Posts Tagged ‘Admissions#8217;

I do not have a concept of Spring break. First I studied in the Philippines, where we only have one season- tropical and second, I do not think I deserve the spring break. Not. April 16-25, 2011 maybe the best days of any February 2011 MIM student. Ever since classes started last February 1, there was nothing better to talk about (apart from the exciting cases!) but Spring break plans, a third of the class came from Europe, that is why it is not surprising that they will go back home. A big chunk, although not from Europe still decided to take advantage of the break to fly back home and yet others travelled to nearby countries from Spain, while a few including myself decided to stay here in Spain. The first day, started with Segovia. The express train from Chamartin station brings you to the old city of Segovia, in 40 minutes. Then you take a short bus ride to the center, where the breath-taking UNESCO world heritage site will welcome you. I spent the day walking around the city, checking out cathedrals, museums and castles (yes, castles) and ended the day with a late lunch of cochinillo. Me and my friends took the express train again back to Madrid, with feet and legs aching and limping. Sunday for me started late, I went to La Latina for a taste of Madrid flea market, had lunch at Sta. Ana, sun-tanned at Retiro and headed to Plaza Ventas Torros for a my first ever bullfight. I left the stadium, with mixed feelings and still a greater appreciation of the Spanish culture. To cap it off, we had dinner at a quaint restaurant in Sol called Malaspina where I had croquetas and Pollo con patatas fritas. Monday was reserved for a photo shoot in Palacio Real and unwinding at Mercado San Miguel. Tuesday we went to Museo El Prado (free entrance everyday from 6 to 8pm) and closed the night with a Flamenco show at Tablao Flamenco near Plaza Mayor. Wednesday, me and one classmate watched Cirque du Soleil’s Corteo, the Strategic Management class where we discussed about blue ocean strategies actually gave me the idea and it is good that they were in town! Thursday and Friday were spent visiting historic churches here in Madrid. All in all, I had sweet spring break. But back to hitting the books!

Current Master in International Management student Hanna Tantoco speaks about how she handled the preparation for the exams at the end of the first core period.

I was told by my friends and colleagues that business school is the best thing that ever happened to them, that it was the best years of their lives and would definitely advise their friends to try the same. Before coming to IE, I had the icing-on-the-cake image of MIM- Parties, networking events, case studies and of course Madrid! Nothing prepared me for first term.

The two-week pre-programme classes should have given it away- 9 am to 8 pm classes on anything and everything that may matter- cultural studies from the Arab world to Chinese and Japanese society, Communication and Entrepreneurship. A friend once told me to take advantage of the two-week pre-programme classes to explore Madrid, and I regret not listening. After being briefly acquainted with my class seat for the rest of the year, the real ball game began. Each day I met a new professor, in a week I must have been juggling 6 courses at a time. Each with their own demanding requirement, a 20-page case reading, group presentation, research, case papers, assignments et al. Slowly, my laptop became my best friend, the library the best place in the world, my groupmates my lunch, dinner (or midnight snack) buddies and sleep my enemy. The classroom is the court, where the professor is the judge and each one a witness to their own case. My class of 54, made up of 27 nationalities of diverse professional backgrounds came to the court everyday prepared with their coat of arms and aces. Despite seemingly attacking each other from time to time, during the 10-minute breaks, we would huddle in the vending machines –our source of nourishment and talk about how we were surviving and the plans for the weekend. Take note, it was still Monday. By the middle of the term, I experienced my first b-school finals. I did not know what to expect or how to start. Back in the university, I studied alone, but now I appreciate how we individually nourish our minds and share our thoughts to a group- where you discover that the knowledge you held on for so long as a dogma were a complete fallacy. Then you learn.

I say the weekend before the finals was the toughest- a part of you want to rest, drink a cup of tea and welcome the Spring breeze or go on a shopping spree to catch the last of the Winter rebajas, but you turn to your agenda and see that it is full- full of revision and tutoring sessions with your classmates. I had three tests the week that followed- Quantitative Methods, Financial Accounting and Financial Management (mid-term exam). After the three-day gruelling and torturous exam days, my now zombie-like body just wants to sleep and hopefully regain strength, but again I see my phone beeping, and I had an appointment, but this time I had an appointment to party. I look at the mirror and smirk to myself, I’m in!

Last weekend, The Spanish national newspaper ABC published an article about the important steps a student has to complete in order to pass the rigorous admissions process of one of the best business schools in the world.

