University of Heriot-Watt vs. University of Leicester - Need your opinions

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by MikeP, Nov 26, 2008.

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  1. MikeP

    MikeP New Member

    Hello everybody,

    I am new on the forum. I found it while searching informations about universities on the net. I am currently living in Belgrade / Serbia and finishing a graduate diploma in Management with the Institute of Commercial Management based in UK. The diploma or school is nothing special but it is opening me doors for the Postgraduate studies, which is what is important.

    I am looking for a good University that offers a distance learning MSc in Finance. So far, I narrowed down my list to University of Heriot-Watt and University of Leicester, but if you have other ideas that could fit my criterias, I will be more than happy to read about it and make some enquiries about it.

    Here are my main criterias on which I am basing my choice:

    1. The University must offer Distance Learning.

    2. I am interested in MSc in Finance or Financial Management.

    3. At my great infortune, the tuitions and fees must be reasonable. I wish I was rich, but I am not. Let's say I don't have the means to pay 15,000 Euros.

    4. The reputation of the University is a very good plus. That the courses and examinations are hard isn't a problem. Getting my degree as soon as possible will be my priority. I still have a year and a half before getting permanent visa here, so I will be working very hard on getting good grades.

    5. I don't have real preferences between working on a thesis or doing exam for each courses.

    6. The University must benefit of an international recognition. I am canadian, like i wrote below, I am living in Belgrade, Serbia, but I don't say I will not go back in Canada eventually, so the recognition of the institution is very important.

    7. I must admit I have a little preference for the UK institutions, I appreciated my experience so far and I would like to continue in the same system.


    That is about it, like I said, so far, I found 2 MSc programs that are suiting well to my criterias and my interests: MSc Finance (University of Leicester) and MSc Financial Management (Heriot-Watt Edinburgh Business School)

    The HW-EBS is partner with the faculty where I study. This Fac is an approved-learning partner of HW-EBS. It is a plus since I have access to my past teachers to supervise me if needed.

    So, that is about it, I would like to hear about your opinions and if you have other propositions, I will consider them for sure.

    Thank you!

    Regards,
    Michael
     
  2. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    HI Mike - You might want to take a peek at the Finance programs offered by the University of London. The school has a good rep and I think that the costs might be lower than average (sorry, I didn't check). The site is easy to navigate and so I'm sure you can quickly decide if they're a contender.

    http://www.londonexternal.ac.uk/prospective_students/postgraduate/index.php
     
  3. MikeP

    MikeP New Member

    Hi Kizmet,

    thank you for replying to my message, this is really appreciated.

    Just to put benchmark on my means, the University of London is just a little bit too expensive for me, unfortunately. I already took a look at their programs and contacted them to ask a few questions about their courses but the price stops me.
     
  4. japhy4529

    japhy4529 House Bassist


    I would recommend taking a look at Australian schools. They should be a bit cheaper than the U.K. I don't have any links handy right now, but you can try entering the following search string in google:

    master finance "distance learning OR education" site:edu.au

    Good Luck!
     
  5. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    It sounds like you found degrees that meet your needs.

    Hereare a more options:

    The OU offers a masters in Finance but the cost exceeds your target.
    http://www3.open.ac.uk/courses/bin/p12.dll?Q01F39

    Derby has a DL MBA for a cost of around UK 4,000 Pounds:
    http://www.derby.ac.uk/mba-incorporating-pg-cert-pg-dip-online?csId=3213001&eduCourseSearchText=

    CSUDH offers a MBA with a finance concentration
    http://www3.open.ac.uk/courses/bin/p12.dll?Q01F39
    Cost is around $12,000 for the 30 units MBA ($400/unit).

    A search of degreeinfo will yield other USA MBAs or masters in finance – some at lower cost than the CSUDH MBA.
     
  6. MikeP

    MikeP New Member

    I just noticed I didn't explicitly asked about your opinions about the two Universities I noticed. If you studied there, or know about the quality of the programs I selected, feel free to share your opinions. Thank you!
     
  7. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    The OU is a great idea. I wish I'd thought of it. But more, I wish that we in the USA could enroll.
     
  8. andypicken2

    andypicken2 New Member

    herriot watt advertised heavily a few years ago - by none other than mr bear himself i believe.

    In reality overseas unless you are at a top institution (harvard, oxford etc) it does not make any difference where you study. Because they won't be well known and everyone has degrees these days.

