Aussie war hero Big Ben takes on MBA

140319 uqbs 2014 intakeUQ Business School has welcomed the largest ever cohort of students to its renowned MBA program, including military hero Ben Roberts-Smith.

Roberts-Smith was awarded the Victoria Cross for his bravery on the battlefield in Afghanistan and retired after 17 years in the Special Air Service Regiment.

He chose the UQ Business School MBA for its reputation as the top MBA in Australia, its credibility within the business community and the strength of the cohorts.

“My main goal in completing the MBA is to broaden my overall knowledge of business, enabling me to be a more effective entrepreneur. I see the MBA really complementing my life experience and providing me greater opportunities,” he said.

“So far my experience has been extremely positive. We have an outstanding cohort who have bonded together and the facilitation of the course content has been very engaging.”

Another ex-military student, Richard O’Quinn, recently retired as a US Army Special Forces officer after a 23-year career. He said the UQ Business School MBA was an internationally recognised, world-class faculty.

Over 130 students commenced their studies in the first semester of 2014 – a significant rise on the same period last year and the highest number since the MBA was relaunched in 2008.

Dr Sarah Kelly, MBA Program Director, said the group was dynamic, consisting of both domestic and international students from a diverse range of organisations.

“We are excited to see the growth of the program, the quality of students and their diverse range of backgrounds including international finance, military echelons, entrepreneurship, health, elite sport, engineering and law,” said Dr Kelly.

Ben Ready
Ben Ready founded MBA News in 2014 and is the Managing Editor. He is a former business and finance journalist with Australian Associated Press (AAP) and Dow Jones Newswires in London. Ben completed his MBA in 2012 and was awarded the QUT GMAA Entrepreneurship Prize. He is also the founder and Managing Director of RGC Media & Mktng (rgcmm.com.au).