WBS experienced an unprecedented number of admissions across most of its academic programmes, exceeding the target number by a comfortable margin.
The school believes this is down to newly designed curricula, a strong cohort of academics from around the world, most of whom have doctorates and significant business experience, and the overall learning experience gained at a school.
Its objective is to graduate leaders that not only have the technical and critical thinking skills needed to do business today, but also have a desire to make a difference.
Being accepted into an MBA course at the WBS requires a fouryear degree or three-year degree with a postgraduate diploma, at least three years’ post-university work experience, and either an a c c e p t a b l e g r a d u a t e ma n a g e - ment admission score, or suitable score from the school’s admissions test battery. The course attracts mature and resilient students with a strong desire to do something extraordinary.