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End of Year Reflections: My Journey as a MiM Scholar [#permalink]
FROM LBS MiM Admissions Blog: End of Year Reflections: My Journey as a MiM Scholar



Written By, Maria Chiara Pacciolla, MiM2024

One year may seem like a short period, but when it’s packed with obtaining a masters degree, planning your future, securing a job, and enjoying the experience, time truly flies. Reflecting on my journey, it’s astonishing to realize all that has happened in just ten months at LBS. LBS is a unique place, teeming with opportunities, stimuli, and challenges. While the sheer volume can feel overwhelming at times, the personal growth it fosters makes every moment worthwhile.

Starting as a Merit Scholar

Beginning my journey as a merit scholar was both an honour and a responsibility. It brought confidence and a sense of duty to prove that LBS had made the right choice. My initial plan was clear: land a consulting job in the Middle East. Yet, as they say, “Strategy without Execution is Hallucination.” LBS provided me with an extraordinary “learning journey” to turn my strategy into reality.

Support to prepare for a career in consulting.

The MiM curriculum at LBS provides you with the hard skills necessary for building a solid foundation in management consulting. However, what truly sets LBS apart is its exceptional network of professionals and peers. Engaging with industry experts and alumni provided me with insights that no textbook could offer.

Throughout the year, I did countless case studies with my MiM peers and especially with MBA students who had worked in consulting. What surprised me the most was that they weren’t just helping me with practice cases—something already remarkable given that they had no direct benefit—they were genuinely invested in my journey. They offered advice, feedback, and encouragement every step of the way. This level of support went beyond expectations and truly exemplified the strong community at LBS.

Every interaction, from formal mentoring sessions to casual conversations, contributed to my understanding of the consulting world. This immersive experience ensured that I was not only well-prepared for my interviews but also genuinely excited about the career path I had chosen.

Learning beyond the classroom

LBS offers a 360-degree learning journey, and the Global Experience (GE) is a perfect example. For those unfamiliar, GE entails a week-long immersive course in a different city, focusing on understanding its key socio-economic drivers.

My Global Experience took me to Cape Town. This trip was transformative. Having never visited South Africa before, I gained fresh perspectives on global economic dynamics and local challenges.

During the week, we had the chance to support a local business facing a significant challenge. This gave us a practical learning experience and allowed us to make a meaningful impact using the skills we had acquired. Furthermore, coming together as a team to tackle real-world challenges strengthened our sense of community building strong friendships.

Exceptional People: From Students to Professors

I cannot stress it enough: one of the most remarkable aspects of LBS is its community. Students, alumni, professors, and the Programme team create a strong support network that is both a source of inspiration and opportunities.

The School attracts exceptionally driven students from a wide range of backgrounds, from management to biotech to psychology. This diversity enriches every discussion, project, and interaction, fostering a learning environment that is as global as it is dynamic.

The professors at LBS are equally exceptional, bringing a wealth of industry experience and academic excellence to the classroom. Many have worked in top-tier corporations or launched successful entrepreneurial ventures, providing a hands-on approach to learning that is deeply rooted in real-world applications. Their insights, drawn from personal corporate and entrepreneurial experiences, offer invaluable perspectives that go beyond traditional academic instruction.

Courses supporting personal growth beyond a conventional management curriculum.

Amidst the rigor of the year, LBS offers courses focused on personal development, recognizing the need to balance professional ambitions with life’s simpler, yet essential, priorities. One such elective, “Wisdom and Happiness,” was particularly impactful.

The “Wisdom and Happiness” elective was more than just a break from the intense focus on business and finance; it was an opportunity to gain deep insights into what it means to live a meaningful life. The class discussions and reflective exercises helped me understand the importance of balancing my career aspirations with my personal well-being.

Giving back as a Student Ambassador

Serving as a Student Ambassador at LBS was one of the most rewarding aspects of my journey. Throughout the year, I had the privilege of representing the School and connecting with prospective students. This role allowed me to give back to the School that had decided to invest in me as a merit scholar.

I participated in campus tours, information sessions, and networking events, sharing my experiences and insights with future students. Being a Student Ambassador also helped me develop my leadership and communication skills. I took pride in helping others navigate their decision-making process and showcasing the vibrant, supportive community at LBS. This experience deepened my connection to the school and reinforced my commitment to contributing to its ongoing legacy.

