Big MBA from a small town
With the best universities located in the traditional academic centers of Warsaw, Kraków, or Poznań one might find it surprising that one of the best business schools in the country - and the institute regularly ranked as the top private school - is located in the sleepy town of Nowy Sącz. It can be found in the hilly, southern part of the Małopolskie voivodship, far from the country's main educational and business centers.
Established in 1992 as a post-secondary business school the Higher School of Business (WSB) has now for 13 years been cooperating with an American partner university, the National-Louis University (NLU). The WSB-NLU is the only school in Poland whose graduates at every level of education, whether Bachelor's, Master's or post-graduate, receive original diplomas of the American university.
First class
The school has conducted MBA courses since 1995, first with the Maastricht School of Management, then Hull University, and since 2000 with its partner NLU. The General Management MBA program is conducted entirely in English, either on a part-time, two-year course, or on a yearly, full-time basis. For applicants to both programs at least an equivalent of an American Bachelor's degree is required. The part-time course is meant for those with some professional experience (at least three years) who had been employed at managerial positions.
WSB's rector, Dr Krzysztof Pawłowski, emphasizes: "In those studies sharing experiences and opinions between participants who usually come from different professional and regional backgrounds, is a vital part of the program."
Constant contact
While students at the full-time program lack the professional experience, they have constant contact with a chosen company and work on cases and problems for that firm. The full-time program was originally designed for Bachelor's graduates, but those students regularly opted for a Master's degree rather than the very expensive MBA. The yearly program costs zł.24,000 and the part-time course zł.22,000. For this reason the yearly, stationary program could prove very attractive to foreigners.
Pawłowski says the school aims to attract as many foreign students as possible. "Because of European integration and the continuing process of globalization it is time for programs in English addressed to people from different countries," he explained.
He added that having friends all around the world after graduation is "a gigantic advantage for any manager or an entrepreneur." Pawłowski revealed that the WSB's next major development would turn its attention to the Far East. He is currently holding talks through the China Scholarship Council about offering an MBA program for one of universities in China, which could result in a whole group of Chinese students coming to Poland. Pawłowski said that although he knows that it would be hard to attract businesspeople from surrounding countries to study MBA in Nowy Sącz, those managers working in Poland might find it attractive to take up the part-time program.
Established in 1992 as a post-secondary business school the Higher School of Business (WSB) has now for 13 years been cooperating with an American partner university, the National-Louis University (NLU). The WSB-NLU is the only school in Poland whose graduates at every level of education, whether Bachelor's, Master's or post-graduate, receive original diplomas of the American university.
First class
The school has conducted MBA courses since 1995, first with the Maastricht School of Management, then Hull University, and since 2000 with its partner NLU. The General Management MBA program is conducted entirely in English, either on a part-time, two-year course, or on a yearly, full-time basis. For applicants to both programs at least an equivalent of an American Bachelor's degree is required. The part-time course is meant for those with some professional experience (at least three years) who had been employed at managerial positions.
WSB's rector, Dr Krzysztof Pawłowski, emphasizes: "In those studies sharing experiences and opinions between participants who usually come from different professional and regional backgrounds, is a vital part of the program."
Constant contact
While students at the full-time program lack the professional experience, they have constant contact with a chosen company and work on cases and problems for that firm. The full-time program was originally designed for Bachelor's graduates, but those students regularly opted for a Master's degree rather than the very expensive MBA. The yearly program costs zł.24,000 and the part-time course zł.22,000. For this reason the yearly, stationary program could prove very attractive to foreigners.
Pawłowski says the school aims to attract as many foreign students as possible. "Because of European integration and the continuing process of globalization it is time for programs in English addressed to people from different countries," he explained.
He added that having friends all around the world after graduation is "a gigantic advantage for any manager or an entrepreneur." Pawłowski revealed that the WSB's next major development would turn its attention to the Far East. He is currently holding talks through the China Scholarship Council about offering an MBA program for one of universities in China, which could result in a whole group of Chinese students coming to Poland. Pawłowski said that although he knows that it would be hard to attract businesspeople from surrounding countries to study MBA in Nowy Sącz, those managers working in Poland might find it attractive to take up the part-time program.