    In scotland/UK itself herriot watt is not so good. It can not compete with edinburgh or glasgow, strathclyde is better ranked for business.
     
  9. andypicken2

    andypicken2 New Member

    just to clarify this is opinion, not fact
     
  10. edowave

    edowave Active Member

    I did the Heriot-Watt MBA, both as a DL student, and then full-time on-campus. I found the quality of the program to be excellent. I feel even more strongly about this after having seen first-hand the quality of some UF MBA courses.

    I disagree with andypicken's assesment of Heriot-Watt's reputation in the UK. I found their reputation to be quite good amoung people and employers I have interviewed prior to starting the program.

    Outside of the UK, their reputation is almost nil. They also don't like to particapte in many of the magazine rankings and the accreditation schemes, (AACSB, AMBA, ect) so that makes them even more of an unknown outside the UK.

    However, like I said, if you are looking at purely the quality of education, it would be hard to beat Heriot-Watt. They built their DL program from the ground-up based on years of research in management education, and their on-campus faculty have taught or are still teaching at other big name schools such as Stanford, Henley, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. The fact that you have an EBS approved learning center near you is a definte plus.
     
  11. Magister

    Magister New Member

    I agree with andypicken2's view that Heriot-Watt is not as good as Edinburgh, Glasgow and Strathclyde. For me, it's not only an honest opinion, but most probably a fact.

    If having an approved learning provider is important to you, Heriot-Watt is a good choice. But if reputation means a lot to you, Leicester is probably a much better choice.

    Edowave suggested that their reputation is almost nil outside UK. This is fair comment - though they might enjoy some reputation in certain European and Asian countries.

    Both universities are quite experienced in the distance learning arena. But in the UK itself, Leicester and Heriot-Watt are simply not in the same league. If ranking tables mean anything to you, Leicester is in the Top-15 or Top-20 of many different league tables. On the other hand, Heriot-Watt barely makes it into the Top-50. Considering the fact that there are only around 120 higher education institutions in the UK, comparing a Top-15 university with a Top-50 one is like comparing University of Florida with University of South Florida (no offense to anyone, just a comparison).

    Other than league table rankings, Leicester is generally very well regarded (in the UK - especially in England). Heriot-Watt is somewhat different. It's true that quite a lot employers know about it, but i won't be surprised if some of them don't.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 1, 2008
  12. MikeP

    MikeP New Member

    I did a bunch of research on both Universities.

    Heriot-Watt (Edinburgh Business School) is best known in the world of business. In the world in general, like some said, their reputation is nil, but in the world of business, they do have a reputation and they are known by a lot. Their program is actually very appreciated. In the case of Heriot-Watt, it is EBS that enjoys a good reputation in the world of business.

    Leicester is enjoying a really good reputation in general education. They also have a decent school of management. Their rankings in the League's table are definitely a good plus for them.

    Basically, they are both EBS and Leicester decently known and they both have their advantages. I contacted both, and I will see the result of it all in a few weeks.
     
  13. Woho

    Woho New Member

    Quite true. A friend of mine became assistant to one of the board members of a major European energy company. Their HR department recommended him to go for the Heriot-Watt MBA.
    Also a good source for evaluating a degree are in my opinion the online business networks like LinkedIn or Xing. You can find there lots of people from both degree programs and have a good reason to approach them.
     
  14. Malajac

    Malajac Member

    Hi everybody,

    I realize I'm reviving a somewhat dusty thread :), and I apologize if this has already been mentioned somewhere, but I guess since there has been talk here about ranking of HW among UK universities, it's only fair to bring to attention this pretty amazing jump HW made on the Guardian University League Table 2010:


    http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/table/2009/may/12/university-league-table

    HW went from 52nd in 2009 to 22nd in 2010. As for specific subject tables, HW jumped from 42nd in 2009 to 19th in 2010 on the Business and management studies table.

    2010
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/table/2009/may/12/university-guide-business-management-studies
    2009
    http://browse.guardian.co.uk/education?SearchBySubject=&FirstRow=0&SortOrderDirection=&SortOrderColumn=GuardianTeachingScore&Subject=Business+and+management+studies&Institution=

    Note that other rankings, such as Times Good University Guide 2010 and University League Table 2010 rank HW 40th and 39th respectively.
     
