Home to the world headquarters of Coca-Cola, Turner Broadcasting, The Home Depot, AT&T Mobility, UPS and Delta Air Lines, Atlanta - the capital city of the US state of Georgia - has a GDP that places it 15th in a ranking of world cities.
This hub for the service, finance and information-technology industries also hosts Emory University's MBA programme at its Goizueta Business School.
'We have both one-year and two-year MBA programmes,' says Kate Piasecki, the school's associate director of MBA admissions. 'We also have two executive MBA programmes. Our traditional two-year, full-time MBA programme enrols between 33 to 37 per cent international students.'
This year, there will be a total of 120 international students on the business school's campus. 'Our smaller class size means that all students get involved in the classroom and can assume leadership roles,' says Piasecki. 'Our international students always comment on the access they have both to our faculty and to working on business issues for multinational and local companies.'
Goizueta Business School was founded in 1919 as part of a university that is now over 150 years old. Piasecki believes its attraction to overseas students is not simply because of its academic excellence.
'Our Asian students love the access to professional and cultural activities that being in such a vibrant city provides. They also enjoy the many parks, outdoor activities and sporting opportunities. Easy access to grocery stores that carry both fresh and processed products from students' home countries also helps them make the initial adjustment more smoothly,' Piasecki says.
