Tag: mba

Overseas MBA Applications to Europe…

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Most European institutions reported growth in applications from abroad this year[…]

Samantha Williams would have been well served by excellent business schools in the US, her home and birthplace of the MBA. Yet she chose MIP Politecnico di Milano in Italy to do the flagship business qualification this year.

Her transatlantic crossing reflects her perception that Italy is open for business. […] International students can stay in Italy for a year after graduation while they search for a job.

“I chose to receive my MBA from an Italian university because of the ability to return to Italy for an extended period of time and further my career,” says Williams. “Also, the USA can feel very closed, even though it is a country of immigrants. And I wanted to experience something more international.”
Diversity enriches the learning experience through group discussion. Williams says: “I have been able to increase my knowledge of the EU and gain different perspectives.”

MIP registered a 25 percent increase in foreign students enrolling in its full-time MBA course this year, and they comprise 70 percent of the overall cohort. Federico Frattini, director of the course, explains that Italy’s reputation for arts, culture and fashion are also attractive to overseas students.

MIP’s diversity is typical of European business schools, which have long boasted more global intakes than their peers in the US, where a confluence of factors — including the perception that overseas students are less welcome — are behind a fifth year of declining demand.

In contrast, according to figures from the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC, which runs the GMAT), 60 percent of European institutions reported growth in their applications from abroad this year. Almost 80 percent of overall applications to these schools came from abroad, with 59 percent from outside the EU. […]

 

Read the full article on FINDMBA

Is a specialist Master’s degree or an MBA better?

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There’s no answer that’s right for everyone. Before deciding, it’s good to always take two key factors into consideration: one’s professional experience and the objective to be achieved

 

Finding your bearings in the midst of a vast educational offering like that represented by Masters’ degrees can be daunting. Especially if you don’t have a clear understanding of the premises on which Master’s degrees themselves are based, and if you don’t have a clear idea of the objective you want to achieve. Sometimes there are doubts about choosing between two paths, both valid but very different from each other: specialist Master’s degrees and MBAs. How to choose between them?

Your curriculum makes the difference

It’s a question to which Greta Maiocchi, Head of Marketing & Recruitment at MiP-Politecnico di Milano, answers: «The first big difference is given by one’s professional expertise. The specialist Master’s degree is similar to the Master of Science, that is to the specialist degree and therefore, is mainly for those who have just finished a three-year university programme or who has recently started to work. To be eligible for an MBA programme it is instead necessary to have at least three years of work experience».

And it is precisely those who have more experience who, at times, make an error in assessment: «An increasing number of people who have even four or five years of seniority ask us to enrol in a specialist Master’s programme. The problem is that they come to the classroom with a much higher level of knowledge than other participants. These are situations we try to avoid», explains Maiocchi.

A vertical and a horizontal Master’s degree

The second big difference instead, involves the subjects addressed. The specialist Master’s degree has a vertical approach, explains Maiocchi: «It can be on luxury, on supply chains, on energy management, on big data. In short, it develops skills thanks to which one can become skilled in a specific environment or function. Generally, it is chosen by young people who want to specialize». It’s quite different for MBAs, which have a generalist approach and cover all the subject matters useful for learning those skills that can then be applied in a strategic context. «The goal in this case – explains Maiocchi – is to provide an overview of how an organization works, to be able to prepare for a high-level management position. A participant in one of our MBAs in 2009 is today vice president of an important financial institution. He had just four years of work experience at the time».

Soft skills above all

Because among the main objectives of the MBA are the ability to manage change and people, soft skills take on a predominant weight, already in the selection phase. «In addition to four written tests, in which we verify the analytical skills, we also carry out long interviews in which we evaluate the candidate’s aptitude for problem solving, to be proactive, to manage stress. Empathetic and communicative skills are important: in MBA programmes you learn a lot from others. Somebody who has nothing to offer to their classmates isn’t our ideal candidate. But they’re also not the ideal candidate of any company, if their goal is to become a leader».

An ideal candidate, instead, may be one who also has creative qualities: «Lately we have had participants who stand out from an artistic point of view, people with a degree in economics who, for example, went on to become video makers. They had an incredible ability to visualize results and objectives. For this reason, we also look with great interest at the creative and innovative part».

