Webinar - 10. March 2021
 

The Master Class CEE and its predecessor, Meisterklasse Osteuropa, can look back on a 27-year history with more than 600 alumni. After finishing their studies, they entered the working life and many of them started international careers. In this panel, we discussed with a group of alumni the influence of the MC CEE on their career choices, the value of a region-specific study in today’s globalized business world and the role of Vienna as a headquarters location for the CEE region.
 

Panelists:

• Katsiaryna Baradzina (MC 2015/16), Raiffeisen Bank International AG

• Sandra Bauer (2012/13), BILLA AG

• Mago Flora (2013/14), Venturing into real estate

• Mirza Mujanovic (2019/20), WU MSc Marketing

• Katharina Radlinger-Köhler (MC 2008/09), Novomatic

• Michal Szuba (2008/09), Mayr-Melnhof Karton

• Markus Vesely (2007/08), A-Trust GmbH

Moderators:

• Martin Rafaj (2013/14), Schott AG, president of the MC CEE Alumni Association

• Arnold Schuh, program director of the MC CEE.

Motivation to join the MC: Most of the panelists were lured by the field trips to CEE cities and the chance to interact with representatives of the partner companies. Some had already spent a semester at a partner university in CEE, others learned a CEE language and were looking for a complementary view on the region. Attending the MC gave the participants a comparative advantage when they entered business life. One of the older alumni even regarded it as a “light MBA”, as no similar offer combining insights into business practice and field trips with company visits abroad existed at WU – and all this for free. The MC is the only study program at WU where students from CEE have an advantage vis-à-vis Austrian or German students in the admission process thanks to their native language and cultural understanding – and the students from CEE noticed and appreciated this fact. One additional motivation mentioned was the chance to leverage the affinity or relationship to the CEE region for an additional degree next to the masters studies programs and thus create a differentiating factor or competitive advantage for the future career.

Careers and CEE: Many of the panelists have worked in positions and in companies that operate in CEE. Regional headquarters for CEE (MONDI, Henkel, Siemens, REWE/BILLA, Rehau) or Austrian multinationals (Raiffeisen Bank International, Mayr-Melnhof, Novomatic, STRABAG) look for talents with a CEE competence.

Benefits from the MC: While attending the MC was an extra effort, the gains by far outstrip the time and work invested. It was interesting to hear that the advantage when applying for a job at a regional player was the additional CEE competence, but seen from the distance of several years it became the network. Be it when you look for a new job or when you need insights into a market or industry sector.

Watch the full webinar here.