Ask HKUST Admissions

Hi zhan0019,

We would be most happy to share with you our thoughts on whether HKUST MBA fits your career aspiration. But to do that, we prefer to know more about yourself than the above mentioned in order to give you more solid advice.

We can arrange our admissions specialist to offer you a phone consultation session for a more in-depth discussion. You can upload your CV (so that we will know more about your background) and sign up for a session here: https://www.mba.ust.hk/asp/intake2012eve ... ult_cv.asp

There is no harm to include your GRE score as an additional information in your application (provided that your score is good, of course) but if your GMAT score and undergraduate performance are good enough, that should be enough to prove your intellectual capacity.

Look forward to hearing from you.


HKUST MBA Admissions Team

Hi gnutsucram,

We have some updates on our career stats. The figures are what we have now and not yet final but you can take them for reference first.

In terms of job location, 90% of the 2011 graduates who reported their careers are working in Asia Pacific region. We have 52% working in Hong Kong, 20% in China, 5% in Singapore, 7% in Europe, 3% in North/Latin America/the Caribbean, and 13% in other Asia Pacific regions. The median annual base salary is HKD651,118/ ~USD83,477 and the mean is HKD600,000/~USD76,923. Bonuses, even guaranteed ones, are not included in the base annual salary.

80% of those now working in consulting switched their career. 83% of those working in finance - investment management/investment banking/research and 53% of those now working in finance - analysis, sales and trading, treasury had a career switch.

Hope the above is useful. Any questions, just let us know.


HKUST MBA Admissions Team

Hi HKUST,

The median salary figure is really impressive. It is already as much as 70-80% of Magic 7 school's figure! Given that the tax rate in Hong Kong is capped at 15% only, The after-taxed salary might be very close to US Top School!

Looking forward to see the full report

- Gnut Sucram

What is the average GMAT score for HKUST?

Hi ryanweng88

We don't have an average GMAT score. As a point of reference, the mid-70% range of our latest full-time intake is 600-720.

Any other questions, do let us know.


HKUST MBA Admissions Team

I attended the MBA Fair in SFO. And I met a confident and erudite HKUST representative. It was a very informative session. Infact, I now know that what I need to do before I join HKUST ( provided I get an admission )

I strongly encourage everyone to atleast make an effort to meet the alumni or school representative. Even though I had a long travel as I don't live in SFO, it was worth a trip. Go HKUST!!!!!!

Dear HKUST Admissions Team,

Thank you for taking questions on GMAT Club.

I was happy to learn that HKUST offers a Pre-Session Mandarin Course free of charge to its MBA students. I am wondering whether this course was designed for beginners or whether it can benefit students who are already proficient in Mandarin as well? Also I am wondering what type of Mandarin training is available during the 16-month program?

Thanks

While I will wait for the HKUST adcom's response, I can share some info about the Mandarin course, which was one of the big takeaway from the MBA tour. I was told that some students take the mandarin course in Beijing before the start of the MBA session. By doing this, we can devote more time in learning the new language and get an opportunity to acclimate with the new culture. While the HKUST course is good to learn the new language, the problem is the lack of time. Also, By the end of the MBA program, we may not be at the desired proficiency level required for the job in HK or China.

I am seriously considering the idea of spending 6 weeks in China and devote time in learning the language.

Hi talk2vj

Glad to know that you found the session at SF helpful. And thank you for your reply on the Mandarin course.


Hi shanghaizzle

The pre-MBA Mandarin training lasts for 3 weeks. Two levels are available - one for beginner with no exposure to Mandarin before, and one for those who have at least 40 hours of exposure. If you want to continue to learn Mandarin during the program, you can join the courses organized by our university's language center, which are available at different levels and offered at a discounted fee for students. As you can imagine, we are packing what is a 2-year program in the U.S. into 16 months, so the program is pretty intensive and it may be difficult to find the time to join the Mandarin courses regularly when you will have many other engagements related to student club activities or career preparations.

As talk2vj said, what our students usually do is to take an intensive Mandarin training in China for several months before the MBA so you can at least have a basic understanding of Mandarin when you join the program. Beijing is a popular spot. Some say Harbin, which is less an international city, is good too.

During the program, you can look for classmates who are also interested in learning the language and hire a private tutor together. This way, the time can be more flexible and you can learn the language more effectively with more opportunity to practice speaking in a smaller group. Choosing an exchange school in China is important to further improve your Mandarin before joining the workforce. Of course, speaking with your Chinese classmates (we usually have at least 20% of the class coming from China) is also a good way to practice.

