Nathan

My name is Nathan and I am a graduate from the Universite libre de Bruxelles with a Masters in Engineering (Physics). I started work as a Safety Officer in the ‘Safety and Licensing” service in the Nuclear Department of Tractebel Engineering for Engie Group. I was responsible for the complete implementation of all the required nuclear safety options for a given project, in order to protect the public and the environment from ionizing radiation. In August 2011 I decided to quit engineering and founded the NATH School that offers independent coaching in all scientific disciplines.

Right after graduation, I worked for three years as a nuclear engineer and after three years there I decided to quit to start my own school as I could not stand the pressure at the Nuclear Power plant. I also wanted to enjoy working as an entrepreneur and hence I started the school which would be of great service to students trying to pass highly selective scientific examinations. After two years at school, I realized that I could be more ambitious in life and aim for a more strategic position in the industry. This seemed impossible with just a Masters in Engineering and so I decided to compound my studies with an MBA. I got accepted to LBS, ISE, HEC, but I chose INSEAD as it is a one year program that has a very good reputation and a great network amongst its alumni.

As I am quite good at math, I did not struggle too much with the mathematical section of the GMAT. The verbal section was challenging as I have never done an exchange program to any of the English speaking nations or anywhere and my education as an engineer trained in Belgium allowed me very little time to start learning English on a level as the one required by the GMAT. It was very challenging to get to the 700 that I needed on my GMAT. It took me months of classes with Dr. Hubert Silly to acquire the skills to tackle the GMAT and get the 690 I needed.

Another challenge I faced was that my career path was not straightforward at all. I had initially started off as a nuclear engineer and then decided to stop everything to create a small and selective school being the only teacher and the only director there. It was very difficult for me to justify how I could go from a Fortune 500 company into private tutoring and then back into an MBA to work for a big company again. My difficulty was to present my career path in a positive light so that I did not end up looking like someone who did not have a proper career in mind. Dr. Hubert Silly tried to identify reasons for both jobs, explaining to me that it is quite common for people who work with big companies to be disappointed with what the company has to offer and decide to switch to a small scale entrepreneurship venture. What I liked about the interactions we had was that he was very positive in his approach and always tried to motivate me and showed me how to put a value on every aspect of my life. Fortunately, I was a good student and I think that the admission committee was reassured by my intellectual and academic skills.

I also had to contend with a lack of exposure. I had studied and worked throughout my life in Belgium. We explained my lack of international exposure by expanding on my interest in foreign cultures, my trips abroad from work and by showing that though I was not well-traveled, I was open-minded and open to new challenges, new approaches, etc. 

Having already worked as an engineer in a high-stress job and then worked in a school as a teacher and guide I was pretty sure about the aims I wanted out of the next years of my life. In this respect, I have been very fortunate to have gotten a chance to be a part of the INSEAD network. With its world-renowned faculty and the quality of its classes, INSEAD has earned its number one ranking in the Financial Times. I am astounded by the student network at INSEAD and I am really happy to have been given the opportunity to create connections here such as no other.

I am an example of someone who did not have a fast track career as a consultant or in a Fortune 500 company or a bank and still managed to get into a great school. This was because I believed that MBA programs have many ways of assessing a candidate and career is just one of them. There are others such as international exposure, leadership, intellectual and academic skills. It is not a necessity that if one part of the application is weak you lose out on your chance. You can make it up from the rest of your profile and I am a good example of that. So do not censor yourself. You have a chance too. At INSEAD there were others like me who were teachers or men from the army or small scale entrepreneurs, who still got in.

The GMAT is essential. If you do not get 680-690, you have very little to no chance of getting in, especially if you are an engineer. Schools expect engineers to have good GMAT scores and you are a part of a group that is highly competitive. So you need to be the best in your field. In hindsight, I believe that the 690 I received was a bit low and could have posed a problem for my application.

Finally, I was recommended the services of Dr. Hubert Silly by a friend from my high school who had worked with him and got into NYU. He had also recommended the services to his own brother who got into LBS. Two other friends he sent to work with Dr. Hubert Silly got into INSEAD. I could see that Dr. Hubert Silly had very strong results. I was also successful in my collaboration with Dr. Hubert Silly and I can only recommend his services for applicants who are serious about getting into a top MBA Program.