INSEAD, with campuses in France and Singapore, boasted a global MBA program well before many other top business schools began to establish satellites for their programs in regions around the world. Having now added a new Abu Dhabi module to its core MBA program, INSEAD is expanding its international reach even farther.
The Abu Dhabi location got its start as a research center in 2007 and grew into a full-fledged campus in 2010, offering executive education and executive MBA programs. As part of the new module rolled out this year, students can now spend a week in January, a week in February and a concluding weekend in March as part of the core MBA program, enjoying lectures, guest speakers, field trips to and group projects with local companies, alumni networking and visits to recruiters.
“The Abu Dhabi module was about how we could bring another location into our international mix in a decidedly intense MBA,” interim Dean Peter Zemsky explained in an email to the INSEAD community.
The group projects students participated in this inaugural run of the Abu Dhabi module provided hands-on work and an opportunity to get to know the companies and business climate of the region, Zemsky says. Seven student groups took part in projects ranging from opening a night club to investigating banking services for small- and medium-sized businesses.
“The projects are an opportunity to apply what we’ve learned and the experience is similar to consulting,” July ’13 student Lauren Abbott said. As part of the module’s culminating weekend, the students presented recommendations to their companies.
The Abu Dhabi module is currently only open to selected MBA students enrolled in the July classes of INSEAD’s 10-month MBA program. INSEAD also features exchange opportunities with the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and CEIBS in Shanghai. “INSEAD is the top international business school in my estimation and the Abu Dhabi module just extends that reputation,” Falco Javazi, another July ’13 participant, said.
Learn more about the experiences of INSEAD’s Abu Dhabi module participants here.
