Can you tell us more about yourself?
My name is Tom and I am a graduate of HEC Lausanne where I received a Bachelor of Science in Management. As a Belgian student, I studied not only in Switzerland but also in Canada where I had an exchange program at McGill University. During my studies, I was also a teaching and research assistant. I am a part of the MBA program at London Business School and will be graduating in June 2017. At the moment I am interning as a Business Analyst at Intertek in Paris.
What prompted you to apply for an MBA?
My dream has been to work as a management consultant in the UK. I understand that with the degree and type of experiences I have it will be difficult for me to target companies such as Bain, BCG, McKinsey, etc. I come from a small country, Belgium and studied in Switzerland. I wanted to develop more in a bigger country such as France, Germany or the UK. I chose LBS because I already have a Bachelor of Science in Management and I was interested to continue my studies by getting my Masters, but I did not really like the two-year format of HEC, ESSEC or IE. I thought London would be the best place for me to develop myself.
What did you find the most difficult part of the application process?
I took between September to December 2015 to prepare for the GMAT and applications working full time on this. I began to apply to round 1 in early 2016. I spent enough time with Dr. Hubert Silly at the MBA Center discussing my profile and found that three to four months was enough time to prepare for an MBA. What I found most difficult in the process were the applications. I had no work experience even though I had a good background and studies. My only internship was for two months in a communication agency, in a field that was not at all what I wanted to do. So I had to exhibit some leadership skills without much experience and justify my interest in management consulting when I had had no experience in the field.
Despite all this I have been able to work with Dr Hubert Silly who has been essential in helping me build an identity and profile that has prepared me for a business school.
What is life like at LBS?
Life at LBS is every bit as I imagined it to be. The classes are very well designed and structured and being in London you have the chance of interacting with professionals from various countries and companies right in the city. The student body is also very diverse and there are a lot of student-centric activities aimed at building the network and branding of the students.
What would be your advice to someone applying for an MBA program?
Choose carefully where you want to study. Take into consideration the duration of the program, one year like LBS or two years like HEC. You should also take into consideration the city. It is better to study in the city where you want to work in the long run.
The perceptions that employees may have of the schools may differ from country to country. The link that the university has with the field you want to work in essential. After my discussions with Dr. Hubert Silly, I knew that LBS has very strong career center and a strong connection with management consulting industry. I knew that LBS would guarantee me a position in my dream city and dream country.
Second preparing for the GMAT, IELTS and the application is about six months of full-time work. You cannot score 700 in the GMAT and write a very good application by studying only a bit in the evenings. You need time to prepare wee. I was lucky enough to work with the MBA Center and Dr. Hubert Silly who have been key to my success. All the four students from Belgium that were here at LBS in 2016-2017 had worked with Dr. Hubert Silly whether it be Alberto, Lola, Joseph or me. I think that their performance is quite impressive and would recommend them to other candidates in a heartbeat.