Who's it for?
The course is aimed at people with a minimum of three years' managerial experience - most students already have 10 years' postgraduate experience. It is for those looking to develop their international management competencies and who aspire to senior roles. Students come to Henley once a month for an intensive threeto four-day workshop; there are also international study trips.
What's included
There are three stages. The first focuses on managing the organisation, the second aims to help students gain knowledge and achieve insight into making choices and the third is about making a difference. The stages cover business management from both practical and theoretical angles. Modules offer a range of specialist electives that are relevant to Henley's areas of research, enabling students to tailor the MBA to meet their own needs and interests as well as keeping them up-to-date with the latest thinking.
By the end of the course...
Work starts from day one on career-planning, and Henley's careers services provide workshops to help develop the skills students require to promote themselves during and after the MBA, including networking opportunities, recruitment events and sector-specific sessions from industry professionals.
Nicola Brooks, business development and marketing director at law firm Seddons, started the course in 2011 and will complete her studies this year.
"Marketing professionals should be at the heart of corporate decision-making. In order to do this, and to demonstrate how marketing can affect revenue growth, I needed a wider skillset that looked outside the traditional method of teaching marketing, which is why I undertook the Henley MBA.
"The main benefits have been gaining an in-depth understanding of new areas such as finance and operations, and learning the 'language of the boardroom', which, subsequently, has given me much greater confidence when dealing with financial directors and chief executives.
"I have studied economics, accounting principles, corporate finance, operations, strategy, corporate responsibility and leadership and change.
"Learning new skills has given me confidence in not only understanding principles, but being able to apply them. I am quite comfortable going in and reporting to the board on finance and how marketing can help with this.
"The course is demanding. Everyone on the Executive MBA is already working in senior positions full-time. Generally, we get together for classes one long weekend a month, but it is the additional study outside of classes that is so demanding - roughly 200 hours is expected per module.
"The best part has been international work visits, first to China and then to South Africa, and meeting the colleagues on the course. We all help and support each other and I have made friends for life."