MSM MBA Summer School – leveraging the cross MBA connection
From 12-26 June 2021, MSM organized its annual MBA Summer School, bringing together students from MSM’s Full-time MBA, Executive MBA, Online MBA and Global MBA programs. Just like last year, the Covid restrictions required for an online version of the Summer School
During the MSM Summer School, the MBA students follow their MBA specialization courses in a vivid and interactive learning environment. This year MSM offered specialization courses in Accounting & Finance, the Digital Economy, Entrepreneurship, International Business & Sustainable Development, and Supply Chain Management.
Online MBA student Noreen Vingerhoedt summarizes her MBA Summer School experience as follows: “The MBA Summer School is an awesome experience: a group of international students with different backgrounds who dive deep into the matter and get creative together, learn together and exchange knowledge together. Enriching!” Noreen followed the Entrepreneurship specialization.
Executive MBA student Ugwunna Iwuagwu enrolled into the Summer School program with the hope that it would be held in a face-to-face format. However, with the Covid-19 restrictions still in place, he had to settle for the online version, which in the end turned out to be a positive experience: “My preference would have been for the in-class course to facilitate networking and interactions. However, with the way the classes were designed, group discussions in a breakout rooms in zoom, group assignments, etc., it was still possible to network with the team members, which was cool. Despite the fact that we were located in different countries, it felt as though we were together in one class, thanks to zoom.”
Ugwunna specialized in Supply Chain Management: “This Supply Chain Management courses focused on Circular economy (supply chain for the future), supply chain integration, managing trades-off, and industrial 4.0. These topics are designed to solve the current and future needs of the global society in supply chain management. The course highlights included discussions among participants, simulation games, lectures from speakers and loads of real-life experiences from our renowned professors. It was a pack.”
Full-time MBA student Tanya Varshney followed the specialization in Accounting and Finance, which was one of the reasons for her to choose MSM for her MBA program: “Being from a finance background myself, I had a strong understanding of the subjects already, but after attending the specialization program, I gained knowledge in different subjects at international level. The lecturers excelled in making the complex topics easy to understand. Every professor is a master in their respective subjects. The handouts and related course material were sufficient to understand the topic well. I really enjoyed the whole program, and I can’t thank the instructors enough for mentoring us and giving industrial insights.”
Insights from industry experts
To help linking the theory of the courses to the practice, industry experts were invited to share their knowledge and insights. The Entrepreneurship students for example enjoyed an inspiring talk by young Founder and CEO of ShieldWear, Jayne Lawson, who shared valuable insights on her business, the thought process amongst her team and the focus on test, test, test to make it work.
In Ugwunna’s opinion it is very interesting to have guest lecturers from the industry talking about their experiences, challenges and how they are tackling these: “One of the guest lectures in the Supply Chain Management specialization was Ton Geurts, Business Director at Brightlands Institute for Supply Chain Innovation (BISCI). Ton talked to us about driving sustainability and innovation through the development of transparent supply chains, effective governance, business transformation, and with the key assistance of NGOs. From his lecture, it was clear that there is a need to encourage transparent supply chain practice to ensure, that all stakeholders in the supply chain are treated fairly. Coffee was a good example, the farmers down the supply chain need to be fairly paid from the price being charged for a cup of coffee in the urban cities.”
Peer-to-peer learning in group assignments
To stimulate networking, teamwork and peer-to-peer learning, group assignments are an integral part of the MBA Summer School experience. For Ugwunna these were part of the highlights of the specialization course: “Learning from peers from other job functions and different industries helped to bring diversity of knowledge to the class. The group discussions were impactful and the interactions within the teams were fascinating. The group assignments encouraged good team spirit. In some cases, it felt like a competition among the other teams, especially during the simulation games and presentations. It was very dynamic and intriguing. “We broke bread together” during the group assignments.”
Tanya enjoyed the group assignments as well: “The class was a mix of people from different backgrounds including Executive MBA, Online MBA and Full-time MBA colleagues. The sessions were very interactive and forced everyone to do critical thinking and reasoning on various topics - which was evident in the group tasks performed during the sessions. Every assignment was challenging enough to have active involvement of every team member. Group tasks were interesting and fun to complete. In fact, one of the group assignments turned into a fun team dinner.”
Executive MBA student Princess Austin agrees: “The MBA Summer School has been engaging, the course instructors are highly knowledgeable, and our group assignments have been relevant and meaningful.”
Applying the learning outcomes
The practice-oriented approach in the MBA Summer School courses stimulates the application of the knowledge and insights for the benefit of the current job or future career of the participants.
Ugwunna highly values the learning outcomes of the Supply Chain Management specialization courses for his current and future career: “I am now open to engage in discussions or even take up roles in procurement, operation management, supply chain management, sales, or finance roles in my current organization when the opportunity arises. I am confident that I have understood how these roles function within the organization. The simulations we did on the Fresh connection, Cool connection, and Blue connections provided me ample opportunities to play these roles and learn the trade. I look forward to a brighter future within my current company CAM Bioceramics, where I am currently leading some projects. I am also open to continuous learning.”
Also Tanya sees clear benefits of the specialization program: “I am sure the learnings and knowledge gained during the specialization program will definitely help a lot at the job and will help to understand the analytical and critical assignments.”
Are you interested in the MSM MBA Summer School experience?
Full-time MBA student Louise Freitas followed the Accounting and Finance Specialization, and would surely recommend you to take part in the MBA Summer School: “The MBA Summer School at MSM is a worthwhile investment that has everything to succeed. It is a high-quality program and I have been enjoying every minute.”
To take part in the MSM MBA Summer School, you can apply for one of our MBA programs and choose the specialization that accommodates your career or fits your personal development. In case you are not part of one our MBA programs, you can take the MBA Specialization courses of your choice as a stand-alone two-week Summer School course, if you fulfill the admission criteria.
The 2022 edition of the MSM MBA Summer School will take place in June 2022. Keep an eye on our website to stay informed.
