UCLA-NUS Executive MBA
The UCLA-NUS Executive MBA (EMBA) program is a management education program developed jointly by the University of California, Los Angeles (Anderson) and the NUS Business School, National University of Singapore. It allows senior executives from all around the world to participate in.
About the schools
UCLA Anderson School of Management
UCLA Anderson School of Management was established in 1935 and provides management education to more than 1,300 students enrolled in full-time, part-time and executive MBA and doctoral programs.
NUS Business School
NUS Business School is the first in ASEAN and among the firsts in Asia-Pacific to be accredited by AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) for meeting the highest standards of achievement in education and research for business schools worldwide and as a full academic member of the esteemed CEMS (previously known as Community of European Management Schools and International Companies).
By invitation from the Board of Directors of GMAC (the administrative body for GMAT), the School has been representing the Southeast Asian region as a governing school of GMAC since 2000. The School is also a "Non-European" member of the international network for excellence in management development (EFMD).
Curriculum
The UCLA – NUS Executive MBA general management curriculum consists of 16 course modules and a two-part Management Practicum conducted via 6 two-week sessions spanning a 15-month period. Participants spend two sessions each at UCLA in Los Angeles and NUS in Singapore, and one each in Shanghai and Bangalore. The course modules outlined below are subject to periodic curriculum review by UCLA and NUS and are subject to change.
Leadership and Managerial Skills
Combines comparative (East-West) sociological and psychological perspectives on management to provide for an understanding of the imperatives of managing complex organizations as well as enhancing leadership and managerial skills.
Asian Business Environment
Provides a foundation for the understanding of the economic and political environments of business in Asia.
Economic Analysis for Managers
Develops principles of microeconomics to enable managers to more effectively manage customers, suppliers, competitors, employees, and the regulatory environment. Participants will learn when and how to apply quantitative and qualitative tools in situations of scarce resources, competition, and imperfect markets.
Financial Accounting
Familiarizes the manager with functions of accounting by focusing on the use of external financial reports to evaluate corporate performance and the use of accounting information for internal planning and control.
Data Analysis & Management Decisions
Studies statistical model building with emphasis on managerial interpretation of statistical summary data. The course also covers classic statistics through multiple regression analysis to support subsequent courses in finance and marketing.
Marketing Strategy & Policy
Covers strategic marketing decisions, including development of marketing objectives and strategies and implementation of these strategies through pricing, channel, promotion and new product decisions.
Logistics and Operations Management
Introduces participants to the functional areas of logistics and operations management, with a focus on more current developments and their strategic and managerial significance.
Corporate Governance, Business Law & Ethics
Discusses the importance of corporate governance and the mechanisms that help control managerial behavior. The law and ethics section also enables participants to think critically about contemporary ethical issues and dilemmas faced by businesses and their stakeholders.
Corporate Finance
Covers some of the most important topics in managerial finance. Emphasis is placed on the optimal allocation of resources for both individuals and corporations.
Negotiations Behavior
Presents theoretical principles and concepts from psychology, sociology and economics through lectures and readings, with focus primarily on improving practical negotiating skills through experiential learning (i.e., negotiations simulations).
Corporate Entrepreneurship
Covers the activities involved in creating and exploiting new and innovative resource combinations in the context of existing corporations. The course focuses primarily on managerial efforts aimed at the identification, development and exploitation of technical and organizational innovations, the management of new product or process developments, and on effective new venture management.
International Management Strategies
Studies economic and business decisions in an international context, with emphasis on formulation and implementation of management strategies in multinational enterprises. The course discusses application of concepts of international economic analysis and exploration of international corporate strategies.
Contemporary Issues in Business (Services Marketing & Customer Asset Management)
Services Marketing focuses on the marketing and managing of services and complements the module: Marketing Strategy and Policy. Customer Asset Management focuses on acquiring, serving and retaining customers through managing customer lifetime value, customer segmentation, data mining and the application of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) instruments such as loyalty programs.
