HEC vs. IESE vs. ESADE

In that case it makes sense to get fluent in Spanish and start studying it. Seems you may have a use for it. IESE is usually chosen over the ESADE. It is higher-ranked and thus tends to be more attractive to recruiters and other value in being one of the best schools in the country. At the same time, ESADE has an innovation/entrepreneurship lab.

At the same time, if you are thinking about Entrepreneurship then ESADE makes a good case for cheaper cost of attendance and stronger play in your target area but the weakness of the plan is that if anything changes, you may not be in the optimal situation and usually the higher-ranked school is the safer option.

I would also emphasize that you would have a MUCH better overall experience if you know the local language. The reality is that you will not have time to learn it while attending school because your priorities will be school, recruiting, clubs, etc.

Thanks for the insight, very informative and helpful. Will definitely get started on the language studies.

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Hi!

I can probably share my two cents on this as I was in a similar boat about a year ago - Well, sort of, as I was weighing some US schools admits (mainly Ross, Cornell and Georgetown) vs. IESE.

However, this is where things got tricky for me. It was the start of COVID and the two things I did not want to compromise on were the diversity ratio (international to domestic) and the in-person experience. IESE offered them both and had a rank advantage. Having said this, the rankings are never the end all be all. Which is why the international mobility (something I was very big on AND is a hidden column in the rankings) swayed me - IESE was amongst the top 10 schools here and most US schools lie very low wrt this.

Regarding your predicament, you are definitely spoilt for choice! And I do echo bb's point of seeing the short-term (with your goal to get a job/internship) and the long term to be an entrepreneur (with a focus on fintech), in equal light. While I personally do know that ESADE has a good entrepreneurship lab, IESE has a robust SEE program (Summer Entrepreneurship Experience) - where you get to start your company in lieu of an internship and have the opportunity to get mentored by industry experts. Where both schools are equal is their connect with the BCN startup network. Both have deep roots and there is no clear winner there.

Regarding recruiting, I wouldn't sugar coat it but it's been abysmal globally and might spill over to early next year as well (hopefully not more). HEC, ESADE, IESE, US schools. Everyone has seen a slump. And if you'd like to take a punt on JUST entrepreneurship right after the MBA, then factors such as the cost of attendance and alumni entrepreneurial tendencies will kick in. However, if you are eager to have a job (minds change very fast when you get to the MBA ) and start something of your own, then 100% look at the latest recruitment figures and you will find a disposition by firms to focus on the rankings (ergo student pool/quality) more.

And don't worry about the language, you'll pick it up in no time. I didn't speak of lick of Spanish but you can sign up for optional classes and your Spanish classmates will help you polish your Spanish off!

Lastly, if you have admits to all these schools, start engaging with the admissions offices and the regional business clubs to ask them some tough questions about jobs, funding (for your venture someday), alumni pedigree, scholarships, etc.

Don't let up with the questioning till you're not 100% satisfied! It's a huge decision in your life, do it wisely

In any case, if you do choose IESE, the first round is on me!

Cheers!
A

Hi A, thank you very much for the thoughtful and insightful reply. I will definitely take this into consideration. Thanks for the vote of confidence! Definitely a bit intimidated by the language barrier. All the best in your studies.

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Do you mind expanding a little bit on how international mobility plays out in practice as a current student there?

One thing that comes to mind is that (I believe) students in France get an automatic post-MBA visa to find work, whereas I don't think the same holds true for internationals students in Spain. I know there are the classic firms that sponsor people, but apart from that how does international mobility really play out for those who don't have EU passports?

Hi, sure. What I meant by international mobility was that the alums are spread out across multiple regions - GCC, SE Asia, LATAM, EU and the UK. In all fairness, IESE doesn't have too many people in the US. The way this helps your international mobility is that when firms recruit, your geographic spread is a lot more as they've experienced the value of IESE MBAs. Moreover, if you do want to switch a job in a few years post the MBA, the regional reach you'll have is much larger. Lastly, the classroom's diversity, i.e. 87% internationals and 13% locals, automatically preps you for managing global perspectives a lot better. Also, in all fairness, most top-tier EU/UK schools have this to their advantage.

Regarding the visa thing, I'm aware that Spain does not have the same system but you can still remain in the country for a year after graduating to find a job. Assuming you want to work in Spain! IESE's sales pitch is never about promising gigs in Spain (there is an obvious language barrier) which is why most non-Spanish (and English) speakers end up with gigs in the UK, GCC and SE Asia. It is mostly the local folks/LATAM guys/Native Spanish speakers who end up staying in Spain. The only exception to this is that startups in Spain don't have this requirement and as I mentioned, the network of IESE is super deep!

Hope this helps!

Cheers!
A

Hi reps I am in a similar situation as yours, as I was admitted to both Esade (scholarship) and Iese (no scholarship), and I am interested in entrepreneurship. I am a musician also so I am looking at a more "creative" MBA and Esade has a great focus on that, at least from my understanding. However Iese is higher in rankings, post-MBA salary and career service, so I really feel splitted here. Did you manage to decide which school to attend?

It has only been a week. I think the OP still researching

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