Frequently Asked Questions

Established in 1959, Ashridge is one of the world’s leading business schools. It is consistently ranked as a premier provider of executive education and management development in the various Financial Times rankings. Ashridge’s combination of research, experience and practical application is currently making a difference to individuals and organisations in private and public sectors from around the world.

Ashridge is situated 50 km (30 miles) north west of London, near to Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire. London is within easy reach taking just 30 minutes by train, from Berkhamsted to London Euston and 1 hour by road. There are excellent rail and road links connecting Ashridge to both the north and the south of England. For international travellers, Luton, Stansted and Heathrow airports are within easy reach. Download a map with directions.

Ashridge’s services and activities encompass executive education, research, consulting and coaching.

Within executive education, it offers a combination of open programmes for individuals and tailor-made programmes for organisations. Ashridge qualification programmes include the:

• One Year Full-Time MBA
• Two Year Part-Time Executive MBA
• Post-Graduate Certificate in Management
• Diploma in Management
• Masters in Management
• MSc in Executive Coaching
• Ashridge Postgraduate Certificate in Advanced Coaching & Organisation Development Supervision
• Masters in Organisation Consulting; and
• Doctorate in Organisation Consulting.

Organisations can also enable their staff to manage their own learning through the market-leading Virtual Learning Resource Centre (VLRC).

Research is carried out across the organisation as well through the specialist research functions of the Ashridge Centre for Business and Sustainability, the Ashridge Public Leadership Centre, the Ashridge Leadership Centre, the Centre for Research in Excecutive Development and the Ashridge Strategic Management Centre, the latter based in London.

Ashridge is unique as a business school, in that it has its own consulting arm. Ashridge Consulting is a niche organisational development consultancy, specialising in strategy, leadership and change, working with a range of organisations from different sectors and countries.

Coaching is integral to much of Ashridge’s work. The Ashridge Centre for Coaching was established in 2006, to further develop the organisation’s coaching expertise through professional accreditation, research and sharing of best practice.

Ashridge is also an award-winning conference venue, having 15 well-equipped conference rooms suitable for groups of between 10 and 250, over 50 syndicate rooms and 190 en suite bedrooms (including 11 executive suites).

What makes Ashridge different is its philosophy. It believes that all development must make a difference, be practical and based on real issues. Ashridge’s faculty are not traditional academics, but have extensive international business experience, which they are able to bring to the everyday challenges faced by individuals and organisations.

Ashridge is acknowledged as one of the top providers of tailored executive education. It works with over a hundred international organisations delivering tailor-made programmes adapted to each organisation’s issues and challenges. Clients include Akzo Nobel, BBC, Electrolux, Foreign & Commonwealth Office, England Rugby, Ministry of Defence, Sinopec, Tetra Pac, United Utilities and Volkswagen.

Ashridge works with clients around the world including Germany, France, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Netherlands, USA, Turkey, Dubai, India, China and Japan. It has offices in seven overseas locations. See the contact details of our international representatives.

The Ashridge Library houses an extensive range of printed and electronic sources for participants attending an Ashridge programme, members of the Alumni and Corporate subscribers. Much of the materials are also available online through the Virtual Learning Resource Centre (VLRC).

Ashridge prides itself on the high standard of its catering, which has won numerous awards. There is always a wide choice of menus for breakfast, lunch and dinner including a vegetarian option. There is a fully licensed bar and complementary coffee, tea, biscuits and fruit available at all times. Comfortably furnished bedrooms are situated in modern buildings, all of which are centrally heated and equipped with an en-suite bathroom.

Ashridge has a Lifestyle Centre which includes a well-equipped gym, swimming pool, spa, sauna and steam room. Along with the excellent facilities, the lifestyle centre offers beauty and relaxation treatments as well as fitness classes. Other sporting facilities include tennis, squash and badminton courts.

Best of all, Ashridge is located in the middle of 5000 acres of National Trust forest, with 700 acres of landscaped gardens that make for a peaceful and contemplative visit.

Ashridge is consistently high in the various rankings published by the Financial Times and Economist.

In the latest FT rankings for tailored executive education (May 2010), Ashridge is in the top two in the UK for the fourth year running and sixteenth globally.

For the third year running, the Full-time MBA programme is number one in the world for post graduate salary growth (Economist MBA rankings).

Ashridge is one the few business schools in the world to be triple accredited by the main executive education bodies - the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), the European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS) and the Association of MBAs (AMBA).

Ashridge has won numerous awards recognising its world class facilities. For the last six years, it was nominated Best UK Management Training Centre in the Meetings and Incentive Travel Industry Awards. Ashridge’s catering is regularly recognised in international catering competitions and awards. Most recently, Chris Pinner, Ashridge’s commis chef won the 2009 Chef's Challenge, awarded by the International Association of Conference Centres (IACC) and Conference Centres of Excellence (CCE).