Henley Business School

Age: 66

History: Originally Henley Management College, it was the first business school to be established in the UK and one of the first in Europe. Henley Business School launched in August 2008 after a merger between Henley Management College and the Business School of the University of Reading.

Address: The Henley MBA is delivered at the Greenlands campus between Henley-on-Thames and Marlow. The other campus is at Whiteknights, at the University of Reading.

Ambience: Henley campus is picturesque and distinguished, where the school is housed in a large, white, 19th-century stately home surrounded by 30 acres of parkland. The campus has a recently upgraded library with e-library service, conference rooms, study rooms, study bedrooms, computer and sports facilities, including fitness centre and heated open-air pool. The brand new high-tech ICMA centre, the business school for financial markets, was opened at the Reading campus in 2009.

Vital statistics: Henley is the world's third-largest provider of MBA education. At any one time, more than 4,000 people are studying for the Henley MBA in over 140 countries. Teaching is organised around real-world dilemmas and business choices, rather than traditional academic disciplines. The Henley MBA is offered as a full-time programme over one year or part-time via two-year executives, or three-year distance learning programmes.

Added value: Limited class numbers ensure individual attention and highly interactive sessions, with face-to-face and online group work being a central feature of each course.

Easy to get into? Aimed at experienced managers, you'll need a good degree or equivalent and at least three years of relevant management experience.

Glittering alumni: Sir Geoffrey Holland, former vice-chancellor, Exeter University; Alan Hughes, former chief executive, First Direct.

Student profile: The average age of current MBA programme members across all modes is 38; most have seven years of management experience. The male to female ratio is 70:30.

Cost: It's £33,000 for the full-time MBA (one year); or £20,000 by distance learning (over three years). The executive MBA costs £39,950 over two years.

Return on investment: All the usual salary upgrades, as well as the experience of applying learning to real organisational issues.

Who's the boss? The Dean of Henley Business School is Professor John Board.

Prospectus: +44 (0)1491 418803; www.henley.com/mba