The MBA for a Changing World

MBA Blog / 6th May 2025

Alexandra Skinner talks to Paul Harrison

Q. What makes Deakin University’s MBA experience unique?

We have designed the Deakin MBA around flexibility, industry relevance, and leadership with real-world impact. We know our students are balancing busy professional and personal lives, so we’ve designed a program that fits around them, whether that means studying on-campus, online, or through immersive experiences like international consulting projects and study tours or residential intensives or a bit of all of these.

But for me, the critical thing is that we embrace complexity. Business (and life) isn’t black and white, and leadership isn’t about finding simple answers; it’s about how we navigate uncertainty, competing priorities, and constant change. We challenge students to engage with the real messiness of business, from balancing financial goals with ethical leadership to making strategic decisions in unpredictable contexts and managing teams in socially responsible and financially viable ways.

Q. Can you unpack the MBA pathways and delivery options you offer?

One of the best things about the Deakin MBA is its flexibility. At its core, the foundation of the Deakin MBA is online. So, we’ve built a world-class online learning experience that allows students to study from anywhere, at any time. But flexibility isn’t just about being online; it means different things to different people, and we’ve designed the program to accommodate a wide range of needs and learning styles. For those looking for something different, we offer intensive study options. Our residential programs bring students together for short, high-impact learning experiences where they tackle business challenges as a team. We also have a study tour with international consulting projects, where students apply their skills in a global context, solving complex problems for organisations in different cultural and economic environments.

And there are also the stackable short courses (we refer to them as Masterclasses), which give students even more control over their learning journey. They can start small, build their skills over time, and eventually transition into the MBA when it makes sense for them. The bottom line is that we know our students have different goals, commitments, and ways of learning, so we’ve made sure the Deakin MBA is as flexible as possible without compromising in any way on quality. 

To read the entire article, click here!