The UCT GSB held an open day for prospective MBA and EMBA students this June at its Breakwater Lodge Campus in the heart of Cape Town’s V & A Waterfront.

The day gave prospective students the opportunity to experience what it would be like to study at the school.

Director of the MBA and EMBA programmes, Segran Nair, said that it proved a successful venture in highlighting what the different programmes at the GSB offer students. “The MBA is not a light undertaking, and there are more factors to take into consideration when deciding on where to study than one might first realise. Our open day is well structured so that potential students can engage with both staff and students – so that full understanding can be reached on the full variety or opportunities that the GSB has on offer.”

An extensive list of activities made up the day, including a tour of the campus, lecture sit-ins, talks by academics such as director of the GSB Walter Baets and director of research at the GSB Ralph Hamann, as well as talks from past students who testified to the transformative power of an MBA at the GSB.

Walter Baets said that as the only South African and African business school to have achieved a Global Top 100 MBA ranking in the Financial Times rankings survey, the GSB offers a relevant and comprehensive curriculum that is internationally benchmarked. But more than that – its local focus and emerging expertise in social innovation and entrepreneurship makes it ideally suited for application in today’s business world.

“The GSB’s approach to learning is to encourage participants to question and debate the material that is offered to them and to apply it to real-life situations. We create opportunities for our students, course delegates and employees to develop and grow,” said Baets.

Lynn de Villiers, Logistics and Testing Manager at the GSB's Admissions Department, said that dedicating an entire day was proving far more effective than the industry standard of hosting evening events. “Instead of telling them about the school, it's better to let them experience it for themselves. During the day they have the chance to really experience a day in the life of the GSB - the lectures, interaction with students and staff; to really see for themselves all the opportunities that the business school has to offer,” she said.

The day also acted as a valuable networking session, even for those not interested in enrolling, but who wished to increase their influence in the world of business, and gain new contacts with the captains of different industries.

“Over the past few years we have reformatted our open academic programmes so that in addition to our full-time MBA, all our open academic programmes, Executive MBA, Post Graduate Diploma in Management Practice (PDBA) and Associate in Management Programme (AIM) are offered in a modular format. So anyone wishing to attain these prestigious qualifications are afforded the opportunity to visit the world’s number one tourist destination and gain the most prestigious MBA in Africa,” said de Villiers.

There will be more Open Days held in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban and Namibia. For further information on these, please visit www.gsb.uct.ac.za/s.asp?p=6.