At WHU, the end of summer and the start of the fall term heralds the arrival of new MBA students. On Saturday, August 31, the MBA Program at Campus Düsseldorf opened its doors to its largest cohort of full-time and part-time students yet.
This term marks a new record of close to 140 participants: 24 different nations represented in the full-time cohort and 23 different nations in the part-time cohort. The students hail from around the world, including North and South America, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, India, China, and South-East Asia, making this a remarkably international group. Representing a diverse mix of ages, academic backgrounds, and professional experience, the full-time students have an average of nearly six years of postgraduate work experience, while the part-time students have an average of more than five years of postgraduate work experience.
During their first two days on campus, the new students started their MBA experience with a busy schedule, getting to grips with the challenges ahead of them. Deputy Dean and Associate Dean Academic Programs, Professor Dr. Jürgen Weigand, Academic Director MBA Program, Professor Dr. Martin Fassnacht, and Program Director MBA, Gerold Gnau, officially greeted the students with a welcome address during their first afternoon on campus. Entrepreneurship and innovation are core themes running throughout WHU’s MBA Program, and the new cohort experienced this through the introduction of the Future Leaders’ Fundraising Challenge by Professor Dr. Jane Lê, and later the Entrepreneurship Roundtable by alumnus Cornelius Steele and current MBA student Madhusudhan Vasavakkala.
The annual and highly anticipated MBA Night followed the introductions to the program and the official class photo of the new intake on Saturday evening. With over 350 attendees, including incoming and current students, alumni, faculty, and staff, the evening marked the first highlight of the program start. The MBA Night is the perfect opportunity for the new students to not only relax, but to network and gain a glimpse into the strength of the WHU MBA community.
“I strongly believe that the WHU MBA Program will be a great platform for me to grow both professionally and personally,” says Part-Time MBA student Jana Stang. “I am looking forward to learning from the best professors and co-students, to discover my boundaries, and become inspired by game-changing ideas, experiences and people.” Fellow student Yidi Wang adds, “Joining the MBA Program means that the challenge has been accepted. I am looking forward to seeing what challenges are in store for me during my time here.”
The following Monday signals the start of an intensive week for the students with the beginning of the Future Leaders’ Fundraising Challenge. As one of the most valuable experiences of the program, the challenge provides students with strategy and leadership insights in an experiential setting from the very start of their MBA journey. The weeklong module mixes teamwork with a different challenge each day and comprehensive feedback for every student, which equips each individual with skills they will continue to develop over the course of their studies while raising money for global charity Save the Children.
As the new students begin their first full week on campus, we look forward to seeing what they achieve throughout the duration of the program. Welcome to WHU and the start of your MBA journey!