As Maiocchi reiterates, it then becomes extremely important to develop those skills that make the difference for companies: «You need to know how to adapt to change and to stimulate it. The world moves quickly, and it offers constantly evolving opportunities and challenges. The job of a good leader also involves guiding their team through these processes. Lastly, it’s essential to know how to work for projects. The entire MBA is structured for projects: more than a discipline, it’s a real methodology that can be applied to a number of sectors».

What are the differences between an MBA and an Executive MBA?

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difference MBA and Executive MBA

 

The Master’s programmes offered by the School of Management of the Politecnico di Milano differ in the seniority of the students (and thus also in teaching approach). But the objective is always the same: to create genuine business leaders

 

The Executive MBAs and the MBAs of the School of Management of the Politecnico di Milano are intensive Master’s courses with a specific focus on general management. The main objective of both programmes is to enable participants to develop the extensive managerial skills required to become a true business leader. The substantial difference between an Executive MBA and an MBA is instead the seniority of the course participants. An MBA is aimed at students and graduates who have between three and five years of experience, while an Executive MBA is aimed at those who have more than five years’ seniority, i.e. managers and professionals who want to improve their professional career in business.

 

New graduate or experienced manager? We have a Master in Business Administration to suit both

Antonella Moretto, Deputy Director of the MBA & EMBA area, explains that, in reality, the seniority found in Executive MBAs can even be much higher. “On an Executive course, the average seniority in the classroom is 13-14 years’ experience. This affects the teaching approach: given that we are talking about individuals with a great deal of experience, the objective is not only to transfer knowledge, but also to work a lot on brainstorming within the classroom, on opportunities for discussion, on heterogeneity. The expertise of the students themselves is a resource that we exploit.”
Therefore, the level among participants is very high: you learn to read the current macrotrends in enterprises and in international scenarios, so that management figures can become more effective decision makers.

 

The teachers are managers with vast experience

Another difference concerns the figures engaged in the classroom. The traditional lessons of the MBA and Executive MBA are complemented by learning by expert and learning by doing activities. “The Executive MBA courses engage teachers who hold the top corporate positions, such as managing directors and director generals,” explains Moretto. “These are recognized leaders, with particularly advanced soft skills. This allows participants to build a valuable network, by learning from persons of recognized reputation.”
“The MBA course is similar but different. The principle is the same but the management figures involved are younger,” continues Moretto. “Their experience in the classroom can be an added incentive towards understanding how to reach the same objective. In addition, in the MBA courses, learning also involves role play: students can immerse themselves in simulated situations with complex problems that they have not yet had the opportunity of tackling in their everyday real work.”

 

A sole objective: to create business leaders

Aside from these two aspects, the subjects covered and the objectives are the same. “Our MBAs and Executive MBAs cover all the specific issues on how businesses work. Students come to understand all the processes and the different functions. The objective is to understand how a company works, inside and outside, the main managerial decisions to be taken,” explains Moretto. “In both courses, the issues covered start from basic business economics, organizational issues, innovation management, process management, project management, strategy and finance. The objective is not to create a specialist in a certain area; on the contrary, we want to create a figure who has the ability to become a business leader and manager, who understands the whole of the company, who knows how to interpret the dynamics of all functions and can speak a transversal language. This manager will be able to communicate effectively with any stakeholder, any function, any actor inside or outside the company.”

 

 

What skills do you gain with an MBA?

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Skills MBA

From understanding the business environment to process management, innovation planning and the ability to launch a startup: the Master’s degree programmes of the Politecnico’s School of Management turn out the managers of tomorrow

 

Today’s international scenarios offer a panorama characterized by enormous competitiveness and incessant transformation. A big challenge for those who have set a professional objective to become a capable and efficient manager. The MBAs of the School of Management at Politecnico di Milano aim to train people who are seeking to make a change in their career, starting from what is most important: skills.

