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Dutch citizens also take GMAT tests in record numbers.

MBA candidates are looking at Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands with great interest due to soft immigration laws and lower prices.

This time Frank Fletcher returned to Belgium. As head of recruitment at the Belgian business school Vlerick, he worked hard to bring together the international staff of the school.

But it was not an easy task. To add variety to the school's Belgian MBA, he has traveled to nearly thirty countries on five continents in nine months.

"We put a lot of effort into selecting talent from around the world," he says. Like many European business schools, the groups in Vlerick are mostly made up of international students, but this has not always been the case in all schools.

Emerging European education markets have not always had a large share of the world market. Belgium and other countries on the continent, such as Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands, languished behind in the great MBA race.

"Belgium does not have the same market size as the UK and France," says Frank. He acknowledges that Belgium will not compete in terms of the total number of MBA students, but is firmly convinced that it can compete in terms of the quality of education, experience and opportunities. This view is shared by many emerging European business schools.

"The Netherlands can compete with larger European countries when it comes to international education," said Dr. Milton Souza, director of MBA and Executive MBA programs at the Rotterdam School of Management (RSM).

Their university. Rotterdam's Erasmus expects 5,500 international students from eighty different nationalities, most of whom are studying business administration in Rotterdam.

"The Netherlands has been a country with great international prospects for many decades," says Dr. Milton. According to the FT rating, about 94% of MBA students in RSM are foreigners.

There are signs that the MBA market in the Netherlands is starting to move. Their schools are growing in MBA rankings - TIAS and RSM Business School are in the top 75.

Candidates are now considering a wider range of destinations in Europe, including Copenhagen, Brussels, Rotterdam and even Oslo. They are attracted by lower tuition fees, soft immigration laws and the "Scandinavian approach" - smaller, more "intimate" classes.

A recent survey of candidates showed that Denmark and Norway rose four places, with Denmark overtaking China, one of the more developed MBA markets, according to QS.

The Netherlands is currently in the top ten most popular countries for an MBA - ahead of Italy, India and most Asian countries.

Dr. Milton says RSM believes that smaller and more diverse MBA classes will help build better relationships, meaning that graduates will be stronger in the international job market.

The Copenhagen School of Business recruits only 35-40 MBA students each year. MBA full-time recruitment manager Tully Cutloano Skozana says this attracts applicants. About 70% of Copenhagen school students are foreigners.

“The teaching style is unique; even the way students are placed in the classroom encourages active participation. This is a Scandinavian approach, ”adds Tully.

Increased enthusiasm for new European destinations is also reflected in the number of candidates who send their GMAT test results to the Netherlands. Their number has increased from 3,488 to 7,117, which has more than doubled in the last four years.

Dutch citizens also take GMAT tests in record numbers. The numbers increased by 15% from 2008 to 2012, when 960 tests were passed, according to the international non-profit organization GMAC.

But local candidates still prefer to study abroad. Europeans do not send their results to business schools in the Netherlands in large numbers. In 2012, only 1,011 applications were submitted, which is less than 7% of the total market share.

The ranking shows that only 5% of the MBA class in Rotterdam are Dutch. Dr Milton says local MBA candidates are more likely to seek happiness outside the eurozone, which is still struggling to restore economic growth.

"The Netherlands is a small country, so if someone is looking for an international MBA program, it would be advisable to go international," he adds.

The situation is almost identical in Belgium, says Frank. Only 15% of Vlerick MBA students are Belgian. "Almost 60% of Belgians who take the GMAT test send their results to the United States, the United Kingdom, or France," he added.

Some people argue that Denmark has not done enough to retain talent, a country whose government introduced the second development package in two years in 2014, while the economy is struggling to show growth, which is not easy due to persisting weakness of the euro area.

This will be particularly important for small and medium-sized enterprises, which account for 66% of all the country's wage earners, due to inheritance problems.

The companies where the owner is the manager make up 80% of all business in Denmark, and almost 20% of such owners are over the age of 65, says Morten Bennedsen, head of the family business department at the French business school INSEAD.

The Danish Industrial Fund estimates that due to the age of the owners, about 25,000 companies in Denmark will have to move to new owners within the next ten years.

Europe has a high rate of self-employment. Tully says Copenhagen's MBA programs focus on entrepreneurship. Although less than 10% of MBA students open their own companies, graduates have an advantage - a formed entrepreneurial worldview.

"We focus on leadership, entrepreneurship and sustainable development," she said. "People who come here want to see an interdisciplinary approach to education."

About 40% of Copenhagen's international graduates work in Denmark. Candidates are attracted by the MBA program, which has triple accreditation and costs $ 56,000, as well as a new government immigration scheme - the green card.

Unlike the United Kingdom and the United States, which have restrictive immigration policies for international MBAs, many emerging European destinations welcome candidates with open arms.

"We are fortunate to live in a country that welcomes and values international talent," says Dr. Milton. He claims that 50-60% of his graduates work in the Netherlands.

"Obviously, this is a great incentive for many students who choose to study at RSM," he adds. About half of the MBA classes pursue careers in financial services, consulting or marketing, and business development.

It's like running a TIAS business school, says Humphrey Sopokuwa, an MBA advisor responsible for recruitment.

"International students are granted a one-year visa after completing their program to find work in the buy a comparison essay cheap country," says Humphrey. Once they find a job, employers can apply for a residence permit on their behalf as a knowledge migrant kennismigrant, he adds.

The € 37,500 full-time MBA program, which costs € 37,500, entered the world MBA rankings two years ago.

This school limits the number of Dutch students in its class to reserve places for international candidates. "International students can count on becoming part of a multicultural environment," Humphrey added.

At the same time, Frank says that international Vlerick graduates do not get a job easily. The ability to communicate in the local language is one of the biggest challenges an MBA graduate will face.

In Belgium, which is considered the heart of Europe, the Vlerick MBA is mobile. Students benefit from transport infrastructure and can quickly reach Paris, London and Amsterdam, while the cost of living in Belgium is much lower than in many other European countries.

"In Belgium, you get the best that Western Europe has to offer at this price," says Frank. His € 36,000 MBA program is taught in Brussels, Ghent and Leuven. There are concerns, however, about the number of applications. In most business schools in the Netherlands, the number of MBA applications remains about the same.

But Dr. Milton says companies are now ready to invest in staff development, as there is now a global increase in the number of MBA-sponsoring companies after the financial crisis.

"At the moment, we are seeing an increase in the number of applications for our Executive MBA programs within our domestic and international markets," he says. RSM expects this trend to continue.

However, there are other challenges facing these new business schools. Frank notes that Vlerick has to compete with China and India, as well as leading schools in the United States and Europe.

However, there is a change in the air, and Europe's emerging MBA market feels confident.

"Compare ... Favorable tuition fees and the fact that the Dutch are generally known for their knowledge of English as a second language," says Humphrey, "and I would say that we are definitely able to compete with more developed markets." "

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