Business Administration

What you learn when obtaining your MBA is as important as the qualification itself. An MBA must cover a wide range of subjects in a limited time. We believe our graduates should have a sound understanding of the subjects they have studied. However, the electives on offer may be adjusted to reflect student demand, changes in the business, both practical and academic.

Schedule
The MBA is offered as a full-time, one year course and a part-time, two-year course. The exact dates for the programme change from year to year but the introduction days, an enjoyable opportunity to meet the other students, familiarise yourself with the university facilities and get to know Amsterdam, are usually towards the end of the first full week in September, with the academic courses starting the following week. The electives and core courses will finish around mid June. There is usually a break in teaching of about three weeks around Christmas and the New Year and a week in early spring.

Part-time programme
The classes for part-time students take up between 6-8 hours a week. Class preparation, casework and assignments will demand a further 10-12 hours a week. The part-time students study under the same regulations as the full-time students except that their taught courses are spread over two years. All core courses will be taught in the evening (mainly on Monday and Thursday evening). Only for some electives we cannot guarantee that the courses will be taught in the evening. Classes will take up usually between 5 and 8 hours a week (typically two evenings a week). Class preparation, casework and assignments will demand a further 10-12 hours a week.

Consultancy project and thesis
At the final stage of their MBA programme students are required to take part in a real-life in-company consultancy project. During the project, the students can use the broad knowledge, skills and competencies they have acquired during their MBA programme as well as prior to their MBA through work or education. Faced with a real business problem or strategic consultancy issue for the company, the students can show their ability to contribute to the development of a solution ready for implementation. The students would normally work on a fulltime basis for a period of two months in the summertime (June and July). At the end of the project, they will document their analysis and fi ndings in a management report and presentation for the host company. Members of the Amsterdam Business School and representatives of the company must judge this document critically. After this group effort, students will write an individual thesis on the same or a related topic with a more academic approach.

International elective
In January 2008 you will have the option to attend the \'Doing Business in India? module (4 EC) in Ahmedabad, India. The IIM Ahmedabad, one of India\'s finest business schools, designed this module for the Amsterdam Business School as part of a collaborative agreement.

Amsterdam Leadership Programme (ALP)?
The Amsterdam Leadership Programme of the Amsterdam MBA has been designed to underpin and enhance each student?s MBA educational experience. In our leadership programme we work with three concepts: Values, Purposes and Competencies. In the programme students learn to observe and define these concepts at the firm level as well as what these concepts mean for themselves as a person. The course runs in blocks 1 to 3.

The Amsterdam MBA is looking for students who feel the programme represents a challenge and a good career-fit. The programme has been designed for ambitious professionals and academics who wish to pursue a career in the international business world. The Amsterdam MBA has a strong international focus and participants will come from many different cultural backgrounds. Full-time students will focus on studying for a year while part-time students continue to work, thus bringing in their expertise of day-to-day professional life. Students are expected to work in senior management levels after graduation.
   
The planned intake for September 2008 is around thirty students. A strict selection procedure will be applied in order to ensure that top quality students will enter the programme. The Amsterdam MBA aims at a highly international student body with two things in common: the ambition and capability to pursue a challenging business degree.