 

A Master’s degree between hard and soft skills

It’s Riccardo Mangiaracina, Director of the International Flex EMBA (i-FLEX) programme, who explains to us what hard skills you learn in the MBA programmes: «We can identify four main areas. The first involves the context in which the company operates; in other words, everything akin to macroeconomic disciplines, that involve the national or international sphere».
Staying in this area but shifting our attention to actual business activity and the management of its typical processes, «the hard skills are the classic ones: corporate finance, financial accounting and management accounting. The latter is the discipline that seeks to understand how to effectively manage company performance. Lastly, the ability to define the strategic brainwork of the company is essential».
The second area is tied more to the management of activities, processes and people. «People management is fundamental, where soft skills are needed, but we can also mention marketing management, supply chain management and operations management» explains Mangiaracina. That is, from people to marketing, including communications, purchasing, planning, distribution.

 

A Master’s for managers who want to innovate

An equally crucial area is that involving innovation and transformation planning. As Mangiaracina explains, «it’s a typically cultural theme. The innovation leadership course explores the strategies with which innovation is introduced within the company. The challenge consists in passing on the benefits and advantages tied to change to the people who work in the organization, while at the same time alleviating their fear of it».
A task that’s anything but easy, but fundamental, whatever shape innovation takes, incremental or radical. The problem is always having people accept it. «And then there are mistakes that companies often make, and that must be corrected, like the conviction that innovation can be introduced in small areas, without having an overall vision. Innovation strategy serves precisely for this».
Tied closely to this theme, continues Mangiaracina, is product management: «Today projects are particularly complex and must be managed, even more so when you’re talking about innovation. Projects turn the company upside down and shape it. For this reason, a rigorous methodology is indispensable. Our courses provide the necessary tools to manage complex projects».

 

A good manager is also a good entrepreneur

We conclude with a glance at the fourth subject area covered by the MBA programme. «The innovation we just spoke about can be realized from a managerial point of view and an entrepreneurial point of view. In the first case, it’s important to have knowledge of design thinking, a discipline that investigates how to actively bring innovative ideas into an organization. In the second case, we have organized courses that seek to teach how to set up a startup, how to draw up a business plan and how to look for and obtain sources of financing» concludes Mangiaracina.

 

Meet the top fashion model who used an MBA to start a consulting career

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Belarusian model, Yuliya Shvets, could once be found on the cover of fashion magazines. But consulting proved to be her true calling

 

Strutting down the catwalk during fall 2014’s Paris Fashion Week, Yuliya Shvets is clothed in a simple black dress created by French designer, Rochas.
She has spent all season meeting stylists and befriending the biggest names in fashion.

After Paris, she jets off to New York, frequently travelling around and outside of Europe, making stops in Asia and gracing the magazine covers of Vogue Portugal, Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire and more, as well as modelling for Chanel, Roberto Cavalli, and DKNY.
Yuliya was living the dream for nine years after being scouted in her hometown of Mozyr, Belarus, during a beauty contest at the age of 18. Yet modelling wasn’t her dream.

She entered modelling after postponing a bachelor’s degree in economics and management. But the time came when she decided it was time to dedicate herself to higher education. An MBA was on the cards, and she enrolled at MIP Politecnico di Milano School of Management (MIP).

This Italian business school helped her transition from catwalks and fashion shoots to her current role as a business analyst for Business Integration Partners, based in Milan.
We caught up with Yuliya to find out how the MBA helped her switch careers.

Why did you leave the fashion industry?

Modelling was a beautiful chance to travel and work at the same time. I always knew I could finish my studies, but there wouldn’t always be a chance to be a model, so I decided to take the chance and postpone my studies a little bit.

At some point as I was working, I knew I had to go back to my studies. I was bored and wanted to learn more. I could have been a model for a while but in terms of age, modelling offers a much shorter career, and I wanted a long-term career.

I started to look into what I would like. I asked the people around me what they do and what their jobs were like. I had a lot of friends who were doing consulting and from how they were describing the job, it was very similar to what I was doing, with different projects and clients.

Why an MBA?

I wanted a 360-degree knowledge of business, which I thought was important for consulting because you can get projects in different industries and for different functions. You get better offers after an MBA compared to a master.

Many people thought it wouldn’t be possible because of the requirements and work experience you need to get an MBA, but I decided to look into how to get to where I wanted to be, and the MBA seemed to be the perfect match.

How did your MBA at MIP help you switch careers?

The university was very strong on preparing you for interviews, explaining the job market, and the right behaviour when working with companies. It was something that was very new for me as I’ve never been to an interview in my life.

