Can you tell us more about yourself?
My name is Maud. I hold a Master in Management from ESCP Europe. I worked as a Consulting Intern for Opinno in Madrid before joining Happytal as a Business Development Intern. I have also worked as a Mergers and Acquisitions Intern at BNP Paribas on their Real Estate team.
What prompted you to apply for an MBA?
When I initially met Dr. Hubert Silly I wanted to go for an extra Masters for a year abroad through my program at ESCP Europe. I had initially selected LSE to get the Master in Economics to open up my vision of probably working for public institutions like the World Bank, the IMF or the World Trade Organisation. While preparing for the GMAT with Dr. Hubert Silly he identified some potential in me and supported me to work and study harder. When I got a 750 in my GMAT he strongly recommended me to go for an Elite program at Harvard called 2+2 of which I knew nothing. Harvard 2+2 is a program that accepts you right after your school but you need to work for two years before starting the program. Of course, this was not what I was looking for as I wanted to start my Masters right after school. At the same time, this was Harvard. How could I refuse! So I began working in the private equity sector before I joined Harvard after the 2 years were up. My goals of working in public institutions still remain and I hope that an MBA from Harvard will help me in achieving that goal.
What did you find the most difficult in the application process?
The GMAT classes offered by Dr. Hubert Silly at MBA Center were very valuable and I was very grateful to have had the chance to attend the classes as it would have been very difficult for me to get the 750 on my own. The application to Harvard was pretty difficult. Even though I have a pretty good IELTS score, the level of English, creativity, the communication required to successfully apply to Harvard Business School was far greater than my capabilities. So I was very grateful for the support of the MBA Center in my application process.
What is life like at Harvard?
What can be said about Harvard that hasn’t already been said before? I was overwhelmed when I got into the Harvard 2+2 program. As of now, I have yet to attend Harvard as I am completing the first two years of work experience as the 2+2 program requires. However, I am very eager to join classes as soon as the work period is over. I am hoping to find a great body of students, diverse and multi-national. I am hoping to learn different perspectives and make friends from across the globe.
What would be your advice to someone applying for an MBA program?
Be flexible in life. When I reached out to the MBA Center I had something very specific in mind. I had to completely change my target once Dr. Hubert Silly explained to me the windows of opportunities that this new degree would bring to my life and the great boost to my professional goals it could give. So be flexible and be ready for the best.
Work on your GMAT as it is definitely the passport for an MBA. During my pre visits to Harvard, I met many other students and I realized that most of them had scored somewhere between 720 to 790 in the GMAT.
And finally, I highly recommend the services offered by Dr. Hubert Silly and MBA Center as they have been instrumental in my success. I was definitely one of their success stories of the year. I was also very impressed by the quality of the classes. Many of my classmates got into great programs: one got the MIF at HEC, another got the MBA at MIT, and another got into the Executive MBA at HEC, etc., and most of the rest were also placed in similar top-ranked programs. So I believe that the services at the center can bring great value to your application.