Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/47623
headlines B-School Guarantees AS COMPETITION among business schools grows increasingly fierce, a number of leading institutions have started to offer ironclad guarantees to their graduates: The Haas School at UC Berkeley and The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, for instance, now extend to alums the opportunity for free, life- time education. Harvard Business School guarantees b-school admission to the undergraduates who participate in its 2+2 program, aimed at high-achieving juniors who want to work for two years between graduating and attending business classes. Richard Irwin, head of student recruitment for PwC, says, "We have long believed that employer-led degrees have a critical role in building the skills of students who know what they want out of a career." Henley will offer 40 places every year, with the first group of students due to start in September 2012. n The London School of Business and Finance also is promising each student in its new undergrad- uate program a full-time position within six months of graduation. While the LSBF's Trium program has not been launched with a specific business collabo- rator, the school is working in concert with various institutions. Trium's bachelor of arts degree will be validated by one of the school's partner universities, the University of Central Lancashire in the U.K. or the Grenoble Graduate School of Business in France. More important, Trium students will complete between 35 percent and 50 percent of the course- work and exams needed to achieve professional certification from the Chartered Institute of Market- ing (CIM), the Association of Chartered Certified Two business schools in the U.K. are guaranteeing their graduates jobs. Now two business schools in the U.K. are upping the ante by guaranteeing their graduates jobs. n Henley Business School at the University of Read- ing is promising students jobs through a new initiative it has launched with PwC and the Institute of Char- tered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). Students who enroll in the four-year bachelor's-level accounting and business program will work with PwC's assurance team on client projects during three paid internships in the last three years of the program. Not only will they be honing their work skills during this time, they will be simultaneously studying for the Associate Chartered Accountant (ACA) certification, the professional qualification of the ICAEW. They should obtain the degree and the certification in five years, instead of the traditional six, and if they successfully pass their exams and perform well in work placements, they are guaranteed jobs with PwC after graduation. 10 November/December 2011 BizEd Accountants (ACCA), or the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). Students also will participate in a graduate development program to hone their interpersonal and professional skills. To qualify for the job guarantee, Trium students must achieve a minimum 2:2 classification degree (roughly a B average). It is expected that students will complete their studies within five years. Says James Kirkbride, vice rector for the school, "Our Trium program will give students an academic qualifica- tion, a pathway to a professional qualification, and the practical skills to ready them for the workplace. In the unlikely event that they are not successful in their job searches, they will receive a £2,500 partial refund on their fees." While no particular role, salary, employer, or loca- tion is guaranteed, Kirkbride notes, the school's Cor- porate Careers team helps secure students jobs they truly want. The team "advertises internally to students, short-lists candidates, and carries out preliminary inter- views and psychometric testing so students have the best possible opportunity to start their careers." SOMOS/GLOW IMAGES