Competitive Strategy & Business Policy
Focuses on how general managers enhance and sustain business performance. The course covers analytical and conceptual tools that are aids to the development of judgment. The fundamental focus, however, is not on tools but on sharpening skills to develop more robust judgments in the face of uncertainty and complexity.
Management of Technology & Innovation
Discusses the problems of managing technological innovation in Asia and the United States. Topics include the incorporation of technological considerations in strategy, adoption of technological innovation, promotion of innovation through organizational design and leadership, and E-business and M-business.
Strategic Leadership & Strategy Implementation
Designed to address several fundamental aspects of leading complex organizations, this course places particular emphasis on the importance of developing well-aligned, high performance organizations and the challenges of leading change in organizations. The primary goals of this course are to enable students to develop an organized point of view on strategic leadership, and increase awareness of themselves as leaders.
Management Practicum
The Management Practicum, a double-credit course spanning two-quarters, is an extensive consulting project designed to allow UCLA – NUS Executive MBA participants an opportunity to “test-drive” their management skills, and apply the frameworks and tools acquired in the program to real-life business dilemmas. The projects challenge participants to analyze and resolve complex business issues often growing out of the corporate employer’s context. The integrative and extensive consulting project allows participants to work with a broad range of organizations to define and solve strategic problems, explore business opportunities, enhance organizational competitiveness, and improve organizational and managerial effectiveness.
Each team works on a specific problem or topic that is related to the strategic direction of the firm and is cross-functional in nature, in that it requires each team to research and analyze issues from the perspective of more than one business function. The Management Practicum also focuses on strategic issues that are international or multinational in scope and that bridge key Pacific Rim countries.
The UCLA – NUS Executive MBA participants and company representatives agree on a scope of work that will result in a complete, in-depth, strategic business plan at the behest of an organization’s management. The plan can involve:
- Launching a new product or service in an existing market
- Launching an existing product or service into a new geographical market
- Offering an existing product or service to a new market segment
- Developing a new product or service for a specific market segment
- Leveraging existing intellectual property into new products and/or services and new markets
- Providing in-depth analysis of an organization’s restructuring, reorganization or acquisition plans
The business plans generally incorporate financial, marketing, operational and strategic recommendations based on extensive primary and secondary research that the teams conduct. The plans can include an analysis of the organization’s value proposition in relation to the competitive environment.
Site visits
The program offers education beyond the classroom, with several visits to various companies, including:
- Disney
- Hewlett-Packard
- Mattel
- PSA Singapore
- Singapore Airlines
Career services
Participants will have access to the customized and dedicated career services available at both UCLA Anderson and NUS Business School. The services include:
- Individual Executive Career Coaching
- Career Workshops
- Web-Based Career Management Resources
- Potential Employer Contacts
- Alumni Career Resources
Companies Represented
Following are some of the companies represented by the UCLA - NUS Executive MBA participants
- Accenture Solutions
- Bank of America
- Barclays Capital
- Intel Corporation (Asia Pacific)
- Microsoft
- Rolls-Royce Energy Systems Inc
- Royal Bank of Scotland
- The Boeing Company
- Toyota Motor Sales, USA
Admission requirements
Each prospective candidate of the UCLA - NUS Executive MBA is expected to satisfy the admission requirements of both UCLA Anderson School of Management and NUS Business School.
Requirements for admission are as follows:
- A minimum of ten years full-time work experience after receiving a bachelor's degree and a current position with high-level managerial responsibility.
- A bachelor's or equivalent degree from a regionally accredited institution, and a scholastic average of B or above in the last two years of undergraduate coursework and any post-baccalaureate study. Applicants are expected to hold a degree representing completion of at least four years of study with above average scholarship from a university or university-level institution.
- Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) will be required if the applicant's first language is not English.
External links
- The UCLA-NUS Executive MBA program website
- Executive MBA IEEC program website
- SMU Executive MBA program website