In this podcast we spoke with Seraphine Nathania about the start of her Full-time MBA journey. Seraphine specialises in risk internal auditing and decided to do an MBA here are RSM. Even though her Full-time MBA journey just started in January 2024, we asked her about her decision making process and her journey so far. We also asked her if she had any prior expectations of doing an MBA. ‘I did not expect the MBA to be an easy and smooth journey. I believe that it must be challenging. But at the same time I also believe that it will be a rewarding experience,’ Seraphine shared.
Listen to the podcast, to learn more about her decision making process and how her journey has been so far.
In this podcast we spoke to Hans Koolen. Hans has over 30 years of experience in business and IT and is now the owner of NUB3S. Hans has been collaborating with RSM and the careers team since 2014 in sharing his knowledge with our MBA participants.
In this episode we discuss the subject of career growth after completing an MBA, some valuable insights into what MBA students should consider when evaluating potential employers and we dive into the future of AI in the workplace.
‘You need to be self aware. What separates you from the herd? What separates you from your classmates? I believe it's not knowledge that sets us apart. It's a couple of things. It's pride. It's your social skills. And social skills are not something that you stumble across. It's something that you can educate yourself on,' Hans shares.
Listen to the full podcast to hear Hans's great advice for all MBA students.
When asked what the added value is of having different backgrounds in the Global Executive MBA cohort, both academic and in terms of work experience, Peter Drake (GEMBA Class of '25) shared that it helps broaden your knowledge. 'Broadening your horizons and broadening your understanding, enables you to make a broader contribution. Modern business is all about collaboration and I think the MBA gives you that capability.'
In this podcast Peter shares his view on the GEMBA journey, his own personal and professional background and how this programme helps him broaden his knowledge and horizons.
Listen to the full podcast to hear Peter's great advice on doing an MBA.
In this podcast episode, Vivian Faceto (GEMBA '24) shares her experience with the Global Executive MBA.
During the Global Executive MBA, Vivian Faceto learned that some of her weaknesses, turned out to be her strengths. The GEMBA allows her to recognize that working with both her strengths as well as her so called weaknesses helps her become a better leader.
'Many things that I thought were bad, weaknesses, ended up being my strengths,' Vivian says.
Listen to the full podcast to hear more about Vivian's GEMBA journey.
The ability to choose advanced courses based on career aspirations is one of the remarkable features of our Full-time MBA program.
‘(…) Even though we have been together as a cohort through our main core courses, you can choose in which area you would like to develop in your professional career. Or in which area you would like to learn more.’ Juan Jose Castillo (Full-time MBA Class of ’24) shares.
In this podcast Juan shares his module three and four highlights, providing an inside look into these enriching learning phases, the advanced courses, the Living Management Project and an incredible study trip to Estonia. Hit play, sit back and listen to the full podcast episode about Juan’s journey!
The ability to choose advanced courses based on career aspirations is one of the remarkable features of our Full-time MBA program.
‘(…) Even though we have been together as a cohort through our main core courses, you can choose in which area you would like to develop in your professional career. Or in which area you would like to learn more.’ Juan Jose Castillo (Full-time MBA Class of ’24) shares.
In this podcast Juan shares his module three and four highlights, providing an inside look into these enriching learning phases, the advanced courses, the Living Management Project and an incredible study trip to Estonia. Hit play, sit back and listen to the full podcast episode about Juan’s journey!
When considering doing a Global Executive MBA, Diana Lo-A-Njoe (GEMBA Class of '24) was not sure she was the right person to do an MBA. 'I have a strong business side but I also have an artistic side, will all those sides of me be met in this programme?' Diana wondered. 'It exceeded my expectations,' she shared.
When asked about the most challenging part so far in the Global Executive MBA, Diana Lo-A-Njoe (GEMBA Class of '24) mentioned the Strategic Leadership Development Course. 'It was enrichening. Something cannot be confronting and not enrich you,' says Diana.
Listen to the full episode, to learn more about Diana's Global Executive MBA experience and her advice on starting your MBA journey.
‘Everything you do more than once is a process, even making your coffee in the morning. And everything you do more than once you can improve,' says Merieke Stevens, Associate Professor of Technology and Operations Management.
In this podcast we explore the core course Operations Management and its role within the Full-time MBA programme. When it comes to Operations Management, 'sometimes there's a bit of a misunderstanding that this is quite a quantitative course that's focused on logistics and we do lots of mathematical modeling, but actually we do none of that. What you need is a keen eye for development around you. You need a keen eye on how 'a' gets to 'b' and 'b' gets to 'c',' says Merieke.
Listen to the full episode, to learn more about how and why the core course Operations Management is an important course within the Full-time MBA programme.
In this podcast episode, Amit Kumar (GEMBA '24) shares his experience with the Global Executive MBA.