Even now, I go back to my notes from my MBA to look at the methodologies and frameworks during my finance, strategy, and project management classes for my job. It has helped me to be proactive, because in an MBA most people do it not to just get a degree, but because they are really curious.

It’s an environment of people who are willing to learn a lot and where everybody is competitive. This mentality helps me in my current job, to remind myself to always be proactive, never stop learning, and just go for it.

During the teamwork assignments, we often had to deliver projects in very limited time with classmates from different backgrounds, with different points of view, different temperaments and coming from different cultures. It was a personal challenge, but it helped me to improve my soft skills by learning from other people and from my own mistakes.

What tips would you give to professionals who want to switch careers?

It is possible to have a career change and start working in business even if your experience is not related to business. Many people, including headhunters, were sceptical about whether I was going to make it, however here I am, and I have achieved my goal of working as a consultant.

I would suggest to all prospective applicants to work hard on their dream because it pays off, and of course, believe in yourself and never stop learning. Thanks to the MBA, I have transformed from a model from a small town in Belarus to a business analyst in an Italian consulting company, in just in one year.

 

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From personalization to collaboration with PoliHub. The new MBA and EMBA programmes

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Specific orientation towards the managerial and entrepreneurial fields. Course organization as a function of the latest trends. These are the two main elements of innovation in the MBA and EMBA courses at Politecnico di Milano’s School of Management. «These are different paths of study able to guarantee expertise independently of the work environment, whether it be in a large company or entrepreneurial firm, indispensable in the current complexity of markets» explains Antonella Moretto, deputy director of the MBA and Executive MBA programmes. «As a result of our programmes, a manager will be able to make decisions with an entrepreneurial spirit and, vice versa, the entrepreneur will be able to take a managerial approach».

One diploma, six formats. The new MBA and MBA Executive MBA programmes of the School of Management at Politecnico di Milano are also characterized by a high degree of personalization. «The individual participant can pursue a path of study that includes up to 50% of “customized” activities drawing on a completely new “library”» continues Antonella Moretto. «The final part of the courses can be defined by opting for more “frontier” subjects, so less tied to the academic path, but you can also choose what lessons to follow in the classroom and what to follow via streaming, allowing to fully personalize your use. For example, the Executive MBA can be pursued over four different platforms: evening (Monday and Tuesday evening in the classroom), part-time (weekend), Flex (distance learning through the digital platform) ) and i-Flex (distance learning in the English language). The classes are the same, but they can be accessed in different ways. The last aspect of flexibility, which I believe we are the only ones in a position to offer, involves the time required for the discussion of a student’s project work, which can be shortened compared to the traditional two-year study path».

The new FLEXA platform

Innovation also isn’t lacking when it comes to digitalization. «First, we changed classroom tools so that all our lessons can be streamed. That way we offer the opportunity to also follow lessons online or to review lessons followed in the classroom. All this with a completely new platform, decidedly more user friendly than the previous version and with a completely new library of clips. Moreover – continues Antonella Moretto – all those who use FLEXA will have a digital mentor that will accompany them from the beginning and through the entire programme both in learning and in training, but also in the start of a career path, that is in contacts with startups and companies. We offer 360-degree digital support. From the first day with FLEXA an assessment is carried out for every participant and the digital, hard and soft skills that are identified are conveyed to our Career Development Officer who, through one-to-one meetings, helps participants to define their career strategy. In the meantime, we create a series of relevant support opportunities favouring contacts with businesses and startups». This is one of the key aspects of the MBA and Executive MBA programmes of the School of Management. «To this end – explains Antonella Moretto once again – we strengthened our relationship with PoliHub, Politecnico di Milano’s company and startup incubator, to allow us to enter into contact with startups when they are in the stage of incubation of entrepreneurial ideas or to develop project work with existing startups».

The relationship with PoliHub

«We decided immediately to collaborate to offer students entrepreneurial career opportunities but also to enrich the managerial skills of our startuppers who, when they have technical backgrounds, require support from those with managerial expertise» explains Claudia Pingue, general manager of PoliHub. «In fact, startups, in particular those in deep tech, often have an initial team that is inadequate to guarantee competitive growth on international markets and a time comes when the integration of managerial skills and the strengthening of leadership is required, with the eventual presence of a CEO. It was therefore decided to make available to MBA and EMBA students the Switch to Product programme, that annually supports and awards the best entrepreneurial projects presented within the Politecnico di Milano and selected by researched centres like CNR, for example. It’s an opportunity for students, who gain access an entrepreneurial acceleration platform and thus take part in a complex experiential mechanism that allows to measure their potential».

