Gianpiero

My name is Gianpiero. I did my Bachelors and Masters in Theoretical Physics from the Scuola Normale Superiore, one of the best schools in Italy. I completed my Ph.D. in Engineering Physics from the Universita di Pisa. I was also a part of the doctoral Exchange program with the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne.

I was a good student especially in math and physics right from my school. Following in the footsteps of my brother who was the youngest professor of physics in Italy, I started my career as a professor of physics. However, during my studies, I had also had some experience with entrepreneurship and I decided to discontinue my career as a professor and try to work it out as an entrepreneur. After my decision to make a career switch I started to work for Altran, a consulting company, where I worked first as a Quantitative Consultant and later as Project Manager. But the career that was offered to me there and the lack of internationalism prompted me to prepare for an MBA so that I could do something else. I decided to go for an MBA in the US because I wanted to make a complete career switch and work in America in the field of investment banking. I knew that a school like INSEAD would only have allowed me to make a career switch into management consulting but probably not help me get the dream job that I wanted that was to be an investment banker.

Yale, apart from being able to help me with my primary goals also gave me a sizeable scholarship while also offering me a position as a teaching assistant which was a very valuable factor when I had to decide between Columbia, Chicago, Yale, and Berkeley.

Before studying for the GMAT my level of English was very low. It was a real difficulty when it came to the verbal section of the GMAT. I had to learn English, pass the TOEFL before appearing for the GMAT. The poor level of English was the greatest handicap and perhaps the reason for my low score of 740 in the GMAT. I am very thankful to Dr. Hubert Silly who was very helpful to me as I prepared for the GMAT.

Apart from this, it was very difficult to explain to the admissions committee the various turns in my career and the choices I was making in my life: studying for my PhD till the age of 30 then after six years of working as a management consulting, at 35 years of age, deciding to make a switch and work as an investment banker. In this respect, I must thank Dr. Hubert Silly for helping me find the right arguments and approach to convince the admission committee to give me a chance.

New Haven has a charm of its own which has been immortalized in many movies. Before I got to Yale I didn’t know what to expect of my life here. But being at Yale has brought home to me a great sense of belonging. I particularly enjoyed my time at Yale as I was also working as a Teaching Assistant at the college. As such, I got a chance to interact not only with the student body but also got the rare opportunity to work with the teachers there. It was an enriching experience for sure.

Never underestimate the GMAT. As a Ph.D. in physics and a graduate from one of the best schools in Italy, I thought that it would be easy for me. I forgot to factor in my poor English proficiency. Getting a 740 with beginner-level English proved very difficult.

Dream big. Many people discouraged me when I decided to change my career path. My family also did not understand my reasons for leaving a well-respected job to get into something that I was obviously not ready for. However, keeping myself motivated and was the reason I was finally able to keep my dream alive and achieve what I did.

Also, I’d recommend that you get help from people who can help you overcome your challenges. Dr. Hubert Silly was very supportive to me and helped me with my English while I prepared for my GMAT. It was with the support of Dr. Hubert Silly and the MBA Center that I was able to overcome my challenges and get the score that I did.