Equity, diversity and inclusion

At Imperial College Business School, we strive for true diversity in our community – in our people, our backgrounds, our thinking and our experience. We believe we have a responsibility to ensure there is opportunity for all, but particularly groups that are underrepresented.

We want to ensure staff and students can benefit from working and studying in a more diverse-aware organisation and, over recent years, have made great progress. Initiatives such as the School’s Diversity Committee, the launch of our Student EDI Strategy, and our Working in Diverse Organisations course (which all students complete), are helping to drive the agenda in this area.

Accreditations

Imperial's commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion is reflected through our accreditations, standards and charter marks. 

Find out more about the Business School's student EDI strategy

College EDI strategy

Find out more about the College’s equality, diversity and inclusion strategy.

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Community

Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of teaching, learning and the environment at the Business School. These principles are embedded in our community through a number of initiatives, including:

We partner with a range of organisations which focus on delivering positive change for under-represented groups. Through these partnerships we are able to offer fellowships to financially support individuals studying on our programmes.

Forté

We partner with Forté in their mission to launch women into fulfilling, significant careers through access to business education. We offer Forté Fellowships to candidates who exhibit exemplary leadership and demonstrate a commitment to advancing women in business. In addition to the financial support provided, Fellows gain access to incredible resources from Forté including participation at the annual Forté MBA Women’s Leadership conference, access to exclusive networking groups of Forté Fellows and e-introductions to Forté sponsor companies. In 2021 two of our MBA students won the Edie Hunt Inspiration award by Forté for developing and encouraging outstanding female leadership. Find out about our recent Fellows.

Reaching Out MBA

Imperial College Business School is a proud partner of Reaching Out MBA (ROMBA), a non-profit organisation dedicated to educating, inspiring and connecting the LGBTQ+ MBA community to drive change in the workplace and create the next generation of leaders. Imperial is one of over 50 top global business schools and 90 corporate partners supporting ROMBA’s mission, leading the way to equality in business education, in the workplace and throughout society. We are pleased to offer a ROMBA fellowship each year to a student joining our Full-Time MBA.

30% Club

We support the 30% Club’s goal of reaching at least 30 per cent female representation on all boards and C-suites globally. For candidates to our Executive MBA, we offer Inspiring Women scholarships; in addition to financial support, individuals will receive a range of support from the 30% Club, including cross-company mentoring and exclusive event invitations.

Black Future Leaders

As a School, we are proud to be a global organisation with students from all over the world. Currently, students from Black or mixed Black backgrounds are underrepresented in our student cohort and we’re working to improve this. The Black Future Leaders scholarship is open to students of Black heritage from all regions and across all programmes, who can demonstrate their leadership potential and want to make a positive contribution to the Imperial community.

LGBTQ+ Business Club

The LGBTQ+ Business Club connects students with leading companies and inclusive institutions. The club has members across the student community and encourages allies of the LGBTQ+ community to join. They regularly run events, speaker sessions and social events in conjunction with companies to promote inclusion and diversity. 

WE Innovate

WE Innovate is a pre-accelerator programme run by our Enterprise Lab, which aims to increase the number of women in leadership positions, running start-ups and raising funding. Over the course of six months, teams turn a business idea into a fully-fledged start-up through workshops, one-to-one business coaching and networking, culminating in a pitch battle for funding.

Imperial MBA Women’s group

The Imperial MBA Women’s group brings women together from across the MBA programmes at Imperial. A place to facilitate networking beyond the classroom, the group is made up of current MBA students and alumni who talk job opportunities, share advice and support each other while studying at Imperial and beyond.

Regional clubs

The Business School supports a number of student-led Business School Clubs, which aim to bring together MBA and MSc students with similar areas of career interest and/or professional backgrounds. All our clubs are organised by students and run a number of events throughout the year.

Working in Diverse Organisations

The year-long Working in Diverse Organisations module equips all students with the self-knowledge, people skills and contextual awareness to be effective employees and managers in organisations with increasingly diverse workforces. Students learn more about themselves, grow in confidence, increase their cultural fluency and develop a concrete set of tools that enable them to be strong contributors in diverse organisations. The innovative course received the Best Culture, Diversity & Inclusion Initiative award at the 2021 AMBA & BGA Excellence Awards, which celebrate achievement in the global business school community.

IQ

IQ is Imperial's society for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and/or questioning (LGBTQ+) students. IQ is welcome to all and aims to provide a friendly environment where you can meet other like-minded students.

Liberation & Community Networks

Imperial College Union has nine Liberation & Community Networks, which organise campaigns, build community, provide safe spaces, and act as support. Networks include Black and Minority Ethnic (BME), Disabilities, Gender Equality and LGBTQ+.

Women at Imperial portraits

Women at Imperial portraits is an initiative to help showcase female role models for our students, as well as recognise the many contributions women make in College. 

Training courses

The EDI Centre offer a range of diversity and inclusion training throughout the academic year to raise awareness of key diversity and inclusion topics, and to ensure Imperial's staff are able to apply and embed these values in their work.

Staff networks

Imperial College London has a number of diversity networks that aim to represent different staff groups.

  • Imperial 600 is the College's network for LGBTQ+ staff, postgraduates and their allies.
  • Imperial As One is an advisory group made up of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic staff. It is also the network for staff and postgraduates who identify as Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic.
  • Able@Imperial is a staff network who support and help staff with disability in the workplace.

Confidential Care

A team of trained counsellors who provide free professional and confidential help as part of the College's Employee Assistance Provider. They have specific information on trauma and world events.

Mental Health First Aid

A team of First Aiders who are there to listen and signpost you to further support options. Please do get in touch with Richard Johnson or Penny Gauld if you would like the support of a First Aider person.

Faith Centre

A team of Chaplains from different faiths are available to provide support and to speak confidentially with members of the College, regardless of religious affiliation.

Advice and support page

A list of the full range of advice and support options available to staff at the College.

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