Seeking GLOBAL MBA in ASIA

That phenomenon is mostly Japan. Corporate culture is different there and job switching is not as common as in the West. There is also a culture of promoting from within rather than hiring from outside, therefore recruitment focuses are usually at the Graduate level. Having said that, Western companies in Japan still recruit MBA`s (IB, Consulting also). But the major corporations, the Mitsibushi, Fuji`s Matsushita etc., do not usually recruit MBA`s and will promote from within. Japan also has a low GINI co-efficient and a high GDP/Capita Ratio = less incentive to switch jobs on a salary basis.

In terms of China, job switching is common as people are looking to get higher salaries, recruiting is competitive, also, due to the growth of China, it`s developing education system and its human resource, the sheer number of bi-linguals with intellectual brain power to match is enormous. Many companies, who used to recruit ex-pats who spoke no/limited Chinese, now have a larger recruiting pool and are looking for bi-linguals for common MBA level jobs. For specialist roles (or someone with a strong network), knowing Mandarin is less of an issue.

In terms of schools and recruiting, CEIBS will be better networked and connected in Shanghai, Tsinghua - Beijing, both cities have different focuses, Shanghai has a higher proportion of finance related industries, Beijing has more tech companies. Hong Kong is a gateway city, mostly finance, but deals with more regional aspects beyond China. HKUST mostly serves this city.

All top tier companies will recruit at the top schools in the USA, but most of these companies are usually looking for bi-lingual Chinese. In terms of staying out in Asia, coming here will help you build a network, and the network you build will usually be the source of where employment comes from due to the cultural differences of the recruitment process, and you have a better chance of networking when you are out here.

An alternative strategy is to go to a US school and exchange out to Asia, then you can sample, see and network in Asia and mitigate some risk, although it could end up being a jack of all, master of none strategy.