  15. acca

    acca New Member

    MSc. Financial Management (EBS)

    Hello,

    I'm a new member here.
    I'm planning to start MSc. FM program of EBS via DL route but I'm a bit reluctant. EBS is popular mainly because of MBA. As per their statistics only 2 have graduated from MSc FM program via DL route.

    Can anyone here share his views/experience regarding MSc FM program of EBS?
    Your feedback will be of great help.
     
  16. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    According to the 2009 Times Higher Education, Leicester is 196th in the world. H-W is 374th.

    Times Online has Leicester 15th in the UK. Heriot-Watt is 40th.

    I doubt these differences matter much. Get the degree that fits your eye and your goals.
     
  17. Scott Henley

    Scott Henley New Member

    For "Business Studies" the Times also ranks Leicester #16 and Heriot-Watt #36 out of 110 universities. Neither are AACSB or EQUIS-accredited. However, Leicester has an MBA program that is AMBA-accredited.

    Overall, all things being equal regarding the program, I would recommend Leicester based on reputation and ranking.

    http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/tol_gug/gooduniversityguide.php
    http://extras.timesonline.co.uk/tol_gug/gooduniversityguide.php?AC_sub=Business+Studies&x=22&y=7&sub=11
     
  18. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member


    And I would recommend the program that meets one's needs (costs, delivery methods, time constraints, etc.). Both are very nice schools. (Disclosure: I've had some dealing with both of them--but I can't recommend one over the other.)
     
  19. tomball

    tomball New Member

    Hi

    Look at passing rates; I'd stay away from BOTH

    Look at Australian schools!



    Heriot-Watt gets a D-
    University of Leicester gets a D

    Charles Darwin University B+ (MBA)
    Baker College USA (MBA) B

    Look at SDA Bocconi - a GREAT SCHOOL linked with UCLA & Cornell (Gets an A grade) BEST IN VALUE AND BANG FOR 2010

    SDA Bocconi Global EMBA advantages
    Global thinking
    The course takes place at SDA Bocconi on-line, a dynamic global venue reflecting the pecularity of the European marketplace.
    Instead, the kind of experience you acquire is relevant to other locations where you eventually project your domain of operation. Two modules are also conducted at international partner schools: UCLA Anderson School of Management in Los Angeles and Fudan University in Shanghai. In addition, you can apply for an elective offered by partner Schools including UCLA Anderson, London Business School, Recanati in Tel Aviv and Rotman in Toronto, besides electives offered at SDA Bocconi in Milano.



    BTW; I've done, Leicester; Attemped CDU but they pulled out of the USA ---GREAT 20K DBA via DL (A SAD DAY)


    Cheers
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 21, 2010
  20. tomball

    tomball New Member

    http://www.rdi.co.uk


    The modern-day jobs need you to be experts in multi-tasking. You have to think, weave ideas, compose plans, steer the projects and show out puts such that not even a single flaw can peer from the bulk of work that you have done. Such high expectations do call for a higher qualification in order to accomplish the jobs properly. Plus, the highly demanding commitments barely leave you with time to fulfill your own desires, let alone studying for higher qualification. Enter Distance learning courses.
    Distance learning courses are designed to equip all those like you with the required knowledge and credentials. To those who have to sit in offices, chambers and kiosks and who do not get the opportunity to sit, and have to travel all day, Distance learning courses have emerged as the prime source for advancing qualification.
    With internet spread all over, Distance learning courses have seen a tremendous rise in the past decade. Hundreds and thousands of people have enrolled in these courses with the intention of enriching their qualification besides working full time. In spite of being tied in the chores of life and the commitments of occupation, they are finding the subjects to be interesting and are pursuing their professions with the equal efficiency and excellence as before.
    Distance learning courses offered on the internet are quite new a trend as compared to the traditional correspondence courses. But the popularity they have garnered on the internet is about to cross the level of popularity their correspondence counterparts could do in many years.
    With all the big names in the education industry from all over the world opening up virtual campuses for aspiring students, how could MBA be left behind? Online MBA is undoubtedly the most popular course pursued by students across the globe. Those who dream of a high-flying career with a top-notch corporate organization, but cannot afford to miss the deadlines of their work, can easily take up an Online MBA that will both enrich their knowledge and enhance their skills.
    Universities and colleges that offer MBA through Distance learning courses are almost all accredited, but before actually taking admission, it is advisable to students to first check the accreditation of the institute where they want to pursue their Online MBA from.
     

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