Archive for September, 2010

The Best Finance Companies to Work for in UK for MBA Students

Monday, September 13th, 2010

If one gets an opportunity to study in UK that would probably be a big boost for your career growth and future success. UK Universities provide all round development through MBA in UK packages that make you adept in management and social skills and values, preparing you to excel in any company in any part of the world. In addition to the world renowned names of Oxford and Cambridge, many other UK Universities hold rankings among world universities, like the London Business School which is almost at the top. For finance professionals, Masters of Finance is the ultimate qualification. UK Universities help you build a strong foundation of concepts in finance, develop clear understanding of principles and practice of finance, and equip you with various tools to make sound financial decisions.

London being its leading financial and commercial centre, UK provides an excellent platform for future MBA’s in finance. A wide range of firms including financial services, consultancy, industry, and public sectors fascinate and absorb a large number of finance graduates and post graduates. As per the latest survey in 2010, the proportion of finance jobs against total IT jobs has been 44.42% in UK. It was also reported that companies like PricewaterhouseCoopers, Accenture, Deloitte, KPMG, Ernst & Young, Smith and Williamson, Grant Thorton, RSM Tenon Group, Moore Stephens UK, Vantis, Kingston Smith, Haines Watts Group, Mazars, Horwath Clark Whitehill, Menzies, Kingston Smith are a few of the major names in finance in UK. Most of the graduates from elite business schools in UK have been absorbed by the above companies. Be it a designation of financial consultant, management accountant, financial controller, financial director and many varied posts, one really looks forward to be a part of the above said companies.

With offices in one hundred and fifty countries, PricewaterhouseCoopers provides an atmosphere for collaboration and team work, with constant learning process. Accenture is another big name which has gained leadership in corporate integrity. It is a global management and outsourcing company and is a dream company to work with for aspiring candidates. As a part of Ernst & Young, management graduates are exposed to global opportunities in a challenging and rewarding environment. The high performance environment here automatically brings out the best of all the employees in a most rewarding manner. A creative culture with independence of thought to help you meet with future challenges and aspirations is what the work environment of Grant Thorton offers as an independent financial advisor.

Basically every company has its own set of environment and competitive remuneration packages. It depends on your personal skills as to how much you can give to the company. These global giants guarantee profitable gains both in terms of monetary as well as non monetary gains such as access to the global world of finance, a boost of confidence, managerial skills and values etc. On top of excellent academic achievement, these companies looks for those who would be hard working and competitive enough to avail each opportunity coming across. All those pursuing a career of MBA in UK can therefore envision a bright future with the choicest of global companies from across the world.

Opportunities and Salary Prospects for Students Pursuing MBA in UK

Friday, September 10th, 2010

When a scholar considers the option to study abroad, UK is one of the top listed countries that come to mind. United Kingdom is home to some of the best institutes that provide quality higher education at a global level because of their world class infrastructure, teaching standards and other facilities for students. 32 of the world’s top universities are in UK. UK Universities like Oxford University, Cambridge University, University of London and Lancaster University attract scholars in huge numbers from across the globe. MBA in UK opens doors to a future with new opportunities, success and growth.

The job market for MBA students is greatly influenced by the state of the global economy. With the world economy reviving fast, MBA students have a wide variety of options in the field of FMCG, Pharmaceuticals, finance and consultancy, various industrial groups and public and voluntary sectors. Employers welcome you with open arms. What really matters is as an individual what are your career expectations and the kind of personal skills, values and interests you offer to the employers. More skilled you are, brighter will be your options. Besides academic achievement, an MBA degree teaches various employability skills like communication skills, analysis, decisiveness, practicality, team work, IT skills and capacity for hard work; which is what companies really look for while choosing the right candidate.

Followed by the London Organizing Committee of the Olympic games and Paralympic games, Google was the biggest hirer of London Business School‘s interns in 2009. MBA students in UK have been absorbed by big corporate names like Accenture, American Airlines, Amazon, Barclays, BCG, Cisco, Disney, Ernst & Young, IBM, Intel, Johnson & Johnson, McKinsey, Philips, Rolls Royce, Standard Chartered Bank and so on. Opportunities are vast in finance, marketing, human resources, IT etc. One needs to find a company and a designation that suits one’s personal interests. Reputed institutes generally have a good number of corporates walking in for campus recruitments. Nowadays with the help of online recruitments, seeking a job has become even more hassle free. UK colleges and universities act as an extended medium to the final destination of your dream job.

MBA courses in UK Universities are internationally recognized, thereby leading you to a dream salary, global management job. MBA salaries differ according to various industries and the field of work. For instance, health care industry offers $111,000 per annum on an average where as non profit and government organizations offer around $73,000 per year on an average. Again the average packages differ in different parts of UK. For example, as per the latest survey for MBA’s in IT, England offers around $65,000; while London offers $70,000 and West Yorkshire around $85,000. As per the Global MBA Rankings 2010, London Business School tops the list with a weighted salary of $142,340 per annum. The alumni of Oxford University, which ranks 16th in the world and is second in UK, got an average salary of $136,467 in 2010. Cambridge University offered $125690, while Lancaster University alumni reported an average salary of about $112,214 in 2010. Thus with the average salary in UK coming to around $100,000 or more, you can easily finishing MBA in UK and then grab a rewarding job for a bright future.

Queen Mary University of London

Friday, September 10th, 2010

Like other top UK universities, Queen Mary University of London offers various graduate, postgraduate, doctorate or research programs for the national as well as international applicants willing to study in UK.

With an exception to the other UK Universities offering MBA in UK, the School of Business and Management of the Queen Mary University of London offers Masters in fields like International Financial Management, International Human Resource Management and Employment Relations, Management and Organization and Marketing.

All these courses are spread over a one year term starting in September. The deadline for applying to the University’s postgraduate course is 31st May. These courses follow the semester system involving class lectures, presentations etc. Towards the end of the course the candidates are required to do project work based on their discretion of the topic. The final assessment of the student is based on the class performance as well as the thesis or project work undertaken.

The tuition fee for the above mentioned courses is around ? 13,000 for international applicants, however it may vary for applicants from UK or EU.

Eligibility criteria:

  • For being eligible to a postgraduate course, the basic requirement is to have gained a minimum level of work experience in your chosen field of study. The number of years of work experience required for entry to a particular course would differ from course to course and for different colleges.
  • The applicant must have a good first Degree meeting the University’s standard.
  • The English competency requirements should be met i.e. having an appropriate score in IELTS, TOEFL, IBTOEFL ( Internet Based TOEFL). For the postgraduate management program, the requirements are an IELTS score of 7 and TOEFL score of 600.

The University offers a pre-session English course for the applicants having secured an IELTS score of 7 or close to7 for variable durations of 1 month, 2 months and more. This course aims at improving the overall English language skills of the candidates applying for different courses.

Scholarship Schemes:
The Queen Mary University of London has multiple scholarship schemes, some of these are funded by the University while some scholarships are granted by external agencies like the British government, UNESCO and other voluntary organizations. These scholarships are different for students from different countries. The country specific scholarships are aimed at encouraging students from various developing countries to study in UK.

Career Guidance and Placement Initiatives:
The Career Advisory Services are being provided to the existing students of QM. All the courses have been designed with a view to meeting the present industry requirements. Through a network of the alumni association, industry exposure through seminars etc. the students acquire first hand market knowledge. Further, the brand value of the University attracts companies from all over the world for recruitment. It has also initiated QUEDOS (Queen Mary Centre for Enterprise and Development Opportunities in Society) to help its students attain their career goals. The University has its own job site where the students can find employment opportunities matching their requirements and thus gain experience along with studies.

For any further information regarding the University the following links might be helpful:

http://www.qmul.ac.uk/international/feesfinance/

http://www.busman.qmul.ac.uk/admissions/fees.php

http://www.busman.qmul.ac.uk/admissions/?page=pg

http://www.busman.qmul.ac.uk/postgrad/programmes.php

Brunel University

Friday, September 10th, 2010

Brunel University located in Uxbridge, West London, England is counted among the top universities of the world and has been ranked 47 out of 122 UK Universities by the Times Good Universities Guide. It has 15000 students including 2500 international students enrolled in various streams. Brunel University’s mantra is to achieve academic excellence with practical and entrepreneurial skills hence a number of courses here have actual placements and projects as an integral part of the curriculum.

Courses offered:

Brunel offers a plethora of courses in science and technology, engineering, arts and humanities, business and social sciences, language and cultural studies, medicine and health in undergraduate, post graduate and research programmes. It is equipped with state of the art labs and workshops ranging from multi-media facilities like video editing and digital broadcasting, rapid prototyping machines, engine testing suites, metal fabrication and model making, flight, driving and train simulators for engineering and designing courses and an indoor athletics centre.

The University has eight Academic Schools:

  • School of Arts offering Drama, English, Music, Screen Media and Journalism
  • Brunel Business School for Accounting and Finance, Business and Management, Marketing and Branding Operations, Logistics and HR
  • Brunel Law School for Bachelor/Master of Law (LL.B.) or (LL.M.), Graduate Diploma in Law (CPE), PG Certificate in Intellectual Property, Master/Doctor of Philosophy
  • School of Engineering and Design offering Advanced Manufacturing and Enterprise Engineering Design, Electronic and Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering
  • School of Health Sciences and Social Care for Bioscience, Health and Social Care
  • School of Information Systems, Computing and Mathematics
  • School of Social Sciences offering Anthropology, Economics and Finance, Politics and History, Psychology, Sociology and Communications
  • School of Sport and Education

Brunel offers PhD and MPhil opportunities in all the academic schools and its seven Specialist Research Institutes. Brunel also offers foundation courses for those who do not meet English standard requirements and other admission eligibility criteria after the successful completion of which guaranteed entry is granted into the linked course.

Admission Process:

Applications for admission can be made online through UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admission Services for those who wish to study in UK at www.ucas.com or by using the Electronic Application System (EAS) set up with UCAS in schools, colleges and career offices. If applying through UCAS for one course, the fee is ?9 and for more than one the cost is ?19. Those applying online, individually or through school or college, may pay by credit or debit card according to the fee structure of the course. Applications are accepted from September to January for an academic cycle starting the following year.

An academic year is divided into three terms-

  • Autumn Term from September to December
  • Spring term from mid January to end of March
  • Summer Term from late April to August

Scholarships and Grants offered:

Students can avail a number of scholarships and funding schemes offered both by Brunel and the government for home/ EU/ international students. Scholarships are for varying courses for undergraduates, post graduates for academic excellence, widening participation and financial support. There are also many grants like Special Support Grant, Disabled Students Assistance, Parents’ Learning Allowance and Adult Dependant’s Grant.

You can visit the following links for details of grants –

http://www.brunel.ac.uk/courses/ug/fees

http://www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinance

Placement Cell and Assistance:

Brunel has a Placement and Career Centre to help with finding part-time jobs, sandwich placements, vacation work and graduate jobs. It runs workshops to prepare for filing job applications, interviews etc. It offers free e- mail vacancy alerts and job advice for three years after graduation.

Accommodation:

Brunel has 34 self catering halls of residence for all students including studios for co- habiting couples. For more information visit

http://www.brunel.ac.uk/life/accommodation