They had been together for only 48 hours, but already an undeniable synergy was starting to develop among the 38 ambitious self-starters, who were still settling in to their new state-of-the-art surroundings at Cyberport, which is tucked away along the waterfront in a quiet little oasis on Hong Kong Island. The excitement was palpable - both inside and outside the classroom. Friendships were forming, alliances were being forged. It looked like the start of an exciting 20 months.
'It is a very participatory atmosphere,' says Linh Vu, a French national of Vietnamese ancestry. Born in Paris, she has spent several years working abroad. She is based in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, where she is director of Key Hospitality Consulting, a firm that she launched last year.
'We are all here to share,' she says. 'We think differently. There is a mix of personalities, but we are all headed in the same direction.'
Vu chose this programme for two main reasons - its scheduling and its global reach, with classes being held in the world's three most important financial centres.
'I've always been interested in doing an MBA, and the format of this programme is the best format for someone wanting to keep working. Also, no other programme offers this kind of global reach with leading business schools on three continents.'
Born in Taiwan, Huang Chin-hua went to the United States after graduating from university to pursue a master's degree in architecture and urban design at Columbia University. Co-founder and creative director of PLAN Architecture, he has been named one of the Outstanding 50 Asian Americans in Business. He chose the programme because, while he is based in the US, he wants to expand his network in Asia.