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ESSEC VS St.Gallen

hardrunner

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27 Apr 2012, 02:17

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Hello everyone,

I found this amazing website by chance and read many awesome posts here. There are so many warm-hearted and knowledgable guys here. Now I am considering ESSEC VS St.Gallen if admitted. I would like to hear your opinions. I have searched the existed posts, but there is few discussing ESSEC. If you know anything about the two schools, please don't hesitate to tell. Any suggestion and opinion is sincerely appreciated!

My brief profile: I plan to work in industry or consulting in Europe after MBA (hopefully Switzerland, France, or German), ; can only speak English and will learn French or German depending on which school I will go; have industry experience pre-MBA.

vineets

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27 Apr 2012, 16:02

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I am at ESSEC. ESSEC has a sizeable number of students going into Consulting. Almost all of the consulting firms come to ESSEC Campus for hiring. If you learn french it would be awesome. If you have few years of experience then it would be worth to apply to the Global MBA program at ESSEC, which is really good. The program course is intense and gets completed in 12 months, which is a short duration. The study at both Paris and the Singapore campus adds to the experience besides the field trip to Russia ( this year) or any east European country to understand the market. The small batch size ( max 40 students) and flexibility really helps to get individual attention. The program will probably get ranked well in 3-4 years, as it happens with well designed new programs from established business school . The International immersion project ( Consulting, strategy project) in another country adds to the overall package and the learning experience. It was financially more affordable both from the school fees and the scholarship perspective but also because of the french govt subsidy for housing ( reducing my overall cost). The field trips travel and accommodation cost is included in the course fee. Thus it made a lot of sense to be part of it.

hardrunner

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27 Apr 2012, 21:52

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Hi vineets,

Thanks a lot for the detailed reply. It's great to hear from insiders. I have some questions:

You said you got the "french govt subsidy for housing". Is it only for French?

And, if you don't mind, you should be in class 2012, how is the placement this year?

They have French class. Generally, what a level can one reach in one-year course (from entry)?

Thank you for your time, and wish all the good lucks for your time in ESSEC and your job searching.

hola123

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29 Apr 2012, 11:12

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hardrunner

Hello everyone,

I found this amazing website by chance and read many awesome posts here. There are so many warm-hearted and knowledgeable guys here. Now I am considering ESSEC VS St.Gallen if admitted. I would like to hear your opinions. I have searched the existed posts, but there is few discussing ESSEC. If you know anything about the two schools, please don't hesitate to tell. Any suggestion and opinion is sincerely appreciated!

My brief profile: I plan to work in industry or consulting in Europe after MBA (hopefully Switzerland, France, or German), ; can only speak English and will learn French or German depending on which school I will go; have industry experience pre-MBA.

Hi Hardrunner,

Well on a broader note, if you want to work in German speaking Part of Switzerland, Germany, Austria and Liechtenstein then St. Gallen is definitely the place to be. St. Gallen as a Business school is already one of the best in Europe. The MBA which started in 2005 should soon take its place among the best of Europe too. St. Gallen is to the German speaking realm what Harvard and Wharton are to the States.

The college enjoys very strong industry connections across Switzerland and Germany. From what I have heard, German language speaking skills will make it easier to land a top gig through St. Gallen, although alumni have managed it without it too.

Hope this helps regarding St. Gallen.

Cheerz.

Varun

hardrunner

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30 Apr 2012, 02:41

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Hey Varungmatt,

Thank you for the information! I saw you at another post, Calling for St.Gallen 2013. Have you got the full admission now? With German language ability, I believe St.Gallen is good for you. This is also one of my concerns, coz I cannot speaking German or Franch now. It'll be the important problem for going to either St.Gallen or ESSEC. I will starting learning language if decide to go there, but time is tight, and may not progress much.

hola123

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30 Apr 2012, 03:08

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hardrunner

I have to submit a couple of documents, so I will only get to know after 10 days. Well I think both the courses start only in September. So there is enough time for you to learn basics. Not being biased but I would choose St. Gallen over ESSEC any day.

You can go through the students blogs of St. Gallen regarding German:

https://stgallenmba.ch/studentblog/category/german/

Cheers!

Varun.

hardrunner

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01 May 2012, 11:17

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Thanks a lot, Varun! Very helpful! Good luck with your application!

vineets

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05 May 2012, 18:00

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The Housing subsidy is open to all. It is depend on your previous salary drawn ( converted to Euro's). So you are eligible for it.

Its too early to talk about placement as we are only halfway through the course ( we would be available for Jobs starting Oct'12). Please remember this is the pilot batch. However the career services, Alumni, school is giving full support for our job search. ESSEC has one of the biggest alumni networks in the world ( over 35,000 ) spread across the world. So it really helps when you contact them. Quite a few people have already been interviewed for jobs and is going on continuously since most companies have multiple rounds of interviews. You can reach a A2 level of french while starting from scratch. However it would be advantageous to take crash course in basic french level classes before you join. Then you can join the intermediate level classes of french. Quite a few people did that and now can interact in basic french.

