Calling all ESMT Berlin MBA Applicants: Jan 2020 Intake

Hi JMMAdison! Good luck with your interview on Thursday! I am planning to submit my application next week. Maybe you can give some application tips?

H bucoloco,
I think their process is pretty straight forward.
A couple of recommendations or things to be aware of
- The curriculum has recently changed and will be brand new next year. You must choose a core track in your application now. Make sure to look into that and be aware of old data still floating around the net. I have not found much in regards to alumni or industry reaction on this change, but let me know if you see anything.
- Definitely reach out to the admissions team and try to setup a call, visit, or something to get to know them and the school, and for them to get to know you better. It might just be me, but I found other schools are a bit better at the personal interactions and I like to connect to people face to face (skype as backup). I ended up flying to a different country to meet them at an MBA event, just to get some face-time and perspective.

Good Luck!

JMM

Well, I think my interview went well this morning. It was a fairly relaxed agenda that was mostly questions about my experiences working with different people, cultures, ages, etc. I was also asked a few questions about my goals and how the MBA will help me achieve those goals. It was fairly free flowing and only had a few questions that were asked about specific situations or stories.
Overall I felt good about it, but was also not able to read the interviewer about some discussions. I am hoping for good news next week.

Everybody else going through the process, Good Luck!

JMM

Hi JMM! Thanks for these tips! I will try to schedule a call with them next week!
Good to hear that your interview went well! Did they mention how long it will take for them to give their decision?

I was told that they would notify me within a week regarding their decision. They also gave me more names of alumni to reach out to for discussion about the school. Hoping this is a good sign.

JMM

I received an admit offer this morning.
It was transmitted a bit weird. I received an email from an adcom directing me to login to the application portal for the decision.
I guess I expected a personalized touch to it, or completely automated.
Either way, I am very happy and have a decision to make.

I wish all the others best of luck in the process.

JMM

That was fast! Less than 2 weeks! Congratulations!!!

Hi all,
I have received more questions about the ESMT admissions process, particularly the essay questions, so I am going to elaborate / put some more thoughts out there.

For me, the hardest part about these essays was the length. The 'character limit' was so low on some of these, that I had to rewrite them multiple times to condense the information from my first drafts.

The first essay does give a generous 3,000 character limit for you to explain why you are choosing ESMT and what your short term and long term goals are. This should be one of the first exercises when choosing to pursue an MBA and subsequently should be tailored to each school applied to.

The second essay is about charity / volunteering activities. The 630 characters for this essay were a challenge for me due to some recent volunteering experience. Make sure to have something concrete here, and don't just tell them what you did and move on. Tell them why you did and how it made you feel, and most importantly how you were helping others from your actions.

The third essay is probably the more difficult for some of us. It was for me, and so I started tackling this one first. The premise is that you have just graduated and are taking a long road trip before starting work, who do you take and why? The last part of that is the most important. Again, I had trouble fitting the story into the 1,500 character limit, and had to rewrite multiple times. I actually changed my whole story a couple times on this one. In the end, I dont think they care where you go or what you actually do. I wrote about doing activities that I dislike all across the country, and probably said less than five sentences that mentioned anything about a road trip. The key is who you take with you, why you chose them, and what do you discuss. Think about the book 'Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance' - it is not about motorcycle maintenance and although it does take place during a road trip, that is not the main point either. It is about connections, relationships, and personal growth (on a basic level).

Good thing there is not a character limit on these posts... I guess I might have rambled a bit, but I hope it helps some of you tackle these essays and put some good thoughts down.

Good luck.

JMM

Hello and congratulations on the acceptance!

My name is Michel (male, 29) from Beirut, Lebanon and would like to form a WhatsApp group with all admitted students so we can get to know each other and provide support for one another if needed.

Please PM me your number so I can add you to the group.

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I just now received an admit from ESMT Business School. Is there any whatsapp group among ESMT Jan 2020 intake students? Please add me +917410088427

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Congrats Ankanju!

I see that you were also accepted to IE. Are you still deciding or have you committed to study in Berlin?

JMM

nayakr1127

You will not get many responses to such an open question like this. There are lots of resources for this information on this site and through web searches. If you have any specific / detailed questions, this board will jump right in and help you out.
Also, I saw that you posted a profile review and didnt list ESMT as top-choice. This is understandable if you have high aspirations, but I encourage you to consider the timelines for all the schools you are interested in. The timeline for ESMT Jan 2020 is 75% gone for you, and admission difficulty could increase for certain candidate groups.
I encourage you to reach out to each school individually, once you have done any necessary prep (research, goals, why mba, etc...).

JMM

Hello JMM,

Yes I did connect to esmt and they said that intake from india for Jan 2020 is over. They have limited no. Of seats for a country. Only will be able to apply jan 2021

I have heard the same response from somebody else recently.
Sorry to hear that in your case, but it helps to preserve the 'International' aspect of their program. They try to make sure that any one nationality is not overrepresented. There are just so many good candidates from India, it is even more important to submit early in the process and make sure you have a well developed application.
I cannot over-emphasize the 'well developed' aspect enough. It is important to really dig deep into your "story" or profile and make sure that ALL of your application materials speak to the same theme. After your research, you should be creating an individualized outline for each school and personalize the materials toward each one.

JMM

Yes, thankyou

Hi JMMAdison!

Glad to hear you gor accepted to ESMT, I'm a bit late here but there's a really bad review in here also for the ESMT about the career services and the possibilities to get a job in Germany, that they are not really helpful in that process and many people couldn't find a job, can you give me some insight here? is this true? As I really liked the program but I'm also looking to work abroad for at least a year.

Would be very helpful hearing from someone currently studying there, thank you in advance!

Hi NataliaM

I think many schools have been getting a bad review in regards to career services lately.
In my opinion it is due to some students expecting the schools to provide extensive career options for them to choose from.
In reality, finding a job after school is a competition that every student needs to prepare for and make their own way. All schools help to introduce the students to many companies, but it is up to us to seek out and find the right fit as well.
In the end, it depends on where you want to work and in what industry.
Hope this helps.
JMM

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