EFMD Awards EQUIS Accreditation to Victoria University of Wellington, Singapore Management University and the University of Sheffield

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, December 21, 2011 (Press-News.org) EFMD would like to warmly congratulate the: Victoria University of Wellington, Faculty of Commerce & Administration; Singapore Management University, Lee Kong Chian School of Business and the University of Sheffield, Management School.

"We are delighted to welcome 3 more leading international schools into the EQUIS community. Accreditation from EFMD is one of the best and most complete ways to certify the actual quality of a business school as accreditation involves an extensive self-assessment by the school, the visit of an international review team who spend several days interviewing many different people in the School, and finally a very experienced jury evaluating the assessment and findings of the review team to determine whether the School should be granted accreditation. There are currently no substitutes for such an in-depth assessment of quality and the new schools should be commended for their commitment to excellence," said Prof. Julio Urgel, the EFMD Director of Quality Service.

"We are extremely proud to have built up the school's global standing in a short span of eleven years since our establishment in the year 2000. The EQUIS accreditation is testimony of the fine quality of our programmes and faculty, as well as the high value proposition that we offer to current and prospective students," said Professor Howard Thomas, Dean of the Singapore Management University Lee Kong Chian School of Business. "It takes a great deal of determination and self-assessment to achieve accreditation, which, in itself, is a rigorous process of evaluation and review. To be one of the few schools in Asia to attain a five-year accreditation demonstrates the EFMD's strong confidence in the holistic nature and high quality of our undergraduate and post-graduate programmes."

"The School is absolutely delighted to have been awarded EQUIS accreditation", says Professor Bob Buckle, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Dean of the Business School, Victoria University of Wellington. "This recognises the quality and relevance of our programmes and our commitment to continuous improvement".

"I am delighted that the Management School at the University of Sheffield has been awarded EQUIS accreditation. This is a significant achievement for the School, and recognition of the hard work and dedication of my colleagues to meet the international benchmark of excellence that the award represents," said Dr. Keith Glaister, Dean of the University of Sheffield Management School.

EQUIS is not primarily focused on the MBA or any other specific programme as its scope covers all of programmes offered by an institution from the first degree up to the Ph.D. Institutions that are accredited by EQUIS must demonstrate not only high general quality in all dimensions of their activities, but also a high degree of internationalisation. With companies recruiting worldwide, with students choosing to get their education outside their home countries, and with schools building alliances across borders and continents, there is a rapidly growing need for them to be able to identify those institutions in other countries that deliver high quality education in international management. EQUIS also believes that business schools should be as closely connected to the real world of business as schools of medicine are to working hospitals. There must be a balance between high academic quality and the professional relevance provided by close interaction with the corporate world. EQUIS attaches particular importance to the development of managerial and entrepreneurial skills and fosters a students sense of global responsibility.

More information on EQUIS is available at www.efmd.org/equis.

ABOUT EFMD
EFMD advances excellence in management development in Europe and worldwide by building links between leading business schools and companies, creating and disseminating knowledge on best practices and changing trends and providing access to benchmarking tools and accreditations (EQUIS, EPAS, CEL, CLIP). With more than 780 member organizations from academia, business, public service and consultancy in 82 countries, EFMD provides a unique forum for information, research, networking and debate on innovation and best practice in management development.