Waseda MBA on Monbukagakusho

[thetrystero]

Hi,

I'm 29 yrs old, currently working at a bank and I'm planning to apply for the Monbukagakusho scholarship to study for an MBA in Japan.

Has anyone here done the MBA in Japan? How good is it in terms of course content and rigor? Would you say it's worth it? What are you chances of securing a job here once you finish?
I'm currently most interested in applying to the Waseda MBA (Tech focus). but most of their electives are conducted in Japanese. How does it compare with IUJ, Hitotsubashi or APU?
I know that it probably isn't going to be on par with say Harvard or Wharton, but won't have to worry about paying back loans, and as long as I can secure a decent job in Japan after graduation I'll be quite happy.

Thanks.

[explodingmonk]

to my knowledge, MEXT Scholarship covers research programs only. A coursework degree such as an MBA is not generally covered by the scholarship.

Waseda is good but it is really expensive. I would recommend that you consider national universities as they are relatively cheaper.

As far as post-degree employment is concerned, from what I have gathered you must be proficient in Japanese.

[kshoo]

Hi Thetrystero,

What a coincidence! I am currently applying for an MBA in Japan, and am keeping my fingers crossed that I will be able to board the plane bound for Japan next year. I also have another friend in the banking sector who expressed interest in the Waseda program.

With regards to the MBA program, perhaps you might want to consider the language first. Most of the universities there do offer MBA, but are mostly conducted in Japanese. The limited number of English MBAs are conducted by Waseda, IUJ, Hitotsubashi and APU. I believe Tsukuba and Osaka might also have English MBAs, but have not gotten any confirmation that it is 100% english, unlike the few listed.

When you say that they are japanese focus for Waseda, i think you might have misunderstood. I believe what they meant to say was that the courses are all conducted in English, but when you wanted to do your research topic/paper, you will need to look for a supervisor, and not all supervisors are 100% fluent in English. This is one matter with Waseda at the moment.

However, from a high-level perception of their curriculum, i believe it is quite on par with other comprehensive 2-year MBA programs out there. I personally have included Waseda as my choice, and have also taken GMAT just to make sure I do make all their qualifications. However, they would still require the student to take a test to officially qualify to their business school even though they have confirmed "accepting" the student.

No comments with regards to finding jobs in Japan, though a graduate from Waseda will definitely help :) Japanese is understandably a requirement to be able to survive there, even if you may have taken an english program.

This is my 2 cents worth at the moment. Are you planning to take GMAT soon? I have a number of books which i am planning to let go, all 2008 versions. Let me know if you are interested (email me at kuangshanhoo@yahoo.co.uk)
Titles available:
1) Kaplan GMAT 2008 Premier Program (with CD ROM)
2) Kaplan 2008 Math Workbook
3) Mcgraw Hill 2008 GMAT (with CD ROM)
4) Official Guide 2008 - GMAT Verbal Review
5) Official Guide 2008 - GMAT Review

These books were purchased from Kinokuniya in Malaysia http://bookweb.kinokuniya.co.jp/indexohb.cgi?AREA=05, but i suppose you can also log in to Amazon to check out the prices in USD. We can negotiate the prices through email.

All the best.