Doing MBA in Germany with Akshay Sharma

World class education, hands-on programmes and a high return on investment, Germany is an excellent option for anyone looking to do their MBA, according to our guest on this week's India2Germany podcast, Akshay Sharma. Akshay is an alumnus of WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management and currently working as VGI Project Manager - Digitalization and Change Management Group IT @ Vaillant Group. After a Bachelors in Technology from India and 5 years of experience in this field, Akshay decided to do his MBA and specialise in Business Strategy and Innovation. He tells us about his experience, what speaks in favor of an MBA from Germany, what it's advantages and disadvantages are in comparison to a degree from the US, and the job prospects after finishing your course.

🎙 You can also listen to this conversation on  Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts,  YouTube or your favorite podcast platform 🙂

Also listen to our conversation about Masters scholarships in Europe (link below):

Fully funded masters in Germany through Erasmus Mundus with Pavan Sriram

Pavan Sriram is an alumnus of the Erasmus Mundus programme and former president of the Erasmus Mundus Alumni Association. He shares his experience with the scholarship and tells us what it offers, how it works and how to apply for an Erasmus Mundus masters course.

India2GermanyDr. Paras Mehta

Show notes

Hi Akshay 👋, why don't you introduce yourself to our listeners.

You did your MBA from WHU in Germany. How would you describe your experience?

Experience was amazing:

1. Three international excursions USA, China and India
2. Very international class mix with highly talented colleagues
3. A lot of events and competitions to participate at globa and european level like 3daystartup, Kellogg Design Thinking Challenge Chicago, Innovation in Finance Zurich and a lot more.
4. Multiple events to meet WHU alumni, company representatives and pitch startup ideas
5. Great professors from whom we learnt a lot

For most people, the US, the UK, Canada and other English-speaking countries would be the first option for an MBA. Why did you choose Germany?

1. Being from engineering background, i thought to do an MBA from germany to develop more as a technomanager
2. IT and digitalisation topics are developing very fast in Germany and they require skill workforce for that. This was another motivation to go to Germany
3. Lower tuition and higher scholarships with stable visa policies

How does an MBA in Germany compare with these countries?

Benefits for MBA in Germany:

1. More economical tuition fee with higher RoI
2. 18 month Job search visa after completion of course
3. Less saturation in job market with Germany being a strong economy
4. Tax break on the tuition and expenditure during your course
5. Good Scholarships
6. Usually, no application fee for applying to MBA courses
7. A very international program with almost all top bschools having international excursions
8. More practical education, what German education system is known for, with live projects with Companies
9. Composition of an MBA class is very rich with small batch sizes unlike that of USA
10. Only limitation sometimes is the GErman language requirement in day to day life

You are now working as Project Manager at Vaillant. How are the job prospects after an MBA in Germany?

MBA is still a new program in Germany with companies slowly opening up to international talent and recognizing this business program.

Jobs depend a lot on your previous experience. Triple change also explained in fb post is sometimes difficult.

Connections with alumni and company representatives matter a lot.

German language helps open up a lot of opportunities

Does one need to know German to do the MBA or to find a job later?

Yes, helps open up a lot of opportunities. Some roles like strategy or strategy consulting, sales, local marketing do require fluent german

Would you recommend people to do an MBA in Germany?

Yes, it is still full of opportunities

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