“I think Strategic Leadership Development is the core of this education. I really like the mentors and career coaches that are assigned to us, as part of the course that enables us with a lot of tools and practical examples or practical solutions to solve our daily challenges (…),” says Amit. When talking about the SDG’s Amit highlights the one that really stands out for him. He also shares his GEMBA journey and how the study trip to Stockholm inspired him to take more risks.
Listen to the full podcast to hear more about Amit's GEMBA journey.
The Personal Leadership Development (PLD) course is integrated throughout the whole MBA programme, both Full-time MBA as well as Executive MBA. Why is that? And what is the added value of this course and of becoming more self-aware? And how does this affect your leadership style? In this episode Björn Atterstam, Lecturer and PHD candidate at Rotterdam School of Management, answers these questions and more, about the PLD course.
‘In general when you are at work and working with colleagues, etc. It has less to do with what you know and it has more to do with who you are and how you are when you are with other people in particular. So the PLD experience invites you to really drill down into, or explore more about yourself. So that you can be more skilled, in general in life (…) and also more skilled in when you are with other people.’ Björn Atterstam.
Listen to the full episode, to learn more about this amazing course, that truly distinguished this Full-time MBA programme from others.
‘Module two was quite a bit different than module one in two main aspects I would say. Firstly, there was a significant number of assignments in module two, while module one was more based on quizzes,’ Juan Jose Castillo (FTMBA ’24) says.
In this episode, Juan shares how the second module revolved more around assignments and teamwork. He shares some of the learnings and highlights of this second module. He also shares how he attended the graduation ceremony in March, when one of his friends and our alums graduated and how he experienced that.
To learn more about Juan’s experiences during the second module of his FTMBA journey and what he looks forward to in the next modules, listen to the full podcast!
In this podcast Julie Foucqueteau (Executive MBA ’23) shares how her EMBA journey has been going. How it has been to study again and how she managed to start her EMBA journey here at RSM, while taking care of her six week old baby together with her husband.
‘My life changed, of course, because you’re studying again. But I think it changed more because I became a mom and had to figure that out. You can be prepared as much as you want, but you can never really figure that out before’ – Julie Foucqueteau, EMBA class of 2023
Listen to the full episode to learn more about Julie’s journey, the importance of having a sound support system and her advice
Discover the firsthand experience of Juan Jose Castillo, a Full-time MBA student at Rotterdam School of Management, as he shares his journey of moving from Peru to the Netherlands and meeting his peers. In this podcast, Juan talks about his expectations and how the MBA program has changed his perspectives.
If you are interested how Juan experienced the first module of his Full-time MBA, listen to the full podcast!
‘It’s a transformational experience (…). I really recognize that there’s some magic in the curriculum and in the journey. That is why people do an MBA. So you want to change as a person, you want to develop yourself, you want to discover new opportunities(…) You need to find out, what is the little magic in this programme, and is that the kind of magic that I’m looking for?’
Jochem Kroezen, the Academic Director of the Full-time MBA, shares what the Full-time actually has to offer. Why should you consider doing an MBA at RSM? What is it that you are looking for and could an MBA at RSM possibly be the next right move?
The topics in this podcast are:
In this podcast Meghan McKinnon, one of RSM’s Career Development Managers, shares how the career centre helps guide and coach our current students during their MBA journey.
‘We focus on four primary areas, so the first one is self-awareness. That’s knowing who you are, that’s knowing where your skill-sets lie, where your strengths are, what you really enjoy doing. And often times as we just go through our career, we don’t really step back and think about these things and evaluate them. So we do spend quite a lot of time on that.’
Listen to the full podcast to learn more about how our career center is there for our students, as soon as they embark on their MBA journey.
The topics in this podcast are:
Joe Farthing, the Communications Manager at the Corporate & Alumni Relations Teams here at RSM shared how their team helps both students as well as alumni navigate the alumni network of over 45.000 change-makers. We spoke about the various ways you can connect with the team and the network, such as through the MentorMe Platform.
‘As you graduate, well you can still be a mentee, you can still get advice. But if you graduate you’re also eligible to be a mentor yourself. So maybe you want to give advice for that new MBA student who just arrived. Or perhaps you want to help someone who’s even a little bit earlier in their career path, and help a Bachelor or Master student as well from RSM. This is all possible, so that you can be both a mentor and a mentee(...)’
Listen to the full podcast to learn more about how the alumni team responds to the needs of current student, early graduates and graduates that are further into their post-graduate experience. The topics in this podcast are:
You can always reach the alumni team via e-mail: alumni@rsm.nl
When asked how the EMBA impacted his decision making skills, here’s what Reinier Hille Ris Lambers, graduate of the EMBA class of ’18, had to say: ‘I learned how to make decision. And not just decisions for me, but decisions in which we had to agree as a team. And that was very important. It’s not your decision making skills that are necessarily important. It’s your skills in making the right decisions and right in terms of what is right for the people you are working with and the collective thing you are trying to deliver.’
