IESE business school is one of the world’s leading business schools, with campuses in Barcelona, Munich, Madrid, New York & Sao Paulo. The school offers a 15 or 19 months MBA program to its students. IESE school MBA program has been ranked #2 in Europe & #10 in the world by the Economist. The school has also been ranked #2 in the world for academic excellence in a 2019 Bloomberg business week survey.
In 2020, the school received thousands of applications, out of which only 357 students could make it into the IESE School MBA program. 85% of the students enrolled were international students from 57 countries. 30% of the class consists of female students, and the average age of the students is 29 years.
IESE has produced many notable alumni who live across different countries. Some of the well-known alumni of the school include Joan Clos (former mayor of Barcelona), Steve Shiffman (CEO, Calvin Klein), Ana Maiques (CEO, Neuroelectrics), Marek Kamiński (Author & Entrepreneur), & Cristina Garmendia (former Minister of Science and Innovation by the Spanish Government). In this article, we shall let you know more information on the IESE School MBA program.
The curriculum has been designed as such that it leaves a life-long impact on students. The IESE school MBA program is a 15-19 month long program. Students can decide their exit points according to their convenience. The students also have an option to take a Business Spanish Course throughout the MBA program. The goal of the program is to empower you to engage fluently in a variety of business situations.
The first-year curriculum is very intense and consists of 24 core courses across 3-terms. It includes subjects like Financial Accounting, Marketing Management, Capital Markets, Business Ethics, Managerial Accounting, Operations Management, Corporate Finance, Global Economics, International Management, etc.
In the second year, students can customize their MBA program by selecting several courses from more than 130+ electives offered by the school. The electives include subjects like Emerging Economics, Corporate Entrepreneurship, Ethics & Finance, Human Resource Management, Negotiation, etc. Other than this, students also have an option of independent study projects, where they can pursue a specific project or research that is not available in the electives.
Global exchange is yet another key attraction of the program. Students can opt to spend the first trimester of second-year at one of the 30 IESE’s partner business schools like Wharton, Yale, London Business School, HEC Paris, ISB Hyderabad, etc.
There is also a special program known as Capstone Project, where students solve real-world business problems like Designing a strategy for product launch, Designing of social media strategy, or strategies of entering into a new market. Some of the companies who have previously participated in the Capstone Program include PepsiCo, Airbnb, Hewlett Packard, Nestlé, Pepe Jeans.
Eligibility
- Bachelors in any discipline
There’s no minimum cutoff for your class 12th or graduation results for the IESE School MBA program. The applicants are only required to have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited school or university.
- Work Experience
The applicants are required to have a minimum of 2 years of work experience to apply for the IESE School MBA program. The average work experience of the class is generally around five years every year.
- Tests
IESE business school considers any of the two, GMAT & GRE score. While there’s no minimum cutoff for the same, the average GMAT score every year is in between 680-690. Along with the GMAT/GRE score, applicants coming from non-native English speaking countries are required to submit an English Proficiency Test results.
It can be waived, if the applicant has lived or worked consecutively two years in an English speaking country.
Or if the candidate holds a degree from the institution where the medium of instruction was English.
The recommended score for TOEFL is 105 for the Internet-based test. For IELTS & PTE, the minimum score required is 7.5 & 68, respectively.
Course Fee
The total tuition fee for a 2-year MBA program is €89,950, including a program support fee of €3,934 & health insurance of €932. The program fee includes core courses reading materials, elective courses reading materials, on-campus IT support, & library access fee. Other than this, the estimated living expenses for 19 months for an international student comes at around €28,500. It includes shared housing (€11,400), meals (€6,460), transportation (€1,520), entertainment (€5,700), & other miscellaneous expenses of €3,420. Please note that the living expenses may vary from student to student, according to the candidate’s choice of lifestyle.
Every year, IESE business school grant & manage up to €20M in financial aid. Scholarship decisions are announced with the admission decision, when possible. If not, it is revealed later. Most of the scholarships provided by the school are merit-based and are awarded based on the candidate’s academic & professional excellence.
IESE Trust Scholarship is one of the most popular scholarship options, which are provided to 20-30 students with outstanding academics, excellent professional experience, & demonstrated leadership qualities. This scholarship can cover €45,000 of your tuition fees. Other scholarships include the MBA admissions scholarships, Forté Fellowship, IESE alumni association scholarship, etc. Other than this, there are various private & public loan options available for students. Private loan options include Prodigy Finance & Banco Sabadell. Public loan options include United States federal government loans that are provided to US & eligible non-US students.
Reportedly, 94% of the class received a job offer within 3-months of graduation. 52% of the students changed their geographical location, while 73% changed their sector. The average annual base salary received by the class was €85,046, with a signing bonus of €50,228. According to the official website of the school, the IESE alumni get a 128% salary raise in 3 years of graduation.
Top industries who hired the majority of the students include:
Consulting 33%
Technology 26%
Financial Services 20%
Top employment by function:
Consulting 33%
Finance 17%
Sales & Marketing 14%
The top employers who participated in the placement session include:
Amazon
Google Inc.
McKinsey & Company
Roland Berger
Citigroup Inc.
Bank of America
- Online Application:
Including
Transcripts
Resume
GMAT/GRE score
English Language Test
1 LOR from current employer
Mandatory Essays
Application Fee of $200
- Personal Interview:
After you submit all the required documents & pay the application fees, your application is reviewed by the admissions committee. Based on your application evaluation result, you may be invited for the interview. Candidates have three choices. One is the on-campus interview at the IESE campus, the second one is a video conferencing interview. And the third one can be to interview in any major international cities around the world. The interview takes place in English only.
- Assessment Day:
This step is not required for all the candidates. Even if you get invited, your participation is not mandatory but highly recommended by the school. After the assessment day, a final admission committee meeting takes place, where your application is again evaluated, along with your interview performance. If the admissions committee finds you fit for the IESE school MBA program, you will receive a phone call & email informing you about your acceptance. To hold your position, you will be required to pay a non-refundable commitment fee of €3,000 which will later get deducted from your total program cost.
Essay Tips & Details
There are a total of two mandatory essays & one optional essay question that the applicants have to submit online for the IESE School MBA program.
They are:
Essay Question 1
If you had to come up with a motto for your life, what would it be and why? Please give an example of how you have demonstrated it. (word limit 300 max)
Essay Question 2
Describe your short and medium-term post-MBA goals? How will the IESE MBA help you achieve them? (word limit 300 max)
Optional Essay
What would you like to highlight about yourself or your journey, which may have not been captured in your application? (word limit 300 max)
Considering the 300-word limit, try to be thorough, clear, & on-point throughout the essay. In the first essay, your motto should be something that defines you, & matters you the most. Make sure that it’s relevant to your candidacy for the MBA program. For the second question, you can write on how the systematic curriculum of IESE will help you to attain your short term MBA goals, which will help you to aim higher & accomplish long term goals. The third essay is optional and should be answered only if you think there is something worth mentioning.
To make it into the IESE school MBA program, your personality, motivation, goals, leadership abilities, & communication skills will also be taken into consideration. IESE is for those who work hard but also play hard.
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