Sponsored by Imperial College Business School

In the past decade, Lauren Gerstner, who leads the global social team at software multinational Hewlett Packard, has moved countries approximately every year and a half. So often, in fact, that she says it is “impossible to comprehend staying in one place”.

So, when Gerstner decided to study for an MBA, after seven years of working for companies from Nokia to a small gaming start-up in Berlin, she knew it would have to be a program that wouldn’t clip her wings.

Rather than put her career on hold to study a traditional full-time course, Gerstner decided to join the growing ranks of MBA students choosing to fit in studies around work with a part-time program.

Self-described ‘global citizen’ Gerstner went out in search of her perfect MBA program which, she says, had to meet the following non-negotiable criteria: it had to be global, virtual in nature, and no longer than two years.

“A virtual program was an absolutely ‘must’ for me, because it allows for the consistency of formal learning, while not confining me to a campus setting,” she says.

The Global Online MBA at Imperial College Business School – with its award-winning remote learning platform The Hub gives students access to a bespoke range of interactive learning activities ticked all the boxes. The program was recently ranked third in the world in the QS Distance Online MBA Rankings 2018.

The course’s strong international reputation and a ‘focus on developing an entrepreneurial mindset’ also resonated with Gerstner, who first came across the institution when she spent a semester abroad as an undergrad in London while at the University of Wisconsin.

Fresh from completing her two-year Global Online MBA this Spring, Gerstner explains what the MBA has taught her, how she juggled time zones and managed to balance study with work, including through two job changes and relocations.

I knew the program would not only ground me in more formal business education, but also elevate me and open doors to larger career opportunities. I’m a massive proponent of career growth – of which, education is a fundamental enabling factor.

At the same time, I was also observing how the broader business world was aspiring to attract more women in leadership roles. I knew I wanted to chase every advantage I could to ensure those doors would be open to me.