Makhanda (formerly Grahamstown) – Rhodes Business School (www.RU.ac.za/BusinessSchool/) has entered into a partnership with eLearnAfrica to develop a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).
This partnership will fulfill the Schools goal of enabling its AMBA-accredited MBA to reach into Africa and beyond.
Professor Owen Skae, Director of Rhodes Business School, on Thursday, said the eLearnAfrica-supported VLE will be operational from 2024.
We are very excited about this as it means our MBA is now more accessible than ever, said Professor Skae.
Founded in 2000, Rhodes Business Schools Vision is to transform business for a sustainable world and its Mission is to educate and influence responsible business practice, responsibly.
We learnt two things from teaching through the pandemic. Returning to the old business as usual model of chalk and talk is not going to happen like it used to,” said Professor Skae.
“At the same time, running Zoom or Teams sessions and just displaying your power-point slides does not suffice.
“Students and lecturers want the best of both the digital and the physical teaching world. Phygital is key.
“The digital or virtual mode provides convenience and flexibility.
“The physical mode provides the immersion and human engagement that we still need.
“We know that our students still value the opportunity to come to Rhodes University, given that it is such a unique and special institution.
The common denominator is having the necessary technology enablement to provide the best teaching and learning experience for students while creating a virtual classroom environment for academic staff to deliver effectively and efficiently, regardless of the mode of delivery.
Getting the state-of-the-art VLE platform that was needed required partnering with someone who knows what they are doing,” said Professor Skae.
“Students need the right balance of synchronous and asynchronous interaction that only a top-class VLE can bring. That partner is eLearnAfrica.
Students need the right balance of synchronous and asynchronous interaction that only a top-class VLE can bring.
Professor Skae said the VLE will provide the full suite of synchronous and asynchronous teaching and learning applications to ensure that the Rhodes Business School MBA continues to be the transformative experience it is renowned for.
The partnership with eLearnAfrica brings immersion, flexibility, and convenience.
The VLE-enabled MBA will allow the current four two-week block attendances (i.e. two blocks in Year 1 and two blocks in Year 2) to be reduced to one block in each year (i.e. one block in each of Year 1 and Year 2), for the invaluable face-face delivery mode.
The Rhodes Business Schools essence is Leadership for Sustainability. Leadership and sustainability principles underline all subjects in the curriculum.
Emphasis is placed on business continuity and achieving a balance between economic, social, and environmental sustainability.
The School applies its unique 4E (Economy, Ethics, Ecology, and Equity) model in its teaching and learning practice.
Management Education is crucial to unlocking Africas vast potential,” said Professor Skae.
“Our MBA strives to educate Africas future business leaders and managers that it isnt about how much money organisations make, but how they make their money.
“Getting that right is critical to achieving the African Unions Agenda 2063, whilst simultaneously meeting the Sustainable Development Goals and gearing up to take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement.
“The favourable rand-dollar exchange is also a compelling reason to get full value for money in studying for a world-class MBA.
The Rhodes MBA is a coursework degree comprising coursework and a research assignment.
The degree is offered on a part-time, modular basis over two years.
The admission requirements are, an Honours degree or Postgraduate Diploma, a minimum of three years work experience, and an admission test such as NMAT, GMAT, or GRE.
Applications close on 31st October 2023.
Rhodes Business School, Rhodes University is located in the rural city of Makhanda (formerly Grahamstown) in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Its nearest large city is Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth).
For more information on how accessible a Rhodes Business School MBA is, email mba@ru.ac.za or visit www.RU.ac.za/BusinessSchool