Politecnico di Milano, a virtuous ecosystem

This collaboration with PoliHub is planned from the first year of the programme. The objective is to create a panel of MBA and Executive MBA assistants to vet the candidacy of entrepreneurial initiatives, allowing programme participants to receive feedback and join an incubation programme. The Politecnico di Milano is the only academic institution with an incubator this strong, among the best in the world, so much so that 30% of participants decide to launch their own entrepreneurial activity after classes are concluded.
Finally, considering that all career support services are valid for six months after the diploma is received, the innovative scope of the Politecnico ecosystem must be highlighted. «Projects are carried out – concludes Antonella Moretto – also because there’s the contribution of the entire system that gravitates around the university: the Technology Transfer Office, the venture capital fund link, technical support for implementation of technologies and so on».
The entire programme is illustrated to potential users in a series of open days that include a road show at university laboratories. The next appointment is 23 May 2020 at the Bovisa Campus.

The in-company visit, a great opportunity for comparison

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Among the many different activities that MIP is building up in order to let its students acknowledge more and more the complexity of a business reality, some of the most interesting experiences so far have been for sure the in-company visits.

These visits consist in a full day of lessons related to the MBA topic of that moment, physically in the offices of a big multinational company partnering with MIP.

Up until today, I have had the opportunity to join two of these “alternative” sessions in the offices of Sandoz and Microsoft and during both of them I enjoyed lots of different aspects.

First of all, these are opportunities to meet top managers directly in the field, sharing their carrier path and personal experience. These moments are really valuable for sharing ideas and comparing yourself with different people and environments, opening up your mind in terms of your job routine.

Also, these meeting sessions are chances to become aware of what companies are doing, where they are focusing their growth and which resources they are willing to obtain in the short/medium term to reach their goals. I really appreciate the transparency used in sharing these details and the effort made in helping us to understand company strategies.

Furthermore, during these lessons you can concretely perceive how strategic a company’s culture and philosophy can be, and how the management is working every day with this focus in mind.

Visiting Microsoft was the perfect example of this; starting from a classic Silicon Valley company idea, they entirely rebuilt the company, and not only in a figurative way – they really built headquarters which are people oriented and open to everyone!

Personally I really appreciated this possibility, because for me it was the occasion to compare my daily activities and environment with another reality. It has made me more aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the place I’m working in right now.

In order to unleash the best from this experience, I want to give a little advice to those of you who decide to spend two minutes of your life in reading my articles…be brave and do not be shy! These visits are mainly intended also to be opportunities to increase your network and share your CV, but no one will do it for you! MIP is giving us the privilege of meeting key managers and HR teams working in great companies but at the end of the day, it is up to you to use it as best you can.

Lastly a personal update: the second ½ of my kids has just arrived and of course, it’s another boy! Will keep you posted on:

  • Parents’ lost sleeping hours
  •  My first kid’s war of jealousy against his new worst enemy, his brother!

 

About the author
 Pietro Cavallo

My name is Pietro and I grew up in Milan, where I am currently living. I work in Switzerland, in the Supply Chain division of a clothing multinational. I am the husband of an incredible wife and father of 2 crazy kids.

 

How My MBA Degree Helped Me Become An Entrepreneur

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After developing her skills during an MBA hackathon, Divya Singh is getting ready to launch her own luxury startup

The fashion world is changing as we move further into the 21st century. Right now, ‘uncertain’ is the industry’s buzzword for the state of play.

According a report by McKinsey & Company—The State of Fashion 2019—2018 was the year that saw fashion executives think less about survival and more about their brand’s strategic agenda and business model.

That those in the creative industries need to be business savvy is old news, and the knowledge accrued on an MBA program is just as important for those in fashion as it is for any other industry.

Divya Singh knows this all too well. With a background in fashion design, she enrolled on the International Part-Time MBA at MIP Politecnico di Milano to gain a holistic understanding of the business side of fashion.

