Recent graduate Dushyant Sharma, Class of 2018 will be embarking on his new career path as a strategy consultant for McKinsey Australia. In this post, he reflects on how IESE MBA helped him to achieve the "dream" career triple jump.
It was exactly two years ago when I was hustling through the business school application process, introspecting deeply to identify exactly what makes me an ideal candidate for a world’s leading MBA program, trying to figure out the best stories for my essays and speaking to alumni and students of the MBA schools I was applying to. During these interactions and research on schools, IESE Business School stood out to me and I realized that it was the best fit for me.
First of all, it is truly an international MBA. IESE has a cohort from over 60 countries with 85% international students which gives great exposure to diverse cultures outside the class as well as diverse perspective in the class. Secondly, the collaborative culture. From the very beginning I got into contact with IESE community I felt a genuine warmth and a willingness to help. I experienced this first hand as I navigated through my life at IESE. Be it career services, classmates (a bunch of genius in their own fields), professors and support staff, this made a lot of difference. Thirdly, the focus on case methodology. IESE focuses on active learning methods such as simulations and the case method which allows looking into situations of real-world problems, hence developing a rich general management perspective. Well lastly, Barcelona as a beautiful city with sun, sand… (and sangria!) trust me, is unbeatable.
During my 19 months in Barcelona, I have met some incredible people, some with dreams to become an entrepreneur, some looking to understand what they really want to do in their careers and other with clear goals to work in a corporate role. Conversations with the classmates have enriched my view towards my own professional as well as personal life. I came to IESE with an aspiration to get into strategy consulting and IESE has helped me achieve that. I will be starting this summer with one of the top three consulting firms in Asia-Pac post my MBA. During my MBA, I worked for a start-up in Barcelona and interned at a tech giant during the summer. These experiences helped me explore and understand what I wanted. IESE network provided me these opportunities to explore and for my full-time role – I was able to switch function, industry, and geography as an international candidate.
IESE Diversity!
In my view, IESE has three main support pillars towards understanding and achieving one’s career goals. Be sure to take advantage of all these resources:
1. The Career Services team that consists of highly qualified professionals who are willing to spend time with students to answer their questions, and push students to think critically so that they help them find the right path.
2. The professional clubs. These clubs – whether it’s the Consulting Club , Finance Club, Tech&Media Club, Design & Innovation Club or Entrepreneurs Club – are primarily driven by students and over the years have developed a structured approach of helping students to pursue their dreams and keep students updated with the latest in the business world.
3. Our highly qualified professors, who take a personal interest in talking students through their doubts and dilemmas. Interacting and conversing with them often help steer students towards the right path.
However, if you want to succeed in getting your dream job post MBA, most importantly you should take ownership of your career and drive the job-hunt. This multiplies the effect of the support provided by the school.
For those of you who are considering applying for your MBA, my advice would be to connect with as many students and alumni as you can to understand what the school is really about and will it fit you or not. Also, don’t shy away from writing stories that exemplify you as a leader with purpose. Good luck with applications as you sweat it out during this phase and set yourself up for the best two years of your life.
Mission accomplished!
Thank you and all the best in your next adventure, Dushyant!
To find out more careers in Strategy Consulting and how IESE MBA can help you make this transition, check out this recent webinar hosted by our Career Services team: Play recording
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