What draws entrepreneurs to an MBA at Vlerick?

Top five reasons why entrepreneurs from around the world choose to take an MBA at Vlerick

Each year, entrepreneurs – and aspiring entrepreneurs – join our Executive MBA, European Executive MBA, Online Executive MBA and Full-Time MBA programmes. They come with different experience, knowledge and goals. But they have one thing in common – big dreams and a hunger to create real impact.

Here are the top five reasons why entrepreneurs from around the world choose to take an MBA at Vlerick – and why you should too…

1. To gain a holistic understanding of how business works

If you want to launch your own venture – or you’ve already founded one and want to grow it further – an MBA from Vlerick empowers you to take the leap with confidence.

Entrepreneurs are often fast-thinking, big-picture people. But to get these ideas off the ground, investment-ready or scalable, you need the broader understanding that an MBA from Vlerick can give you. When you take an MBA, you learn everything from finance and strategy, through to marketing and HR. You also develop soft skills like negotiation and leadership. It's why so many successful entrepreneurial careers have included an MBA from Vlerick.

It's the perfect way to immerse yourself in key business concepts – and get the latest tools and approaches. It allows you to and gain the comprehensive knowledge and skills you need to get your start-up off the ground – or scale up for even greater success.

“My MBA gave me the building blocks and confidence I needed to take the leap into entrepreneurship.”
Valérie De Clerck
MD and Founder, CURAFYT. Full-time MBA alumnus

2. To be immersed in an entrepreneurial environment

Entrepreneurship has always been at the heart of Vlerick. It’s part of the way we work and it’s woven into all of our programmes – particularly our MBAs.

Building an entrepreneurial mindset is an integral part of your MBA journey. Our sixth-month entrepreneurial mindset track empowers you to identify, evaluate and capture new opportunities. You’ll take part in a series of workshops that explore team building, financing ventures – and more. And you’ll explore the different applications of entrepreneurship, including social entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship.

Outside of the programme, you’ll have opportunities to join events exclusively for entrepreneurs – and access expert insights from our Entrepreneurs in Residence. By the time you leave us,  you’ll be thinking and acting like a true entrepreneur.

“Vlerick is strong in entrepreneurship – without them, I would never have started my own business.”
Pierre-Antoine Couvreur
Co-founder, BEELGIUM. Full-time MBA alumnus
“Without the MBA, I don’t think I would have been able to make the leap into entrepreneurship. It was fundamental to me being able to dare to create a start-up. It opened up my mind and presented new opportunities.”
Gert de Spiegeleer
Co-founder, Ethernetics. Executive MBA alumnus

3. To join a global network of entrepreneurs

At Vlerick, you can build a network that empowers your success. Throughout your MBA, you’ll meet entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds and cultures to share ideas with, use as sounding boards – and get advice from. You may even find a future business partner amongst your classmates.

You’ll have opportunities to meet seasoned entrepreneurs at events – and visit successful start-ups and entrepreneurship hubs like Silicon Valley. You’ll also have access to our 25,000-strong Vlerick Alumni community. So when it’s time to take your venture to the next level, you’ll have the support of a global network of entrepreneurs behind you.

“I was able to reconnect with a former colleague from veterinarian school who was also studying at Vlerick. She wanted to move into entrepreneurship too. We had the same ambitions, and it was great to start the journey together. We made a decision to buy and build. And this was made possible because of my MBA knowledge and experiences.”
Floris De Smet
Co-founder, DierenartsenPraktijk De Bascule. Executive MBA alumnus

4. To access exclusive funding opportunities

So you’ve got a fantastic idea for a business. Now you need knowledge and guidance to get it off the ground – and you need to finance it.

On a Vlerick MBA, you’ll gain the knowledge and guidance you’re looking for – and you’ll have the opportunity to apply for our Student Entrepreneurship Fund.  

Created to support the next generation of entrepreneurs, the Student Entrepreneurship Fund provides students and alumni with seed funding. Deliver a successful pitch – and you could get a contribution from the fund to help get you off the ground.

“The Entrepreneurship Fund has really helped get my start-up off the ground. As well as an incredible alumni network of experienced professionals, the faculty are an amazing source of knowledge.”
Huyen Le
Founder, Joylists. Full-time MBA alumnus

5. To get the time to accelerate your business idea

Entrepreneurship takes time. Time to refine your idea, time to craft your business plan – and time to seek guidance and learn new skills. But finding this time alongside a job and family life can be challenging.

This is why entrepreneurs choose to take an MBA at Vlerick. Because they know that on top of the world-class faculty, global network and entrepreneurial focus, they’ll gain time to work on their business in a safe, supportive environment.

Throughout your MBA, you’ll have the support of our excellent staff and faculty. So if you need flexibility to work on your venture, all you need to do is ask. And because Vlerick is a safe space to experiment with different approaches – and fail without impacting your business – you can be confident that no matter how hard you fall, we’ll be here to help you get back up and try again.

“Without Vlerick, I would never have taken the leap to form my own company. I’d talked to colleagues about starting a company before, but I never had the time or means – or the guts. But at Vlerick, you have support, space to think – and people around you to build ideas with."
Ward Servaes
Co-founder, moveUP. Executive MBA alumnus

Are you ready to take the next leap on your entrepreneurial journey?

 Book a call with us. We can’t wait to hear about your ambitions – and how we can help you achieve them.


Get in touch!

Inge Thienpont

Inge Thienpont

Customer Relationship Manager – European, Executive and Online MBA