(Maaal) Interviews Dean of Prince Mohammed bin Salman College of Business and Entrepreneurship: Americans and Europeans will come to study and work in the Kingdom… The future of jobs is not in Europe, but in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East

By Fahd Al-Talal

Professor Zeger Degraeve, Dean of the Prince Mohammed bin Salman College of Business and Entrepreneurship, said: “Students will come from different countries of the world. Americans and Europeans will come to study the Kingdom, due to the economic revolution taking place in the Kingdom. The future of jobs is here in Saudi Arabia. The expansion of economic growth in the Kingdom is second to none in the whole world, and I work in the Kingdom because the future of work is here, and students will come not only to study, but to start and build their careers and work in the Kingdom and in the Middle East region, and to be more honest, the future of jobs is not in Europe, it will even be here in the Middle East.

Degraeve added in an exclusive interview with Maaal newspaper to talk about the vision of the Prince Mohammed bin Salman College of Business and Entrepreneurship: The main ambition of the Prince Mohammed bin Salman College of Business and Entrepreneurship is to achieve excellence and further progress… If you look at the Financial Times Index of the 100 Best Business Colleges, you will find that the first positions are occupied by colleges in the United States, Europe, Asia, and Australia, and you will not find any one located in the Middle East. There is good education in the Middle East, but there is no excellence at a level that reaches international level in teaching business and entrepreneurship in the Middle East, so The main ambitious goal of the Prince Mohammed bin Salman College of Business and Entrepreneurship is for the college to become one of the top 100 educational entities in this field in the world, and to gain a reputation and a distinguished reputation in this field, because students want to enroll in business schools that have the best reputation and reputation. The reputation gives them the best start to their career.

Regarding the sufficient time that Prince Mohammed bin Salman College for Entrepreneurship needs to be among the top 100 colleges in the world; Professor Degraeve replied, “Looking at the colleges that occupy the list of the top 100 in the world, and I specifically mean the London Business School, this college is 80 years old, and there is another college, which is perhaps the most famous and the best, which is Harvard Business School in Boston in the United States, which is nearly 114 years old.” General, and this is the essence of quality. Excellence and efficiency are things acquired through experience and experience in the first place. They are two things that cannot be witnessed immediately, but rather are acquired over time.

Professor Zeger Degraeve continued: Over the years, we will witness students graduating from college, and they will go through stages through which they will gain excellence, competence, and a good reputation. These are things that you cannot see in one year or in two years, but rather you will see them over decades, meaning that it takes time. To achieve quality, and this is what we ultimately aspire to. Students enroll in a business college that distinguishes them and qualifies them with the elements that will bring them success and progress in their professional career. People can go to any college in the world that will provide them with the best career future, and therefore they will target the best colleges. reputation and the most distinguished, and for this we need to be the best, and this, in short, is the goal of the Prince Mohammed bin Salman College of Business and Entrepreneurship.

Regarding their expansion plans in the Kingdom and meeting the high demand for education, Dr. Degraeve said: Our main headquarters is located in King Abdullah Economic City, which is an excellent location for study, academic and career qualification, acquiring skills to work in a team, and developing leadership skills. There are also other advantages of learning within King Abdullah City. God’s Economic City, which is the presence in the heart of business, and since 2021, we have already become present in Riyadh, and we provide educational activities in Riyadh, and 70% of our educational programs are available in Riyadh, and only 30% of the programs are available in King Abdullah Economic City.

Regarding whether they have any idea to expand the academic college to become a university with various specializations, Professor Degraeve explained: To build a world-class business college, we need to focus on what we are doing, and the main components of having a world-class business college lie in tracking down the best colleges, and we have many Examples around the world of colleges that offer distinguished academic degrees such as doctorates. Absolute selectivity is what determines excellence. We have absolute selectivity in our college, in choosing our faculty, and even in our students. This is something that is not available to everyone, and in order for us to become a global educational model in the field of leadership. Business, we must focus on those components. Ultimately, the focus will lead us to achieve globalization and excellence, and if we want to have an entrepreneurship university, perhaps we should have a college of practical engineering as the next stage of growth. Engineering and business will go hand in hand and become an opportunity for expansion in the future.

He added: In the context of the growth that the college is enjoying, I have been here for five years at Prince Mohammed bin Salman College. When I arrived five years ago at the college, it accepted only 50 students to join and study there, and last September, the number of students accepted to join became 540 students. This means an increase of more than 10-fold in five years. This rate of growth has never been seen in my life, and no college in that field has achieved growth like this. We are currently developing a four-year Bachelor of Business Administration program and a Master’s program in Business Administration. International. These programs will be available in the near future.

Regarding the high educational costs of studying in distinguished business colleges, the dean of MBSC said: Of course, studying business is not cheap, because it is more like a world-class study. Rather, it is more like an international brand such as the fashion brands (Gucci) and also (Prada)…and this is not Cheap, but unlike the brands where money is spent, studying business is an investment in your future, and by tracking the journey of our students, we found that the salaries of graduates of Prince Mohammed bin Salman College double three years after their graduation, and this is a distinguished investment in education, but The matter is not only about doubling the salary after three years, but it must also be considered that when students reach the age of forty, and a company is considering promotions… who will be in the leadership team for that company? Of course, those who have been awarded an MBA degree will be considered for promotion, and they will have priority in promotion.

Do Saudi students still prefer to study abroad?

To be clear, a lot of Saudi students go to Europe, the United States and Asia to study, and they are building partnerships in Europe, America and Asia, but these regions do not have a future for their jobs. Rather, the future of Saudis’ jobs is here in the Kingdom. Therefore, it is better for them to study in Saudi Arabia, and they can Build their lives and careers while studying in the Kingdom. The future of Saudis is here.

Regarding students who aspire to study at Prince Mohammed bin Salman College but cannot afford the educational expenses, he pointed out that Prince Mohammed bin Salman College has scholarship programs, and the college provides generous scholarships to distinguished applicants to obtain a Master’s in Business and a Master’s in Business, in addition to flexible programs. To pay for study costs, such as payment on a monthly basis, and also very easy payment plans to facilitate the study.

Finally, Professor Zeger Degraeve, Dean of the Prince Mohammed bin Salman College of Business and Entrepreneurship, commented on the level of university education in Saudi Arabia, saying: I believe that education in Saudi Arabia is good and available to a wide range of citizens. 70% of the population in the Kingdom is under the age of thirty and these people are in need of education. Education in Saudi Arabia focuses on providing good educational services to a large group of students, and the next step must be to provide the best education to the best students. This is a rule at the Prince Mohammed bin Salman College for Entrepreneurship, and when it is achieved, the college will become a role model among all universities and colleges. A role model for excellence…so that other universities will then say: “Well…if they succeed in achieving this, we believe that we are also capable of succeeding” … They will begin to improve and develop in the quality of education.