These capsule descriptions are provided to help students begin the process of identifying their preferred school. Specific details of the programs are subject to change each year, and should be confirmed through the resources described here.

North America

Columbia Business School (CBS), New York, NY
The Haas - Columbia exchange program was established in Fall 1999 and is the first such domestic exchange between two top US business schools. The program is aimed at Columbia students who want to take course work in the areas of technology and entrepreneurship while being near Silicon Valley and Media Gulch, and at Haas students who want to take course work in finance and media while being in New York City. In addition, the exchange program facilitates the search by both sets of students for post-graduation employment. Each school may send up to three students to the other school, during the Fall semester of the students' second year of MBA studies. As with the international exchange programs, Haas students may earn a maximum of 12 units of elective course credit while on exchange at CBS. Because Columbia uses a different grading system than Haas, Haas students on exchange at Columbia can transfer their classes back on a S/U (satisfactory/unsatisfactory) basis only.

Europe

London Business School (LBS), London, England
Located in the financial center of Europe, LBS has one of the best MBA programs in England. Nearly 75 percent of the student body is international and, in a recent count, represented nearly 30 different countries. LBS has exchange programs with numerous business schools around the world, which bring an even more international population to the classes. Course offerings are designed to provide students with a general management education that can be applied in a broad range of contexts. The teaching style emphasizes case studies, group work, and classroom interaction between students and faculty. The school is well known for its classes in strategy, finance, and marketing. It is located near the financial center of London, but enjoys the quiet beauty of Regent's Park. Classes are in English and the fall academic period is from early October to mid-December.

L'Ecole Des Hautes Etudes Commerciales (HEC), Jouy-en-Josas, France
HEC is among the most prestigious business schools in France, and one for which French students compete vigorously to obtain admittance. Participation in the exchange program at HEC provides excellent training for those whose careers will involve business in France. Group work, oral presentations, papers, and reports are the most common teaching methods. HEC has a wide ranging network of ties to the French business community. The campus is situated in a beautiful 236-acre site near Paris and has modern facilities. Students can choose to live in the dormitories or in private housing in Paris. Exchange students can take a variety of classes in English if desired. The fall academic period runs from early October to mid-December.

IESE Business School, Universidad de Navarro, Barcelona, Spain
IESE follows the Harvard case method and offers courses in both English and Spanish. Students must pass an oral and written language test before the beginning of the term to take business classes in Spanish. IESE provides an intensive three-week Spanish course in late summer to help students improve their language skills and pass the exams. An exchange student who takes all coursework in Spanish and participates in the daily life of Barcelona can expect to develop a good working knowledge of the language by the completion of the term. The school is located in a beautiful old building in an attractive suburb of Barcelona, and students live off-campus. Fall term is from early October to mid-December, preceded by the Spanish course for those who take it.

Rotterdam School of Management (RSM), Rotterdam, the Netherlands
RSM offers a US-style MBA program focusing on the European business environment. Full-time students have work experience. For exchange students in the MBA program, the semester is divided into a 7 1/2 week coursework period and a 6 1/2 week project. During the course period, students take five courses on a variety of topics focusing on European and international management. For the project, they negotiate with a company for a consulting arrangement, usually in Holland or elsewhere in Europe. In the final report, which is reviewed by a faculty member, students apply a theoretical framework to a real-world business situation. Alternatively, exchange students may choose to study in the International Masters of Science Student Exchange Committee (IMScEC) program, which involves a specified group of courses in the first part of the term and electives in the second part. IMScEC courses stress group work and give a Dutch perspective on European economic issues. For the MBA program, the fall academic period begins in late August and ends in mid-December. For the IMScEC program, studies begin in early September and run to late December. Instruction is in English and housing is off campus.

Scuola di Direzione Aziendale (SDA), Bocconi, Milan, Italy
Located in the commercial heart of Italy, SDA Bocconi attracts many nationalities to its MBA program. The school stresses teamwork through a field project in which both exchange and full-time students participate, during the fall semester. Teams of four to seven perform an in-depth analysis of a business problem within an Italian firm and share their finding with the firm's management in a formal presentation. This intensive consulting experience gives exchang students exposure to the Italian style of management. In addition to a range of normal elective offerings, the school offers a course on European business designed for the exchange students. Instruction is in Italian and English and runs from late August to mid-December. Students live off-campus.

Asia

Hitotsubashi University, Graduate School of International Corporate Strategy, Tokyo, Japan
The mission of the Graduate School of International Corporate Strategy (ICS) is to develop specialists who will contribute on a global scale in the four fields of business strategy, financial strategy, business law, and tax and public policy.
All courses in the MBA Program in International Business Strategy are held in English-only. Students come from varied career backgrounds but share the potential to become leaders with the capacity to initiate, manage, and implement innovation on a global scale. The curriculum focuses on three themes - business strategy, innovation and technology management, and entrepreneurship - and prepares students for leadership roles in the global economy.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong
HKUST was founded in 1991 to play a key role in the economic, social, and technological development of Hong Kong. The HKUST School of Business and Management were established in cooperation with UCLA. Housed in an ultra-modern structure, the school offers computer laboratories, a language centers, and audio-visual facilities. The MBA program focuses on the Asia-Pacific region and has an internationally recruited faculty, many with Berkeley PhD's. Small classes encourage active participation in discussions and projects. Classroom activity includes case studies, computer models, and management exercises, while field studies, visits to companies, and guest speakers establish a link with Asia-Pacific businesses. Housing is in dormitories. Classes are in English, and the fall terms runs from early September through late December.

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