ESADE Business School's Full Time MBA is once again amongst the top 20 programmes in the world, according to the latest MBA ranking published by the Financial Times. This showing – #20 in the world and #5 in Europe – was made possible, in particular, by the international experience and career progress of the programme’s participants, categories in which the British publication ranked the school fourth and sixth in the world, respectively, as well as the salary increase obtained by its graduates, for which the programme was ranked second in Europe.

For Josep Franch, dean of ESADE Business School, ‘Rigor, excellence, teamwork and the teaching methodology have helped to make ESADE’s MBA one of the world’s top 20 programmes.’ ‘This recognition is a major endorsement of the new direction we’ve given our programme, focused on creativity and innovation’, Franch explained, referring to the MBA’s new structure. In response to the dual challenges of globalisation and digitalisation, ESADE has restructured its MBA programme to create a modern, innovative, inherently digital learning experience. ‘The goal is to train leaders who are capable of adapting to the new ways of thinking and working, through disruptive leadership, innovation and creativity’, said the dean.

The new MBA structure is divided into three main areas – Awareness, Create & Innovate, and Transform – all of which offer new subjects, such as Creativity, Technology & Digital Business, Negotiation Fundamentals, Business Analytics, Big Data & Decision Making, Innovation, and Solving Business Problems.

Diversity, internationalisation and entrepreneurship

The ESADE Business School MBA class of 2019 has a total of 190 students, 96% of whom are international. Of these students, 32% are from Asia, 30% from Latin America, 24% from Europe, 10% from North America, 3% from the Middle East, and 1% from Africa. Students have an average age of around 29 years and five years of experience in a variety of sectors, including industry, finance, business, consulting, the third sector and the public sector, amongst others.

The aspects of the ESADE MBA most highly valued by participants are the personalised attention and programme design (it can be completed in 12, 15 or 18 months); the international faculty and students (50 nationalities); the professional development opportunities; and the possibility ESADE offers to bring entrepreneurial ideas to life and tackle real-life business challenges, as MBA participants share a campus at the ESADECREAPOLIS innovation centre with the Bachelor in Business Administration (BBA) students and those on the school’s various MSc Programmes in Management.

Employability and international competitiveness

ESADE students are very competitive on the international job market. In the 2016-2017 academic year, more than 80% of ESADE students found work at top companies outside Spain. Specifically, the international job placement rate for FT MBA graduates in the 2016-2017 academic year was 79%. Additionally, not only do ESADE students land international positions, they do so quite quickly: 90% of FT MBA programme participants find work within three months of graduation.

The jobs ESADE programme participants find are located around the world, and this will continue to be the case in the coming years. Of the 81% of FT MBA participants who find jobs outside Spain, 51% do so in Europe (31% in Germany, 14% in the UK, 10% in Switzerland, 10% in the Netherlands, 10% in France, and 25% in other countries), followed by 17% in Latin America, 14% in Asia, 10% in the US, 6% in the Middle East, and 2% in Oceania and Africa. The tech sector (32%) is the industry to attract the largest number of MBAs.