How my MBA degree helped me become an entrepreneur

Divya—who is a current MBA student—says that MIP appealed to her because of the variation of case studies on offer, which allow students to focus on the industry they’re most interested in. MBAs can also enhance their education by taking elective weeks in modules on the Executive MBA.

It was the MBA competitions, though, that turned Divya into an entrepreneur, and put in her in the position to launch her own luxury startup.

She recently completed two competitions. The Mark Challenge hosted by the University of Monaco, and Shaping a Sustainable Digital Future, patroned by The Prada Group.

In Monaco, Divya and her teammate, Fabio Masoero Regis, developed a luxury service business plan, winning the competition with their startup idea UBIQUE: a digitized luxury concierge service.

They didn’t stop there though. As finalists from Italy for the Prada Competition, the pair flew to New York late last year, adapting UBIQUE to the sustainability ideals the challenge championed.

An intense two-day hackathon saw them team up with three non-MBA students from Yale University and present their idea to a board of Yale and MIP Politecnico di Milano professors, as well as executives from the Prada Group.

Divya thinks that it’s these experiences which distil the learning of an MBA, preparing her best for the turbulent future of the fashion industry.

“Working with students who weren’t MBAs, with people with backgrounds in architecture for example, meant we could perfectly merge business know-how with creativity,” she explains, “the competition allowed me to apply my MBA learning in a real and rewarding way.”

She adds that managing team dynamics was integral to their group’s success, as they worked in a high-pressure environment with demanding time constraints.

Divya says that she developed speedy decision making, patience when dealing with language barriers, and alternative ways of doing business with people from cultures different than her own.

The competitions have proved so valuable to Divya’s professional development that she is now getting ready to launch UBIQUE as a real-life startup.

That entrepreneurial mindset is an important part of the MBA at MIP Politecnico di Milano. The startup mentality is something the school helps to cultivate throughout the curriculum with the dedicated PoliHub incubator—ranked second in Europe and third in the world by UBI Global—which offers support and services to budding entrepreneurs.

Why creatives should study an MBA

It is, in part, because of these competitions that Divya believes MBAs are such important tools for creatives.

Whilst many complete an MBA for the rapid career progression and salary increase after graduating, Divya thinks creatives can tend to view an MBA as more of a tool for self-development.

It can help to position creative professionals well for disruptions in their respective industries, as they understand the nitty-gritty numbers as much as the creative process.

“If you don’t study things like finance operations it’s hard to pick them up on your own,” Divya says, “learning how to read reports, and how to understand your business from all viewpoints, puts you in a better position to genuinely evaluate how you’re doing.”

Divya also believes that her creative background is enhancing the dialogue of her class, as she’s providing an alternative outlook to business problems that many of her peers (from more traditional MBA backgrounds) are not familiar with but are equally excited about and benefiting from.

“Teamwork is the basis of all the competitions,” she concludes, “and it’s the mixture of backgrounds and nationalities that perfectly blend creative, analytical, and business thinking which MBAs can thrive off.”

 

Originally published on 

MBA programs: what’s new

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For our MBA and Executive MBA programs, 2019 promises to be a particularly innovative year: the courses we are offering have actually been revolutionised to follow five main strands: innovation, personalisation, digitalisation, soft skills and the ecosystem.

With the aim of placing a greater emphasis on topics such as innovation and digital transformation, the curriculum of our MBA programs has been completely redesigned, adding new courses such as Design Thinking, Corporate Entrepreneurship, Lean Startup and Entrepreneurial Finance.

Our range of Elective courses has also been expanded, with a 30% growth in the number of courses on offer compared to past editions. This makes it even easier to customise the pathway, which is now all the more adaptable to our students’ aspirations and professional needs.

There is also great news for anyone interested in Digital Transformation: this specialisation can be attained by taking part in the Silicon Valley study tour, a Management Boot Camp or an Elective Major of your choice on the subject.

It is not only the variety of content that is innovative, however, but also the way it is put to use. Since the launch of the first Flex EMBA, digital learning has played an ever greater role in MIP’s range of courses. The new editions of the MBA and the Executive MBA are based on a revamped, revolutionary digital learning platform.

