University of Edinburgh Business School
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Business internships are partnerships where both parties stand to gain equal benefit. Businesses gain a mature student with a broad range of industry skills and international business experience - at comparatively little expense. The student gains exposure to new ways of working, developing their skills in a meaningful business environment.
Internships are available on both the 12 month Full-Time MBA and the 15 month MBA in International Business (MBAIB).
The School welcomes interest from any organisation about hosting an internship, whether this is a one-off hosting to carry out a specific project or a programme of internships to provide the organisation with a regular input of MBA level expertise.
The benefits of hosting an internship
These are wide-ranging and are partly dependent upon the project. However, the benefits common to all internships include:
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Consultancy at a fraction of the cost of a mainstream consulting house. Each student can call upon the considerable resources of the University and is supported by an academic supervisor with specialist knowledge in the field.
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An opportunity to gain experience of a student's work as a prelude to possible long-term employment, with the minimum of risk.
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For the MBAIB internship, the international experience of the student. This may prove advantageous in considering entry into an overseas market.
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Flexibility in terms of the work to be carried out during the internship. This work, which should reflect the maturity and expertise of the student and be clearly defined from the outset, can be in the form of a specific project or a series of projects, tailored to your needs.
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A substantial outcome, in terms of both the work carried out during the internship but also the dissertation that follows.
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The opportunity to build a relationship with a leading business school. This should both raise your company profile and provide opportunities that are created by being introduced to the wider University network.
The MBA in International Business internship (15 month programme)
This is a summer internship followed by a related dissertation; it is a compulsory part of the programme. The programme has run for 13 years. The degree format follows the 12 month MBA for the first two semesters; it then incorporates a term of study at one of our overseas partner schools, followed by an internship with a company or organisation outside the student’s country of origin. The internship serves as the basis for the dissertation studied during the final three months of the programme.
As its name implies, the Edinburgh MBAIB is highly international in terms of both its perspective and its student body. Students on the MBAIB integrate with the 12 month MBA students in the first semester core courses covering the main business functions, as well as business ethics and quantitative analysis. This is followed, in the second semester, by a choice of option courses and the Strategic Management course.
As a result, the MBAIB students benefit from the excitement and pleasure of working with this internationally and professionally diverse and experienced group.
The Full-time MBA internship (12 month programme)
Unlike the MBA in International Business Internship, an internship on the 12 month programme is not compulsory. It is offered as an additional element to the programme, so that the student can apply what they have learned on the programme, together with their background experience, into a ‘real life’ project.
From a recruitment perspective, the internship is a highly effective way for the host organisation to assess the strengths of the student. From this perspective it can, in effect, be regarded as a long interview. Where an internship is taken up, the deadline for the dissertation, which is usually closely related to the internship, can be extended by up to two months.
The 12 month MBA programme has now run for more than 25 years. The first semester comprises a series of core courses that cover the main business functions as well as business ethics and quantitative analysis. This is followed, in the second semester, by a choice of optioncourses and the Strategic Management course.
During the second half of the second semester, the students carry out a consultancy project with a local company or organisation. The internship is, therefore, the second opportunity on the programme for the students to apply their academic and professional knowledge.
What sort of company suits an internship?
Put simply, any company, government agency, NGO or charity with an interesting and challenging project. The School particularly welcomes internship enquiries from financial institutions.
A wide range of companies have offered internships to our students. These include Barclays Capital in Japan, the UN in New York, The Chicago Board of Trade, Ernst & Young, Shell UK and Intel.