Hope the above helps. Let us know if you have any other questions.



HKUST MBA Admissions Team

Some comparisons on taxation in the 3 largest financial centers of the world (NYC, London & HK) that I would like to share:

Hong Kong - 15% maximum income tax; 0% VAT; 0% capital gains tax
London - 50% maximum income tax; 20% VAT on most goods; 18-40% capital gains tax
New York - 46% maximum federal+state+municipal income tax; 8.75% VAT on most goods; 15-35% capital gains tax

The average pre-tax salary for HK workers is lower than the average for workers in London or New York, but purchasing power for HK workers is often higher because of much lower taxes and because prices for goods and services are usually cheaper.

I'm still around so can try to help with anything non-admission related.

HKUST Admissions,

I would like to thank you for the information provided , it has been very useful.

After a considerable research I found HKUST a got fit, I am applying for Round 1

I have over 10 years experience in the Banking & Financial services sector in a large economy in Asia.

Presently I am at a leadership function and Manage a large team size with multiple geographical locations.

I would like to know does the admissions approach at HKUST receptive to profiles with over 10 years of experience.

Thanks & Regards

Hi mbamaster,

It is difficult for us to say how your 10+ years of work experience will be approached here since it really depends on your overall profile and whether our MBA can help you achieve your goals. But we would be happy to address this question in a phone consultation session with you after we get to know you better. If you are interested, you can sign up for a session and upload your CV here: https://www.mba.ust.hk/asp/intake2012events/indconsult_cv.asp


HKUST MBA Admissions Team

I have Two questions......

1.I want to know How is HKUST different from other business schools?

2.I have 2.5 Years Exp in a software industry and i have 86.5% in my 10th standard,88% in my high school and 81.1 in my under-graduation where do i stand in getting into HKUST, and with my academics what is the required Gmat score to get into this business school?

Thanks in advance.........

Hi kotela,

1. How HKUST is different from other business schools

a. Asia and China focus

Hong Kong is a popular choice of base for regional operations for both global business going East and Asian business going global because of its location at the gateway of China and heart of Asia. We have former senior executives with exceptional experience in Asia business as our faculty, including the former CEO of PepsiCo Asia, former CEO of Walmart China, former Chief Marketing Officer & Chief Information Office of IBM, etc. Our faculty will not only use global business cases but also Asia-specific case studies during class. Also, over 90% of our graduates work in Asia and give rise to our strong alumni network in Asia. If you want to work in the booming markets in Asia, then our program can be the right place for you.

b. Global exposure

We have a small class size compared with other MBA programs, with 100-120 students enrolling each year. But over 25 nationalities and 90% non-local nationality are represented in this small community, which accounts for a highly intensive multicultural experience. Students will be divided into groups in the beginning of the program to make sure a certain diversity is always present in each group and to avoid people of similar backgrounds from spending all the time together. Class profile: https://mba.ust.hk/ftmba/studentlife/profile.htm

Exchange opportunity is also guaranteed and students can choose from 56 exchange schools in over 17 countries, including both Asian (China, Singapore, etc.) and western (U.S., London, etc.). Exchange school list: https://mba.ust.hk/ftmba/program/exchange.htm

c. Curriculum

We have a 16-month program which is shorter than other MBAs and still includes a summer free from studies for students to pursuit an internship and a semester for exchange. So the opportunity cost is lower compared with other 2-year programs.

We have 5 career tracks for our electives so that students can choose to focus on an area most suitable for their goals and interests. They include General Management, Finance, Marketing, Consulting and Strategy, and Entrepreneurship.

We highly encourage you to take a look at our brochure which can be downloaded here to know more about what our program offers: https://www.mba.ust.hk/enews/subscription/brochure.asp


2. GMAT score

Our admissions committee will review candidates' whole profile when making the admissions decision, including intellectual capacity (GMAT, undergraduate performance), work experience (work references, amount of work experience, global exposure, management experience, etc.), personal attributes (communication skills, confidence, teamwork, cultural sensitivity, etc.), matching (your goals and whether our program can provide what you need), and potential contribution to the program.

Therefore, we do not have any specific requirements for any of the above areas. As a point of reference, the mid-70% range of our current class' GMAT is 600-720. Normally, we will access a candidate's GMAT together with his/her undergraduate performance. So having a very good undergraduate performance can complement a lower GMAT score and vice versa.


Any questions, just let us know.

