The Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) of Lahore, Pakistan recently held an information session in Colombo with the objective of raising the awareness about LUMS MBA programme in Sri Lanka and to invite qualified Sri Lankans to apply for LUMS MBA programme. The session was conducted by LUMS Alumni in Sri Lanka with the support of the video conferencing by LUMS faculty members from Pakistan.
 LUMS is the premier business school in Pakistan and LUMS MBA ranks among top twenty programmes in Australasian business schools and 3rd best in South Asia according to Asia Week magazine. LUMS has research linkages with renowned international universities such as Harvard University, McGill University, University of Essex, MIT, University of Chicago and University of Sussex. Asian Development Bank (ADB) has recognized LUMS as "A Place of Excellence in Asia" along with other twenty prestigious universities selected from Asia, Australia, New Zealand and United States.
LUMS is a unique academic institution due to several reasons. LUMS was established in 1986 with the aim of being a recognized as an internationally acclaimed research university. It has established itself as a premier institution primarily due to strict adherence to its core values of merit, integrity and excellence. LUMS case method of teaching against traditional lecturing is another main success factor of LUMS. It has introduced case method of teaching due to its high interaction with Harvard Business School (HBS) at the early years of its existence. LUMS maintains its international orientation through international advisory committee consists of academics from Harvard, Stanford, IMD and Western Ontario.
 The MBA Programme of the Suleman Dawood School of Business (SDSB) at LUMS is a two years full-time residential programme. The MBA has made tremendous impact in the last two decades primarily by ensuring relevance of its curricula, where the effort is to stay tuned to changing needs of the local and global environment. More and more programmes have come under the umbrella of the school-the flagship MBA programme and the Executive MBA, and the newly introduced PhD Management programme, which caters to the growing need for research based management positions. An Undergraduate BSc Honours degree of Accounting and Finance has also been added to the SDSB programme family.
Addressing the gathering from Pakistan, Dr. Jamshed Khan -Associate Dean of Executive Education at LUMS mentioned that LUMS is expanding its international reach in South Asia and in the Middle East and looking forward to welcome more students from Sri Lanka for LUMS MBA programme. According to SAARC agreement, Sri Lankan students are treated as local students when calculating fees. Dr. Jamshed also pointed out that LUMS follows "need -blind admission policy" where admission is done purely on merit and all students who are in need will be supported by LUMS under various scholarships and other financial assistantship programmes. Dr. Jamshed invited qualified, motivated and committed Sri Lankan students to apply to LUMS MBA to gain a world class management qualification.
 Mr. Chaminda Hettiatachchi (LUMS MBA 2001), the Sri Lankan representative of LUMS is an international management and technology consultant and an academic attached to a Sri Lankan University. Chaminda shared his experience at LUMS with the audience explaining his learning at LUMS and how it opened up new career opportunities for him. Chaminda explained "I was one of few students to enter LUMS with a prestigious Asian Development Bank (ADB) scholarship which covered full tuition-fees, living expenses, air travel, research and book allowance for the entire 2-years period.
After graduation with an MBA from LUMS in 2001, I have done my further studies, research, teaching and consultancy in more than 15 countries in Europe, Africa and South Asia. During my stay at LUMS, I was not only able to gain a world class academic experience in management but also the stay taught me how to adapt to various international situations. MBA at LUMS was one of key success factors in my diversified international career." Chaminda believes that LUMS is on par with the world's best business schools in terms of quality of the programme . Chaminda also mentioned that he gets very positive feedbacks from his MBA students in Sri Lanka for using case method of teaching which he adopted from LUMS.
Mr. M. M. Murad (LUMS MBA 1999) is a Senior Manager in a well-known Sri Lankan mobile company. Murad talked about how LUMS experience helped him to become an outstanding manager in a competitive business environment. According to Murad, LUMS taught him value of hard work, performance orientation and team work. He described how global LUMS alumina network spread all over the world assists him making important business contacts. Murad also explained about ideal setting of Lahore as a place for higher education. Lahore known as the "Garden City of Pakistan" is a city with an ideal mixture of traditions and modernity where international students can lead a balanced life of study and socialization.
Mr. K.H.K. Nishantha (LUMS MBA 1996) is the first Sri Lankan MBA graduate from LUMS. He is currently serving as the Director and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of a large-scale manufacturing company in Sri Lanka. Nishantha recalled about the early days at LUMS and explained how LUMS has evolved within a short period of time to become a well equipped, internationally focused and globally recognized business school. Nishantha also shared his ideas on how LUMS MBA helped him to become a confident manager and how he used such skills in turning around the company he works.
The panelists answered various questions from the enthusiastic audience about general issues in studying in Pakistan, life in Lahore and educational setting at LUMS, comparative advantages of studying for a MBA programme at LUMS compared to other schools ect.
LUMS is now admitting students to its prestigious global MBA programme for 2010 intake.
Highly qualified Sri Lankan candidates can apply for ADB full scholarship and other generous financial assistance given by LUMS. Fee-paying Sri Lankan students are eligible for local fees.
As a part of LUMS admission procedure, LUMS is conducting LUMS Management Attitude Test (LMAT) admission test in Colombo on 10th January 2010.
Those who are interested to apply to LUMS MBA programme are invited to take this test for free. Reservations can be made by emailing to dilhanake@yahoo.com or calling 0722222253.
More details about the LUMS MBA, its admission process, financial aid and online application for the MBA programme can be found at LUMS official website http://sdsb.lums.edu.pk/ |
E-mail