My new journey ahead

As my time as a student concludes, I look forward to the next chapter as an alumna and embarking on my professional journey as a consultant in Doha. This year has undoubtedly made me more resilient and, to use a business-trendy phrase, “agile.” These qualities, nurtured at LBS, will be invaluable as I navigate my future career.

In reflection, my year at LBS has been a whirlwind of challenges, growth, and satisfaction. It has prepared me not just as a professional but as a person excited to face the world.
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I will find a way or make one an outsider making her way in central ba [#permalink]
FROM LBS MiF Admissions Blog: I will find a way or make one – an ‘outsider’ making her way in central banking
By Hinako Kijima, MIFFT2024

Crossing paths with the ‘Rock star’ in international finance



On June 11, I had the greatest honour and privilege of organizing and moderating an exchange session with the European Central Bank (ECB) President Madame Christine Lagarde at the ECB headquarters in Frankfurt, as part of the LBS Frankfurt & Paris Global Experience elective course. Students from the Masters in Finance (MiF) programme, Masters in Financial Analysis(MFA) programme, and Sloan programme had the unique opportunity to ask questions about the outlook of ECB’s monetary and macroprudential policies directly to the President.

As we shook hands, Madame Lagarde greeted me with a bright smile – “It’s nice to see you again”. Indeed, this wasn’t the first time I had the pleasure of meeting the wonder woman. Our paths first crossed at the G7 meetings in Japan last year, when I served as the liaison officer to the ECB delegation, representing the Bank of Japan (BOJ). Having had the opportunity to meet one’s ultimate role model is the greatest fortune one could ask for.

“I am going to be myself and therefore probably different”



In early July of 2019, an article in the Financial Times caught my eye: “Female forces are the economic future”. It was reporting the news of Madame Lagarde’s nomination to lead the ECB from November. This news was particularly meaningful to me because I was about to join the BOJ in October, and I knew that central banking and finance in general is predominantly a male-dominated sector. Since then, I started to follow Madame Lagarde’s public speeches and interviews. During her first press conference as the President of the ECB in December 2019, Madame Lagarde told the press: “I am going to be myself and therefore probably different” and “I’m neither a dove nor a hawk and my ambition is to be an owl that is often associated with a little bit of wisdom”. For a fledgling central banker watching the press conference from the far east, it was most refreshing and inspiring. That moment, it became clear what I wanted to be, and what I wanted to achieve.  

Maybe I can too



The gender of the new ECB President was not the only reason why I felt encouraged and empowered by the news of Madame Lagarde’s appointment. It was also her background that was at times described as ‘unique’ or ‘unconventional’ for leading a central bank, being a lawyer by training, not an economist. I too did not have a conventional background for a central banker – I read political science for my undergraduate degree and obtained a master’s degree in education policy prior to joining the BOJ – two areas that I believed were crucial in bringing about change for the betterment of our societies. On top of that, I had spent nearly half of my life abroad, completing my secondary and tertiary education in the UK. So, I guess I always saw myself as an ‘outsider’ in the central banking world and in Japan, someone nobody could quite place. Thus, seeing Madame Lagarde making her way into the highest ranks of international finance and central banking gave me hope and the feeling that “maybe I can too”. This feeling supported and guided me throughout my early years in central banking.

True value of an outsider



During my time at the BOJ and my studies at LBS, I have begun to grasp the true value and brilliance of diversity and how an outsider can think and act outside the box in a way that benefits the team and to the organization. At LBS, we are assigned to a study group of 6 people with different backgrounds to work on the group assignments – one of the cornerstones of the LBS experience. Working in these groups was very enlightening for me, as it made me realize that with diversity and good teamwork, 1 x 6 does not equal 6, but can have a multiplier effect, achieving more than 100% of each individual combined. I believe that the true value of having an outsider is not only to benefit from the uniqueness of that outsider themself, but also to benefit from the outsider bringing out the hidden (or suppressed) uniqueness of other team members.

London Calling

So, my message here is a call for ‘outsiders’ to join the finance and central banking sector. Especially those of you who really want to make a change. As Robert Schiller stated in his book Finance and Good Society, “At its broadest level, finance is the science of goal architecture – of the structuring of the economic arrangements necessary to achieve a set of goals and of the stewardship of the assets needed for that achievement. Finance, at its best, does not merely manage risk, but also acts as the steward of society’s assets and an advocate of its deepest goals”.

I really hope our paths will cross somewhere someday.

Find out more about our Masters in Finance here.

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