With over fifteen years of experience in the research and environment sector, Reinier decided to do an Executive MBA to hone his business skills and knowledge. Once he joined the EMBA he realized how his own expertise was of value and how he could add value to the teams he was part of during the EMBA.
The topics that are covered in this podcast: -
Listen to this podcast episode to hear Reinier’s story.
'Being in a team with people not only from different nationalities, but also different backgrounds in terms of career helped me see how they were approaching things in a totally different way. This could be challenging at the beginning, but as we progressed we could extract the most out of it.' Ana Belen Cortez, EMBA class of '18.
Ana Belen graduated in 2018 and during the EMBA she learned the importance of being part of a diverse group, in every sense of the word
The topics that are covered in this podcast:
'RSM and the EMBA specifically helped me figure out what was really my purpose in life.' Marloes van Gasteren, graduate of EMBA class of '18.
Marloes graduated in 2018 and during the EMBA she realised that she wanted a change in her career and to move into the social domain. In this podcast she shares what her EMBA journey was like and how it helped her take the next steps in her career.
The topics that are covered in this podcast:
Listen to this podcast episode, to hear her story.
Find out more about our Full-time MBA programme here: www.rsm.nl/mba/international-full-time-mba/overview/ And find out more about our EMBA programme here: www.rsm.nl/mba/executive-mba/overview/
‘Because of the EMBA I’m so much more capable of distilling questions. I learned how to dissect questions and problems. Learned to prioritize sensibly and act accordingly. And I think that’s because of a major part of the EMBA and some of the electives that I got. They made me a better decision maker.’ – Edwin Horstman, Executive MBA ’16, looks back on his EMBA journey and shares some of his learnings, the change of course he made because of the EMBA and a piece of advice for our candidates.
The topics covered in this podcast are:
Find out more about our Full-time MBA programme here: www.rsm.nl/mba/international-full-time-mba/overview/
And find out more about our EMBA programme here: www.rsm.nl/mba/executive-mba/overview/
‘The amount of graduates that decided to stay in Europe, including the Netherlands is about 80%. So you can see that a lot of our graduates eventually decide to stay in the country and have the opportunity to do so. And that’s for many reasons. One of the main reasons I would say, is because of the very flexible visa policy that the Netherlands has as a country. Especially for highly skilled individuals.’
In this podcast our Recruitment & Admissions Manager, Maria Tsachli, answers some of the frequently asked questions she get in Admissions interviews. The questions that are covered in this podcast are:
‘Worth mentioning are the lecturers as well. So far, it’s been really good. You look at our Finance Lecturer and they had 25 years of experience at PWC, really quality staff.’ – Matt Gledhill, Full-time MBA Class of ’23.
Matt moved from the UK to the Netherlands for his MBA. In this podcast he shares what his decision making process looked like, why he chose RSM and how he has been experiencing his MBA so far. The topics covered in this podcast are:
Find out more about our Full-time MBA programme here: https://www.rsm.nl/mba/international-full-time-mba/overview/ And find out more about our EMBA programme here: https://www.rsm.nl/mba/executive-mba/overview/
‘I spoke to a few alumni here at RSM and also staff from the MBA office, so that also really helped. And I attended some really interesting online talks from the Erasmus Center for Women and Organisations and really loved talking to them. I really liked the approach that they had.’ - Ana Miarnau, Full-time MBA Class of ’23, moved from Spain to the Netherlands to join this years’ cohort and shares what her decision making process to do an MBA was like, why she decided to join RSM and what her expectations of her MBA journey are.
The topics that are covered in this podcast:
- Her personal story and why she decided on an MBA at RSM
- Moving to, and living in, the Netherlands
- Gaining new experiences and skills
- A piece of advice
- A message to her fellow class mates
'And I guess that's what makes the MBA journey extraordinary. Against all odds I managed to have a meaningful journey with an MBA. With the academic knowledge I gained, the friendships and also the MBA Marketing club that I had a chance to lead throughout the whole year.' - Minh Nguyen Duc, Full-time MBA Class of '22.
Minh moved from Singapore to the Netherlands for his MBA. In this podcast we discuss why he chose to do his MBA at RSM, what his MBA journey was like, how he experienced moving to the Netherlands and how he overcame challenges during his journey.
The topics that are covered in this podcast:
'The interviewer has done a lot of interviews. Maybe even a lot on the same day. So to really make yourself stand out, I think having that honest conversation is really important.' Caroline Angle, Recruitment and Admissions Manager at RSM.
In this podcast Caroline Angle shares tips on how to prepare for your admissions interview, what pitfalls to avoid and mostly how to be your authentic self to stand out in the application process.