Hope that answers your question

hardrunner

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21 May 2012, 01:58

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Thanks Vineets! Very helpful! And the clue about the housing subidy is a good news!

vineets

karanmathur23

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07 Jun 2012, 14:06

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rni

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Concentration: Finance, Technology

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07 Jun 2012, 14:18

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Is it feasible for non EU residents to expect work permits (Germany or Switzerland) after an MBA in St Gallen?

vineets

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10 Jun 2012, 15:35

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karanmathur23

Hi Vineet,

I have just got through the Essec Global MBA program starting September 2012. My attraction towards the school is exactly what you have mentioned in the previous post but still cant make up my mind a 100%. So, Can you please guide me on a few queries of mine.

1) Although it might be early to comment on the job prospects post completion, but still from what I have heard it is a huge disadvantage not being a "NATIVE" french speaker in france . Your Comments ?

Knowing French is definately a advantage in France ( please remember its a french speaking country). However I don,t really understand your " Native" french speaker. Its partly true that you have to be fluent in french to be based in France. However I know of quite a few people from ESSEC who are employed by companies in France, although they are not fluent in french and are still learning it. This is based on the roles they have. So it depends on what role, industry you want to get into. Client facing roles require french, thats for sure. It all depends on what you want to do post the MBA. Don,t forget you would be studying at the Singapore campus where French companies come for hiring for Asia Pacific region. They don,t insist on French.

2) Although it depends on one's own caliber where securing job is concerned , but still since you have been there and experienced the situation , with uneasy state of the European economy, would one able to secure a job in europe with the current market situation.

In France and all over Europe the B-school network opens doors for you. So the reputation of the Business School matters. ESSEC is 105 years old and is considered among the top 10 B-schools of Europe. It has a exchange programs with the best B-schools of the world. The job search is with the help of the career services. The Alumni, school is giving full support for our job search. ESSEC has one of the biggest alumni networks in the world ( over 35,000 ) spread across the world. So it really helps when you contact them. Fyi most of the job market is hidden....it is not advertised much and gets filled through networks. Thats where ESSEC network gets helpful. Its difficult to answer if one would be able to secure a job in Europe or not. We are working towards securing a job and hope to get it soon. It all depends on what are your transferable skills, where you want to go after the MBA.

3) What would be the average spending there on a daily basis ? ( If you dont mind sharing )

Please elaborate. It all depends on your housing choice ( varies from Euro 500- 740). Then the french housing subsidy is dependent on your previous income ( varies between 100-250 Euro) , whether you cook food yourself or eat outside, how much you travel around. The school can provide you a specific basic idea. Please request them for details.

Any other guidlines which you may be able to give me , will be of great help.

[color=#0000ff]Please elaborate on this question. Its not clear as to what you want to know.[/color]

My Profile - Computer Engineer with around 3 yrs of IT experience

Thanks in Advance. Your Previous posts have been very helpful as well.

Hi Karan,

find my answers to your specific questions in blue

vineets

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10 Jun 2012, 15:35

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karanmathur23

Hi Karan,

find my answers to your specific questions in blue

karanmathur23

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26 Jun 2012, 08:08

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Thanks Vineet for your response on the same. I have got the answers to my queries. Looking forward to join ESSEC in September.

HermanS

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02 Jul 2012, 09:02

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Hi vineets, as a student at ESSEC, can you provide your thoughts on the following comment made by a fellow MBA student about European B-Schools and their career services?

Firstly, b-schools in Europe which are considered 2nd tier b-schools for an MBA are as follows - Essec, Aston, Emlyon, Bradford, Leeds, Hult, Edhec, Grenoble, Birmigham, Durham, Trinity, Emlyon, Tias Nimbas, Nyenrode, Solvay, Edinburg, Strathclyde. I may be missing 2 or 3 more.

* Getting into these schools is comparably easier than getting into other top tier schools. Most of these schools are represented in the world Top 100 MBA rankings (FT, Economist, Forbes etc) and their MBA programs are generally very good in quality, almost at par with most 1st tier schools but with slightly lesser student quality. Overall a very good package depending on your needs.

* HERE IS THE CATCH - Most of these schools, despite offering a valuable MBA experience, have very poor to horrible Career Services. Schools outside the UK are worse in this regard. Schools in France have the worst career services. Contrary to whatever they mention on their websites, schools like Essec, Emlyon & Edhec have pathetic career services with no focus on international students & MBA graduates as a whole. Edhec is the worst of them all with no services at all.

vineets

Niko19

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06 May 2013, 04:32

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Hi guys
Is it possible to finish the Essec without learning French? I know it is impossible to find a job in France. To tell the truth, what appeals to me is studyidng in singapore and i am mostly interested in working there after graduation. Could you please share, if you know, how many graduates get a good job in singapore and how possible is that to find a job there after graduating from advanced master in financial techniques?
Thanks

MBAbot

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29 Dec 2014, 11:07

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