In addition – even after the course is over – students will have access to a new library of multimedia clips, with 100 hours of lectures and 850 quick-view videos produced by the MIP faculty.
This promises to be an excellent tool to be used during the Master and ensuing years for following up on key concepts or reviewing opinions in the light of new work experiences.
Furthermore, in order to continue growing even after the MBA has been achieved, all students on the new editions of the courses, as well as alumni, will have the opportunity to access FLEXA – our new continuous learning platform, based on Artificial Intelligence and developed in partnership with Microsoft.

With such a wide offering as this, the soft skills are, of course, given due attention. In fact, with the new edition, more space is dedicated to the Leadership Program, which, through the testimony of managers of large companies such as Moleskine and Groupe Edmond de Rothschild, enlightens the class with various examples of leadership from the perspective of leaders, top managers and entrepreneurs.

Finally, in addition to the program, the whole student environment is also important. MIP, in fact, has dual fundamental links – on the one hand, with the Politecnico di Milano and on the other with the  entrepreneurial fabric constituted primarily by MIP’s partners. These strong connections enable the integration of academic know-how and the whole ecosystem of the institution’s laboratories, research centres and observatories with the strong involvement of the business world; firms have extensive involvement in the program, both by giving testimonies on campus and by welcoming students in person on company visits.

Applying to the International MBA at MIP: a seamless and friendly affair

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If you are wondering if doing an International MBA is your call, my recommendation as an adventurous soul is simply to jump the cliff and trust your instinct. The important thing is to have time to take the necessary steps, to get prepared for the journey.

I was already living in Italy when I decided to apply for an MBA. I won’t lie about the fact MIP was not my first choice for continuing my graduate education. What caught my attention about MIP was the kind and efficient support since the moment I asked for information about the Master programs on the school website. The Marketing recruiting team contacted me by e-mail, inviting me to send my CV to recommend me the program that suited my professional experience. They considered the MBA was my best choice for my career path. There are monthly promotional events, as well as fairs around the world to get first-hand information about the MIP and its Master programs.

I applied for the Full-time International MBA one year in advance. The application process started with an online form where I included my academic and professional records. I also did the TOEFL and GRE exams in Milan.

Just three days after submitting my application documents I was already contacted by Ann-Marie from Germany, who presented herself as my recruiter and invited me to schedule the MIP test and a motivational Interview on campus.

Due to work constraints I had problems scheduling my test before 5pm on a weekday. Ann-Marie was very kind and flexible, offering me the alternative to present the exam via skype from my home after working hours. The exam consisted of a business case analysis, data interpretation and a domino test. Compared to other schools which only ask for GMAT and GRE, I believe the MIP entrance test gives you the opportunity to show your logical and analytical skills, in a thorough manner.

During the interview on the Bovisa Campus I met Bhor from India, another caring and professional recruiter who made me feel at ease and was eager to answer my questions regarding the school and the program. During this experience, Bhor highlighted the importance of diverse and international profiles at MIP.

After completing the admission test and interview I chose to apply to the assistantship program, to cover part of my tuition fees. MIP offers many interesting scholarships, plus an early-bird discount.

Two weeks after submitting the remaining documents, I got the wonderful news: I was accepted to be part of the 39th Full-time MBA program at MIP. I couldn’t believe it. In less than a month I already had successfully completed the admission process, almost one year before the start of the program. I dropped my other applications immediately, I was convinced I had already made the smart choice.

I later found out my assistantship work was chosen based on my professional experience. Now I’m happily writing the monthly articles about my MBA journey and shooting videos with my classmates, while completing my business studies. How cool is that? Both Ann-Marie and Bhor are now my colleagues. Thanks to them and all the hard work of the marketing and recruiting team, the admissions process at MIP, is not a hassle but a smooth and pleasant process.

Stay tuned for the next chapter, where one of my classmates will share his experience after attending an MBA Tech Talk at the Microsoft headquarters in the UK…

 

About the author

Roberto Niño Betancourt

Roberto is a student of the International full time MBA. He is a Colombian filmmaker and new media artist based in Milan. He has collaborated as a post producer for MTV Latin America, as well as many European production companies. He is very passionate about international cross-cultural collaborations, craftsmanship and the sustainable conservation of natural resources.