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The National University of Singapore (NUS) Business School and HEC Paris signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on a Strategic Partnership and a new joint MBA double degree on 13 February 2009 at the NUS campus. The event was witnessed by RAdm(NS) Lui Tuck Yew, Senior Minister of State for Education, and Information, Communications and the Arts, and His Excellency, Pierre Buhler, French Ambassador to Singapore.

With EU-Asia trade relations increasing at an unprecedented pace since the 1990s, and 10 years of successful collaboration between the two institutions, the MOU is a timely one in the context of globalization of management education.

The Strategic Partnership aims to support educational, professional and cross-cultural projects and activities in management research and education among students, faculty, staff and business communities of the two institutions.

This strategic partnership encompasses the following areas of cooperation:
- Exchange of students in the MBA and MSc (Management) programmes,
- Exchange of faculty,
- Development of joint research projects,
- Development of joint executive education programmes,
- Development of the Double Degree MBA.

The new NUS MBA and HEC Paris Double Degree MBA programme aims to provide solid business training and international exposure by building on each institution’s excellence in management education. The double degree programme will increase the options for students of both institutions who want in-depth business knowledge in Europe and Asia. The double degree programme will benefit students both ways - the NUS MBA is designed with a strong Asian focus combined with best practices from around the world, and the HEC Paris MBA focuses on building leadership characteristics that empower.

Students will pursue studies at both institutions by completing 1st year core elements at one institution, and continue with 2nd year options at the second institution, earning an MBA degree each from HEC Paris and NUS. Students will also be able to leverage on the institutional and alumni networks of both schools as well as the business communities in Singapore and Europe.

Achieving Greater Synergy
The tie-up between the two institutions will achieve a higher level of synergy as both share similarities as well as complementary strengths.

HEC Paris and NUS Business School are both full academic members of the esteemed CEMS Global Alliance in Management Education, with NUS Business School being the first in Asia to be a full CEMS member. The unique partnership of 27 world-class business schools and 57 leading multinational companies aims to promote excellence in management education through the collaboration of leading academics and leading companies. Academic institutions under the CEMS network are widely reputed to provide the highest standards of teaching and research. CEMS provides a platform for these institutions to tie up with its grouping of corporate partners to provide students with real-world experience and practical business skills necessary to achieve the highest level of success.

HEC Paris and NUS Business School have been consistently ranked in the top 10 positions in Europe and Asia respectively for their MBA programmes by media such as Financial Times and EIU Which MBA.

Additionally, both are highly ranked for their faculty who hail from leading universities around the world, all possessing extensive research, teaching and consulting experience. HEC Paris was ranked 13th in Europe for research in the Financial Times’ Global MBA rankings 2008 while NUS Business School was ranked 4th for Research outside of North America and 2nd in Asia Pacific in the Top 100 Business School Research Ranking by University of Texas, Dallas, 2007.

“The cooperation between NUS Business School and HEC Paris during the 1998-2008 period has been extremely rich in terms of exchange of students and faculty cooperation. This is why we can open a new phase of strategic partnership building on synergies between Europe and Asia, and on a Double Degree MBA agreement”, said Professor Bernard Ramanantsoa, Dean of HEC Paris.

This sentiment is shared by the Dean of NUS Business School, Professor Bernard Yeung, who remarked, “Our Strategic Partnership is a significant milestone and I am confident that together, we will soar to greater heights and make significant contributions to the global community. We are confident that the MBA double degree programme will enhance the educational experience of our students and significantly value add to the offerings of programmes in both schools.”

Background of Partnership
The cooperation between NUS Business School and HEC Paris began in 1999 with the exchange of students. Students from Singapore are regularly present in HEC Paris’ Masters, MBA and Doctorate degree programmes, with Singapore being a hub for the HEC alumni in Asia – there are more than 100 HEC Paris alumni based in Singapore, mainly at the Asian headquarters of multinational companies.

NUS Business School, with its rich portfolio of internationally-oriented management courses and seminars dedicated to business in the Asia-Pacific region, is an ideal gateway to Asia for European students.

Similarly, HEC Paris is an ideal gateway to Europe, thanks to its relationship with the European business community, strong academic foundations, and its multidisciplinary approach to management education.

About NUS Business School
Established in 1965, NUS Business School is known for its focus in providing management thought leadership from an Asian perspective, enabling our students and corporate partners to leverage on the best global knowledge and deep Asian insights to drive business growth in Asia and around the world. This combination of global knowledge and Asian insights is reflected in all aspects of its research, teaching and industry outreach. As Asia’s Global Business School, NUS Business School is a leading authority on business in Asia.

The School has consistently received top rankings in the Asia-Pacific region by independent publications and agencies, such as Financial Times, Economist Intelligence Unit, and QS Top MBA, in recognition of the quality of its programmes, faculty’s research as well as graduates. The Financial Times recently ranked the School’s Asia Pacific Executive MBA programme and its MBA programme 20th and 35th in the world respectively. In 2009, the School was ranked as the only Asian business school in Asia that was most preferred by employers across the world, by the QS Global 200 Business Schools 2009: The Employers’ Choice Survey. The School is accredited by AACSB International (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business), an endorsement that the School has met the highest standards for business education.

The School has top research faculty that is close to practice, more than 2,500 BBA, MBA, Executive MBA, and PhD students, more than 2,000 annual participants in Executive Education programmes, and over 45,000 alumni in diverse organisations and positions of leadership throughout the world.
http://www.bschool.nus.edu.sg

About HEC School of Management
Founded in 1881, HEC specialises in management education and research.
HEC offers a complete and unique range of academic programs for the leaders of the future: the Masters Degrees (MSc programs and Specialized Masters), the MBA program (full-time and part-time), the Executive MBA (Paris, Beijing, Shanghai and St Petersburg), the TRIUM Global Executive MBA (New York, Paris and London) and the PhD.
HEC has a permanent faculty of 105 professors, 3200 students on its campus and over 8500 managers and executives trained in the executive education programs each year. All together, 84 different nationalities are represented on a 250 acres wooded campus.
HEC Paris is ranked #1 Business School in Europe three years running by the Financial Times.
http://www.hec.edu