HKUST MBA Admissions Team

Dear Admissions Team,

Can you please answer the below questions:

1. Please throw some more light on the exchange programs? What number/percentage of students go to top 10 - 15 schools across the globe?
2. What percentage/number of students with non-finance background are able to get into hardcore finance jobs such as IB, Corp. Finance, Asset Management etc.? I have more than 3 years of experience with about 1.5 years in Financial Management and Sourcing Advisory with one of the Big 4s
3. I have absolutely zero knowledge of Mandarin and personally I think I don't I have a knack of picking up languages (as only once in my life did I try to learn a foreign language (French) and I was really bad at it, I do not consider English as a foreign language). Would all this be a problem pre/post admission or for getting a job?
4. My college GPA was not very good (6.5 on a scale of 10). However, I would like to point out that my undergrad college (Indian Institute of Technology) follows a relative grading system. Moreover, the overall competition in the college is pretty high as only the 'top' rankers are admitted to the college. How important this factor would be?
5. Do Indians need to take TOEFL? As I stated earlier, I am a graduate of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee and English was the medium of teaching
6. Are there any quotas/preferences etc. for certain demographic profiles, I know Indian male is generally an over-represented demographic profile. Are there any additional requirements(a higher GMAT score or something) for my demographic profile?
7. Lastly, does the academic background of recommender also play a part? My current boss is a NUS passout and I am hoping to get a reco from him, will that be useful?

Just to complete my profile, I have taken the GMAT and my score is 700 (Q50, V34) and I have completed FRM (Full) course and also passed CFA L-1. I am still contemplating taking the GMAT again.

Thanks in advance!!!!!

Hi IndianExpress,

Thank you for your interest in our program. Below in red is our reply.

1. Please throw some more light on the exchange programs? What number/percentage of students go to top 10 - 15 schools across the globe?
First of all, our students may not all opt for the global top 10-15 schools. Quite a number will choose schools which may not be considered as top global schools in rankings but are relevant to their goals or interests, e.g. schools in China or Singapore. Also, it is difficult to judge which schools are the top 10-15. As a point of reference, around 50% of our students going on exchange this year went to LBS, Berkeley, Chicago, Columbia, Cornell, NYU, Kellogg and UCLA. However, the number of seats available for each school is subject to change every year.

2. What percentage/number of students with non-finance background are able to get into hardcore finance jobs such as IB, Corp. Finance, Asset Management etc.? I have more than 3 years of experience with about 1.5 years in Financial Management and Sourcing Advisory with one of the Big 4s
So far we don't have stats that specific for this year's graduate performance. However, we can tell you that 79% of our 2011 graduates changed their career function after MBA and 31% of the whole class are working in finance-related roles.

3. I have absolutely zero knowledge of Mandarin and personally I think I don't I have a knack of picking up languages (as only once in my life did I try to learn a foreign language (French) and I was really bad at it, I do not consider English as a foreign language). Would all this be a problem pre/post admission or for getting a job?
It really depends on the nature of your job and what markets/clients you have to deal with. If it involves working with Mainland China market/clients, then it is very likely that Mandarin is required. If the job nature is more global, then Mandarin may not be that important. However, knowing Mandarin can always open more doors for MBA graduates who want to work in Asia.

4. My college GPA was not very good (6.5 on a scale of 10). However, I would like to point out that my undergrad college (Indian Institute of Technology) follows a relative grading system. Moreover, the overall competition in the college is pretty high as only the 'top' rankers are admitted to the college. How important this factor would be?
We look at candidates' GMAT score together with his GPA when we evaluate his intellectual capacity for our MBA studies. If your GPA isn't that good, you should get a higher GMAT score. Your current score of 700 is decent enough and at the higher end of our mid-70% range for the latest class.

5. Do Indians need to take TOEFL? As I stated earlier, I am a graduate of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee and English was the medium of teaching
If you can submit proof (e.g. an official letter by your university) stating that the language of instruction in your undergraduate degree is English, then you don't need to send us a TOEFL score.

6. Are there any quotas/preferences etc. for certain demographic profiles, I know Indian male is generally an over-represented demographic profile. Are there any additional requirements(a higher GMAT score or something) for my demographic profile?
We don't really have specific requirements for a particular demographic profile. Still, having a prior international exposure can be a distinguishing factor since quite a number of Indian candidates only have local experience.

7. Lastly, does the academic background of recommender also play a part? My current boss is a NUS passout and I am hoping to get a reco from him, will that be useful?
Your referee's academic background doesn't really matter as long as he is someone who can provide solid comments on your work performance and capabilities. We look at candidates' references to learn more about what kind of person they are rather than whom they know.

Any questions, just let us know.


HKUST MBA Admissions Team