The MBS experience
The Melbourne MBA is a practical, ‘hands-on’ business course. It is hard work, but also stimulating and rewarding. Teamwork, group assignments, participation in class discussions and real business issues are strong features of the Melbourne MBA.
Working as a team
Teamwork is an important part of the course. Most subjects include syndicate assignments. A syndicate is a group of students from diverse backgrounds, who are assigned to work together on the material covered in a particular subject. Syndicates work on tasks such as preparing cases for discussion in class, or completing assignments based on current issues in real organisations, which could range from medium sized businesses to multi-national corporations.
This arrangement means that students learn not only to manage themselves under pressure, but how to work effectively with others in a spirit of teamwork in both the classroom and the workplace. Through the intensive interaction, students often develop close friendships and lifelong associations.
Teaching styles – real-life learning
Faculty use a variety of methods in the classroom. Traditional lecturing is used where necessary. However, much of the teaching involves case discussions or experiential activities where students express their own experiences and opinions. Case studies provide students with real-life business problems to analyse and discuss in class. Experiential learning – learning by doing – means that students participate in practical activities, and experience the ambiguities that managers face. Project work takes students out of the classroom and into businesses to analyse and report on current management issues.
Study commitment
A full-time student should expect to spend three hours a week in class per subject. In addition, five or six hours a week per subject will be spent on private study or group work. This additional time commitment will vary depending on academic or professional background and the nature of the assessment in the subjects studied.
Assessment – gauging your progress
The Melbourne MBA has high academic standards, and all subjects have a variety of continuous assessment tasks. While requirements vary, each subject is generally assessed using a combination of individual and group assignments, in-class tests, class participation and formal examinations.
