Duke University's Fuqua School of Business also sees significant demand for its three-week language and culture primer.

WSJ: B-Schools Try to Make Transition Smoother for International Students

Karla Savina, one of three Americans in her 57-person class in the Applied Finance program at Pepperdine University's business school, says she has learned about Chinese culture, and adds that her hardworking classmates have pushed her academically.

WSJ: Chinese Flood U.S. Programs to Gain Edge

At Berkeley-Haas, Johnson and his team used both a long essay and a number of short answer questions that were designed to give each candidate the opportunity to give us a sense of what was important to them, why business school was the next step, and how they would fit with the culture and program.

FORBES: Connect

With this in mind, there is a real need for the old-school bankers to change the culture that exists within their institutions so they can encourage small business creation and growth.

FORBES: Thinking Outside the Box

And if this culture truly exists, does it shape students far beyond their years at Harvard Business School?

FORBES: Harvard MBA: The Cost of Culture

At the less traditional end of the scale was a lecture this month at the UK's Judge Business School, part of Cambridge University, one of a series intended to explore the crossover between commerce and culture.

CNN: Hearing from the experts