The topics that are covered are:
'It might be the best according to the world, but is it the best for you? Will you be fulfilled being an engineer? And what happens actually is that many people, when they get five to ten to fifteen years into their careers they suddenly realize, no this is not what I really want. I want something else, but what?' Hetty Brand-Boswijk, Director of Coaching and Lead Coach at RSM.
In this podcast we discuss individual leadership coaching, personal development and the importance of knowing who you are and what you want, before going into career coaching.
The topics that are covered are:
'So I packed my bags and I left to the UK and as I was taking my luggage off the carrousel at the airport in Heathrow, I looked at my e-mail. And there was an e-mail from RSM saying that I'd gotten in. And it was a no-brainer for me,' says Bharat Kumaraswami.
Bharat Kumaraswami graduated from our Full-time MBA class of 2018 and joined RSM as the Data manager. In this episode we discuss why he chose the Rotterdam school of Management for his MBA? Why did he decide to pursue a career here in the Netherlands? And what advice can he give to those considering moving to the Netherlands for their MBA?
The topics that are covered in this podcast:
Before you graduate, our career center will prepare you for your career after the MBA. Our Career Centre guides and coaches students and organizes speed dating bootcamps, to prepare our graduates for job interviews. Diana Diniz, Career Development Manager at RSM, shares how the Career Center prepares our students and what you need to know when starting your MBA journey at RSM.
What does it mean to be part of the RSM Alumni network of over 40.000 trail-blazers? And how can you make good use of this network?
Sue Martin, Director of Corporate and Alumni Relations, shares what the alumni office can do for our graduates, but most importantly, how our graduates can utilize this global network. ‘After graduation it’s not goodbye. That network is forever there for them and that’s a lifelong connection with the school.’ Sue says.
In this latest MBA Programme Podcast we discuss the importance of staying connected to the network, what the alumni office offers our graduates, keeping your information up to date and leaving a legacy behind.
The topics that are covered:
Moving to the Netherlands, whether it's for your MBA or a job opportunity, can be a big decision.
In the Netherlands 80% to 90% of the population speaks English. After moving here eleven years ago, Carolina Ospina, the Event Project Manager at RSM, still decided to learn Dutch and has been with RSM since 2017. Why did she decide to move to the Netherlands? How did she find out about RSM? And what advice can she give to people that are thinking about moving here?
The topics that are covered:
Moving abroad for your MBA, what’s that like?
Juan Maldonado Alcazar moved from Mexico to the Netherlands five years ago, for his MBA. He graduated from our Full-time MBA, class of 2017 and joined RSM’s Alumni office as the Corporate and Alumni Relations Manager.
Why did he choose the Rotterdam school of Management? Why did he decide to pursue a career here in the Netherlands? And what advice can he give to those considering moving to the Netherlands for their MBA?
The topics that are covered in this podcast:
Choosing the right combination of MBA electives allows you to do a deep dive in one particular subject, or perhaps even pivot your career! In our latest Programme Pocast we met up with Asimwe Ruganyoise (FT MBA’21) to discuss her reason for choosing electives around Finance and Sustainability:
Energy transition
“I want to be part of the energy transition that is happening right now in the oil and gas industry. To make this happen, there will be a lot of acquisitions in the sustainability space. So I wanted to learn about sustainability, but also how these deals work. If I were to look at a renewables company and their financials, I need to understand how their business works, how they make money, and how we can make energy cheaper and accessible to our clients.”
Topics covered in this podcast:
In this podcast, Lida Dimitriou answers the seven most commonly asked questions about our Executive MBA programme (EMBA). Lida is Recruitment and Admissions Manager for our executive programmes at RSM MBA and has handpicked the following questions to be answered in this episode:
Prof. Christo Nel is one of the architects of our renewed Personal Leadership Programme for next year's Executive MBA.
What did fighting Apartheid in South Africa in a business platform that brought together radically opposing parties teach him about leadership development? And how will our PLD Programme change next year?
Topics covered in this podcast:
Find out more about our Personal Leadership Programme here
In this podcast we take our crystal ball to Brandon Kirby, Director of Marketing and Admissions, to discuss what he sees as the biggest trends in MBA for 2020.
Here is what to expect:
After her first week on campus, we invited Tanzanian Full-time MBA student Asimwe Ruganyoisa to our podcast studio to give us the real story about doing an MBA at RSM.
She didn’t hold back and told us all about the soul-searching she was asked to do from day one in the Personal Leadership Development programme, the challenges of meeting 150 new people from different cultures, and of course: how to cope with Dutch winter! We will check back with her throughout the year to hear more about her Rotterdam experience.
How does our admissions process for the full-time MBA work and how can you best prepare for it?
Marketing & Admissions Manager Carrie Fok explains what you need to know about the required documents, the essay, professional references and the online Kira assessment.
Here are her seven tips to make your application as smooth as possible: