The Australian School of Management (AGSM) is part of the Australian School of Business at the University of New South Wales. The acronym is applied only to the school of business’s MBA and executive education programmes. The university, with 40,000 students, makes a big thing of being able to study at the campus in Kensington, Sydney, and then go and relax on the beaches. It also points out that it has strong business and community links so that MBA students can put their learning into practice. Students are encouraged to join the dozen or so AGSM clubs to hone their networking and commerce skills.

Vital statistics. The AGSM MBA is a 16-month programme, although it is possible to complete it in a year if you can prove that you have prior learning. The 120 students have an average GMAT score of 640 (although the minimum requirement is 550), seven years’ work experience (minimum two years) and come from 30 countries. The course is split into two phases, the first comprising core modules such as organisational behaviour, economics, data analysis and decision-making under uncertainty. The second phase allows students to tailor the course, with elective modules in areas such as accounting and general management. There is a well established exchange programme in which students can opt to take part during this phase.

Rankings. The school is 39th in ft.com’s global MBA rankings 2008 and first in the Australian Financial Review Boss magazine’s MBA rankings.

International experience. About half the students take the chance to study abroad. AGSM has links with schools across the globe, but students still have to convince their tutors that they will benefit from going away and that they will be good ambassadors for the school. Alternatively, the school offers an MBA programme in Hong Kong.

Application deadline: September 1 for the January 2009 intake.

Sources: www.agsm.edu.au; ft.com; afrboss.com.au

Next week: Fisher College of Business, Ohio State University