Esade MBA amongst the best 5 in the world for entrepreneurs, says Poets&Quants
Esade’s Full-Time MBA is #2 in Europe and #4 in the world according to the latest Poets&Quants ranking of the ‘Best MBA Programs for Entrepreneurship’. These first-rate positions confirm Esade’s standing in the entrepreneurship ranking by this US journal, appearing in the world’s top five for the third year running.
Joan Rodon, dean of Esade Business School, considers that “many variables contribute to our Full-Time MBA being acknowledged, year after year, in this entrepreneurship ranking. One in particular is the high percentage of program professors directly linked to entrepreneurship (76%) or who teach subjects in this sphere (41%), in addition to our study plan which includes subjects related to entrepreneurship (24% of main subjects and 32% of electives) and the Esade Entrepreneurship Lab, an initiative enabling students to participate in different activities, such as visits to companies, study tours to entrepreneurial ecosystems elsewhere in the world and meetings with investors and foremost entrepreneurs”.
The Esade entrepreneurship ecosystem
“Theoretical-practical training provides technical knowledge,” explained Rodon, “but to drive our students’ innovative and entrepreneurial capabilities, they must experience and implement their projects in real-life settings. This is why, here at Esade, we promote the educational experience through ecosystems and places where students can develop their creativity and business acumen, and gain the skills needed to be enterprising and put their ideas into practice. One indication of the effectiveness of our methodology is that in the last 5 years, an average 8% of our students start a business within 3 months of graduating.”
At the core of Esade’s entrepreneurial ecosystem is the work carried out by the Esade Entrepreneurship Institute (EEI), a center of knowledge which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary, devoted to academic excellence in entrepreneurship and other related disciplines, through research, teaching, the concept and creation of new companies, in addition to outreach activities. One of the opportunities that EEI gives Esade students and recent graduates is eWorks, a business creation program offering a variety of activities and services providing encouragement and support for entrepreneurs seeking to accelerate their projects, with the aim of creating exceptional businesses that can have a positive impact on society. This program is open to Esade students and alumni, and also start-ups with no links to Esade.
eWorks is part of the Rambla of Innovation, a physical space for experimenting and creating where Esade’s educational and research work coexists with the business world, public authorities and social entities. It consists of seven learning labs stretching along the road from the conception of a new idea (Fusion Point), through research and feasibility testing (Decision Lab), the manufacture of prototypes (FabLab) and definition of the business model (eGarage and Finance Lab), to establishing the company (eWorks) and its media (Media Room). Every year, more than 130 professors, and some 2,200 students and 120 companies, go through the Rambla of Innovation, located on Esade’s Sant Cugat campus.
