Admitted MSc: Erasmus x Grenoble x Imperial College x EADA

Question

Hi Everyone,

I have applied to 6 MSc programmes in Europe. Which one should I attend?

These are the variables I am taking into consideration:

1 program cost -- 2 university reputation -- 3 program reputation -- 4 cost of living -- 5 alignment with my career plan and profile

Career Plan (3 years): Consultant in a multinational

1- Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus (Netherland) -  ACCECPTED 
2- Grenoble Ecole de Management (France) -  ACCEPTED 
3- Imperial College (England) -  INTERVIEW SOON 
4- EADA (Spain) -   INTERVIEW SOON 
5- Copenhagem Business School - CBS (Denmark) -  WAITING 
6- NHH (Norway) -  WAITING

1- MSc in Management of Innovation
2- MiB - International Business
3- Msc in Strategic Marketing
4- International Master in Management
5- Msc in International Management
6- Msc in International Management

My Profile:

. 1,5 years of internship in the biggest private company in Brazil
. 0,5 year of internship in a startup acelarated by the largest Business Aceletator in Brazil.
. Proficiency in English, Spanish and Portuguese (two exchange programs in Canada and Argentina)
. TOEFL IBt: 102 (all sections 24+)
. GMAT: 640 46Q/ 32V

mooncakes · Answer

Note that if you want to consult in a foreign country, you generally need the language. I know in Scandinavia Bain & Co. doesn't require a Scandinavian language, but they heavily prefer it. Beyond that, both CBS and NHH are respectively the best schools in their country, and if you have the proper language skills and perform well you have a shot as they recruit locally for the Scandinavian offices as there's not really a supply of Scandianvian-language speakers elsewhere.
Of course, if you go to NHH, you might find yourself pursuing a career in oil anyways. Those guys graduate making a **** ton of money.

leo_kubrak · Answer

Hi Mooncakes,

Actually I don't think I would try to learn a Scandinavian language since I would use it only in a very strict context.
My intention is to further my knowlegde in English and Spanish and start studying either French or German during the next year.
If hypothetically I go to CBS or NHH, but after graduating I cannot find a job because of language barriers, I would probably go to a different country in Europe.

mooncakes · Answer

You mentioned an interest in consulting, correct? Unless you're talking about In-House Consulting (I know Maersk hires here for that and Maersk generally only requies English) you won't have much prospects here. Scratch that, you'll still be heavily handicapped not knowing a Scandinavian language. I would recommend against CBS or NHH if you're not interested in learning a Scandinavian language. I know they place some students in England, but I wouldn't depend on that, not to mention London jobs are probably heavily sought after. For some reason, people have the silly notion that you have to live in an overcrowded and expensive city in a country that has pretty piss poor salaries all around to make it big.

You will also have the same problem with RSM and Grenoble. Consulting firms generally want local language knowledge. RSM might help you place into England and there might be some English-speaking jobs in the Netherlands (probably not consulting), but France definitely requires French skills and I don't know much about Grenoble's placement.

Consulting is client-facing and depends on making good impressions. If you were in charge of a consulting firm, you'd want to hire someone that can make your client feel comfortable by speaking his native language, which is most likely going to be the local language of the area. At least, that's my conjecture for why local language skills are so highly valued.

Admitted MSc: Erasmus x Grenoble x Imperial College x EADA

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