Australian Business Schools Remain Popular for International Students

Australian schools are making business educators worldwide sit up and take notice. Ross Geraghty tries to find out why.

According to the most recent QS TopMBA Applicant Survey, the world’s most exhaustive study of MBA candidates worldwide, Australia has cemented its position as a top six MBA study destination. It competes with more established MBA providers Switzerland and Spain, particularly for the vastly increasing number of Asian students for whom Australia is closer geographically and culturally. Over one in four respondents to the survey said they would consider studying their MBA there.

On the cusp of both West and East, due to its long European heritage and its location, Australia, is uniquely placed, according to Prof. John Seybolt, Dean of Melbourne Business School (MBS). “It is a bridge between both cultures, perfect for students seeking exposure to the emerging Asia-Pacific markets in the comfort of an international English speaking country.”

However, Australia suffered something of an identity crisis during the boom years of the Asian economy, reluctant to choose either independence, its perception as a European outpost or as a fully-fledged part of Asia. Asian politicians sensed this. Malaysia’s outspoken Prime Minister Mahathir voiced concerns in 2000. "If Australia wants to be a friend to Asia, it should stop behaving as if it is there to teach us how to run our country. [Australia] stands out like a sore thumb trying to impose its European values in Asia as if it were the good old days."

Modern Australia has seen influxes of immigrants from Europe since the early 19th century. More recently, businesses have recognized its potential as a major Asia-Pacific player whose future is inextricably tied with the booming markets of that region. Australia, it seems, intends to profit from cultural and economic involvement with both halves of the northern hemisphere.

Sydney, Melbourne and, increasingly, Brisbane are home to a number of regional corporate headquarters. These companies value the high level of education, quality of living and cost-effectiveness that Australia offers. Little wonder that the number of Australian business schools benefiting from their proximity to the Asia Pacific region, and gearing their courses towards those markets, has radically increased.

Sharyn Roberts, director of the MBA program at the Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM), voices the schools’ thinking. “Within the next 20 years the world’s two major economies will be China and India and it makes sense that the focus of learning in business and management remains international but with a specific focus on the Asia region.”

Australian MBA courses have developed close Asian links, and most encourage their students to take electives or exchanges there. AGSM and MGSM (Macquarie) both send students regularly to campuses in Hong Kong and Singapore while MBS (Melbourne) students visit China, as well as Europe and the US in their exchange programs.

The burgeoning reputations of Australian business schools have led to a progressive increase in applications from European MBA aspirants that previously may have focused on second-tier European or American schools. Clare Cunliffe, a British MBS alum, chose Australia because, “I had family there and I already knew that Australia was a fabulous place to visit. But the more I researched it, I learned of the variety of business schools, was impressed by the faculty and facilities and made my choice from there.”

“We are finding from Europe as well as South America,” says Prof. Glynn, “some students who are not interested in the USA due to factors as diverse as American activities in Iraq through to activities of American multi-nationals. Australia is seen as offering a comparable educational experience to the UK, Canada or the US.”

In the US the Bush administration’s decision to decrease the number of visas for international students in 2003 has benefited Australian b-schools. “The Bush phenomenon,” as Prof. Seybolt calls it, “has not only made it harder for international students to get into the US, but also more undesirable. There are a lot of reasons for why people are not choosing US schools right now, and we offer the chance to get that education in one of the most liveable places in the world.”

Robin Edwards, of Macquarie Graduate School of Management, also points to the low cost of living. “Sydney is the hub of Australia’s financial services industry and while geographically remote from, say, London, it is a cost-effective destination offering a stable government and economy and a distinctly attractive culture and enviable lifestyle.”

So what do recruiters and alumni think? Sej Butler, Recruitment manager for IBM Europe, based in the UK, says, “Regarding Australian MBA graduates my first instinct might be, ‘Why are they applying here? Is it a temporary solution for them or down to wanderlust?’ It’s valid to come to the UK if their company has outgrown the Australian market, which is common as Australia’s population is only 20 million, or for personal reasons such as family. Recruiters will be careful about that; however we do welcome applications from all of them and will recruit on merit.”

He adds that Australian MBAs may still have an image problem outside the Asia-Pacific. Interestingly, staff and alumni agree with this point. Branding overseas is a difficult, long-term undertaking. Katie MacNamara, an MBS alum, says, “I feel that Australia still has a way to go in its perception outside the country. From my time in McKinsey and talking with fellow consultants around the globe, my feeling is that a good Australian MBA is highly regarded in the Asian region but not as much in Europe and the USA.”

Some also feel that Australia may be too globally isolated to fulfill a role in big business. However any advocate of Thomas Friedman’s ‘flat-world’ theory, showing that technology has made neighbours of people in far-flung countries, will tell you that Australia is not isolated at all. Prof. Jones has this to say: “Australia actually enjoys an advantage because it was isolated in the past.  More so than other western cultures, Australia has always had to participate in international partnerships in order to advance economically.  Mastering the art of business relationships and alliances increasingly plays a central role for big business here.”

So, as the world’s global economy shifts its base from the powerhouses of Europe and North America to the massive emerging economies of Asia, maybe this perception is not a bad thing at all. Maybe the shrewd money is on an Australian MBA and to keep one foot in both camps after all.

The QS TopMBA Applicant Survey is the world’s leading international survey of MBA candidates from all over the world. It is the most complete report of the trends, and interests of those candidates, all of whom are a target group as they have attended one of the 65 QS World MBA Tour.