But if there is a big gap between style and substance, then the substance can be undermined. At Tanaka, we have been able to attract star academics to teach our globally recognised courses in business, finance and health."In the City of London, the Cass Business School has recently opened a £36m purpose-built high-tech development which the school's Professor Erik Larsen calls "a machine for learning". "While the Tanaka benefaction has given us the stage to display our qualities, the real issue, of course, is the people you will encounter during your MBA People are the substance of the school. Tanaka's principal, Professor David Begg, explains: "A business school such as ours, which focuses on high-tech products and networks needs to have the state-of-the-art facilities to match."However, Professor Begg stresses that the physical environment is only part of the story of a successful school.

If you are a serious player, you must have the technology and the facilities to back it up," he says.Financing such improvements can stretch budgets to the limit, but in the case of Imperial College London's Tanaka Business School, a £27m donation by alumnus Dr Gary Tanaka has resulted in an impressive Sir Norman Foster-designed building on Kensington's Exhibition Road. Beyond the imposing steel and glass exterior is a gleaming stack of six fully networked lecture theatres and a multipurpose forum which serves as the central social gathering point. These range from Exeter's recently-completed £15m Xfi centre for finance and investment to Lancaster University Management School's new £9.5m leadership centre due to open next year. "There is a definite trend for UK universities to invest in their business schools, which have been good earners for them in the past. The look, feel and user-friendliness of the building in which you will spend an intensive MBA year is bound to influence your final choice.Just as the retail and hospitality sectors have had to raise their game to meet customer expectations, so too have business schools.

In a competitive international environment, British schools know full well that a prestigious state-of-the-art setting counts in their favour when attempting to attract the world's brightest and best. Jonathan Slack, chief executive of the Association of Business Schools, which represents 102 institutions, points to at least 20 UK schools which have either opened new facilities or have new buildings at the development stage. Your search for a school which offers the greatest all-round value will inevitably take into account key aspects such as world ranking, the quality of the programme, faculty and fellow students as well as the school's reputation in the corporate world. If, having ticked all these boxes, the school that appears to fit you best is housed in unimpressive, sub-standard bricks and mortar with an overcrowded library and poorly equipped lectures theatres, you may move swiftly on to the next brochure. UK business schools are in the throes of a building boom. Behind the slick new steel and glass facades, what can you expect in the way of facilities to ease the MBA learning experience? UK business schools are in the throes of a building boom.

Cranfield School of Management runs four with the London Stock Exchange.Cass Business School, meanwhile, has begun offering scholarships for black and ethnic minority students through the Black MBA Association, while Bath School of Management has introduced a half-fee UK scholarship scheme. At Manchester, unusually, the majority of its scholarships fund, or help fund, part-time MBAs, says Tufft."US schools traditionally have more money for funding. UK schools have concentrated on coming up with loan schemes," she explains.It is vital to do your research, says Melissa McCrindle, director of marketing for the University of Strathclyde Graduate School of Business "Look at whether a school is accredited," she says "It's a good way of assessing their quality. We find that students see the expense of an MBA as a necessity to attain their ambitions."Fulbright Commission: Council: Association of International Educators: International Education Financial Aid: Chevening scholarships: .