In February, Joe Felice gave his wife and baby daughter a goodbye kiss at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and then boarded a flight to Amsterdam. The 38-year-old executive with Expedia.com, an online travel agency, settled in for a gruelling 13-hour trip, including two flights, a train and a metro ride. His final destination: business school at the Rotterdam School of Management (RSM) in the Netherlands.

I wanted to learn about doing business in other countries, says Felice, describing the reason behind his bi-monthly jaunts to modules or week-long courses in Rotterdam and other foreign cities. Studying in different countries is an aspect of his OneMBA programme, a collaborative effort between five business schools.

In between journeys, he completes school assignments and projects by corresponding electronically with classmates from Mexico to Hong Kong. Yet for all his trouble, hell collect a masters in business administration - a degree he could have picked up at many US universities - at the end of the two-year programme.

More : expatica.com

IIM-B submits Singapore proposal

A 4,700 sq ft of space on Singapores Mei Chin Road, classes held only in the evenings between 7 and 10 pm and just one faculty at any given time on campus.

Thats pretty much what Brand IIMs maiden global venture — IIM-Bs Singapore campus — proposes to have. While legal hurdles are being cleared for the overseas campus, IIM-B has submitted a detailed proposal to the HRD ministry on the Singapore initiative.

To begin with IIMB-S, as it will be called, will offer two programmes — a two-year part-time MBA and executive education for senior and middle-level executives. The part-time MBA will involve 12 to 15 modules, with classes held during evenings between 7 pm and 10 pm.

More: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

MBA continues to grow in stature

The MBA or Masters in Business Administration degree is now probably the world’s most popular and post-graduate qualification.

Every year, more than 100,000 students will invest time, effort and money to gain one. But, with the benefit of hindsight, do graduates really believe that it’s been worth all the effort?

According to a recent poll by the careers and education group, QS, the company behind the World MBA Tour, there are almost no MBAs who regret having taken the qualification, but a significant proportion wish they had approached their studies in a different way.

One of the most common regrets centres on a lack of planning for the programme and for the wider business school experience.

More: telegraph.co.uk

Thapar Institute introduces BE-MBA dual degree

The Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology (TIET) has introduced a five-year dual degree programme. This was communicated to mediapersons by TIET Director Dr SC Saxena. He said in the last few years the institute has started many new programmes, both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. The institute is starting a BE-MBA dual degree program from 2006-07.

The director said under the said programme a student would be able to simultaneously pursue a bachelors degree in engineering and a masters of business administration at the same time.

Dr Saxena said keeping in view the increase in the number of students, the institute has recently come up with two state-of-the-art hostels: one for boys (360 seats) and one for girls (311 seats) with many facilities.

More: cities.expressindia.com

IMT to open Campus in Dubai

The Institute of Management Technology (IMT) in Ghaziabad has announced the launch of its new campus at Dubai Knowledge Village.

The announcement was made at the Gulf Education and Training Exhibition (GETEX) thats taking place at the Dubai World Trade Center.

The Dubai campus will be its third campus and first overseas campus.

We are delighted to set up our campus in Dubai one of the worlds fastest-growing cities. The Institute will start classes from September and will initially offer only three courses, full-time MBA of two years, executive MBA of 18 months and part-time executive MBA of 18 months, said, MIT Director, B S Sahay in an interview for a Dubai based daily.

More: ibnlive.com

Hong Kong team wins WFU elevator competition

Students from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology took top honors in Wake Forest University’s annual MBA Elevator Competition for their plan for a device that distinguishes between acute bacterial or viral infections.

The Hong Kong team is the first international competitor to enter the seven-year-old event, during which budding entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to judges in a two-minute elevator ride meant to simulate the need to be clear and concise when dealing with investors.

A team from Wake Forest University also made the finals with its pitch for AudioFusion, which has a technology to retrain the brain to tune out tinnitus through a combination of sound therapy and directive counseling. Other finalists were from Harvard University and the University of Georgia.

More: bizjournals.com

Vietnam bank to fund MBA studies

The Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) announced Thursday that it will provide loans to students of all International MBA programs in Vietnam.

The joint stock bank said it would loan up to 80 percent of the fees or VND20 million (US$1,260), whichever was higher, at a preferential interest rate of 0.75 percent a month.

It also offers normal loans to these students backed by mortgages or salaries.

All the bank’s loans to MBA students are funded by the United States Agency for International Development, USAID.

Soure: thanhniennews.com