IAE Aix-en-Provence Graduate School of Management, Université Paul Cezanne Aix-Marseille III

Age: 56

History: Founded in 1955, IAE Aix-en-Provence is France's first Institute of Business Administration in the public university system. Dedicated to graduate education and research, the school now offers Masters degrees, MBAs and doctoral programmes in specialised management fields.

Address: The school is located in Aix-en-Provence, the home of Cézanne, in the South of France. Within striking distance of vibrant Marseilles, the school represents the regional business school leader and maintains strong relationships with the corporate community thriving around France’s second largest city.

Ambience: Multiculturalism and bilingualism are encouraged: there's French-English training and more than 50 nationalities are represented on campus. Faculty members have close relationships with their students.

Vital statistics: The school offers a Masters course in management; MBAs in change and innovation and management of information systems security; and there's also an executive option and a doctorate in management sciences. There are 800 students in each year, most of whom are training for the first time, and 40 permanent faculty members. The school has a bulging contacts book, attracting 150 external speakers from the business world.

Added value: A prestigious, double-accredited institution, with an international approach to business combining both classic and innovative teaching methods.

Easy to get into? IAE Aix remains a selective business school. Strong GMAT and TOEFL or TOEIC scores, a clear professional objectives, definite motivation and a keen sense curiosity are the key ingredients for admissions. Perfect command of English is required. Notions of French are very helpful.

Glittering alumni: More than 20,000 alumni around the world, including the director of European Business at Hewlett-Packard.

Gurus: Maurice Saïas, a “superstar” consultant in strategy; Pierre Eiglier, the creator of “servuction” (service-production).

International connections: Exchange agreements with 52 European and international institutions.

Student profile: The average age on the Masters programme is 24, the MBA programme is 30 and our Executive programmes average 37 years old.

Cost: The MBA Change & Innovation is €22,000, while the Executive MBA is €22,700.

Who's the boss? Carolina Serrano Archimi is the full-time MBA academic director, Didier Yon is the Executive MBA director.

Prospectus: +33 442 28 08 08; www.iae-aix.com; info@iae-aix.com