Julián Trigo, Director of the Admissions Department at IE Business School, and other members of the Admission Committee outlined several important aspects to succeed in this process:

• Due to the limited number of places, it is recommended to start the process several months before the master starts or even a year in advance.
• A candidate must possess a strong academic record and above all a huge personal motivation, to seal a place in a master. In addition, the candidate has to have a good knowledge of the program he/she is planning to study.
• All the documentation that students send will be very useful to know more about the candidate: recommendation letters, plans after the master, language certificates, etc.
• Sit the GMAT, GRE or in the case of IE, the IE Admissions test, which is aimed at an international audience. It is very practical and there is no need to prepare anything beforehand. 
• Get an interview. This is an important part because it is when the schools have the opportunity to meet the candidate and get to know them personally.

If you want to discover more about the admissions process, please click here.

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El pasado fin de semana, el periódico ABC publicó un artículo sobre los pasos más importantes en el riguroso proceso de admisión que hay que superar para poder cursar un máster en una de las mejores escuelas de negocio mundiales.

Julián Trigo, Director de Admisiones de IE Business School y otros miembros del Comité de Admisiones de algunas de las principales escuelas, coinciden en varios puntos esenciales para pasar con éxito éste proceso:

• Debido al número limitado de plazas, se recomienda comenzar el proceso con varios meses e incluso con un año de antelación.
• Tener un buen expediente, formación y sobre todo, una gran motivación personal, para garantizar el aprovechamiento del máster. Además, debe de conocer bien el máster que quieren cursa.
• Toda la documentación que pueda entregar, servirá para conocer mejor al candidato: cartas de recomendación, planes después del máster, certificados de idiomas, etc.
• Presentar el GMAT, GRE o en el caso del IE, también aceptamos la prueba de admisión del IE, la cual está dirigida a un público internacional. Tiene un enfoque práctico y no necesita de preparación previa.
• Realizar una entrevista. Esta parte es esencial ya que es cuando se tiene la oportunidad de tener un trato directo con el candidato.

Si quieres averiguar más sobre el proceso de admisión, pincha aquí.

At IE Business School, Master in International Management students can undertake one of three specializations after they complete the first two core periods. These are: Sales and Marketing, International Business, and Digital Business.

International Business is focused on preparing students to meet the challenges of the different industries in an International and globalized Business World putting emphasis on project management and developing the skills to manage organizations successfully and under pressure.

Sales & Marketing is aimed at students who wish to pursue a career in Marketing. Students specialize in advertising and communication, PR, product development, marketing strategies and also sales within any company or industry.

Digital Business is designed for students who have a big passion for technology and want to learn, enhance and apply innovation as a tool for success in the different industries. For this specialization no previous technical experience is required.

In addition to these three specializations, you may also choose to study the program in English or Spanish or a combination of both languages (bilingual format). The Master in International Management offers the optional Beyond Borders Experience where you can customize your program with the following options: Dual specialization, International Exchange and Social Impact Project. For additional information on the program, click here.

I first learned about IE when they visited Manila during one of the MBA tours in November 2008, I attended the event because ever since I was at the University I always contemplated taking up a master’s program. However, I was just not sure which particular specialization or where. At that time as well, I had been barely working for half a year at Standard Chartered Bank. I heard the IE presentation and from that time I became active in attending MBA tours to see which schools there were and who was offering scholarships for Filipinos. I was also aggressive in school searches, reading MBA blogs and discerning rankings. In February 2010, I started to finetune my school search; literally there was a universe of schools offering just about everything.  I applied to three schools, two in Europe, and one in Australia. I was especially leaning towards the European schools because I liked the concise method of teaching- the fact that you can finish in a year, as I do not want to be away from the job market too long and at the same time I wanted to learn a new language as well. I got admitted into all three schools, so the next question was affordability. Business schools do not come cheap and although I had savings, it was not enough to cover my cost of living expenses.  All three schools offered me scholarships. With all of them seemingly on the same ground, I just had the rankings as a differentiating factor. Thanks to Financial Times 2010 MBA Rankings, which has been my bible and I know for most of my classmates too -based on what I have heard-, IE was tier one, while the other two were second tier. Still, I could not decide, so I searched for Filipino alumni, and they were so helpful and honest. At last! I had decided, IE it was.  After accepting the offer, the first thing I wanted to do was to meet my future classmates. Thanks to social networks, particularly Facebook, I met people who were going to change my next year. Through the MIM February 2011 Group as well, I met my then future roommates, so flat searching from which I heard was the hardest became fun and easy.

In December 2010, I said goodbye to Standard Chartered Bank and my officemates there who had already become my family. This was the first time that I would be leaving my family as well as friends that I grew up with. I literally packed my life in two thirty kilogram suitcases and took a nineteen-hour flight to Madrid clad in my newly bought winter clothes, tagging along my Rosetta Stone. The next thing I knew, January 26, 2011 I was knocking on the door of my classmate’s -who I met, thanks to the Facebook group- apartment as I still did not have a place to live as she opened the door- I breathed in. This was it! 

HANNA TANTOCO

Hanna is a current MIM Student