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Interested in applying for Europe’s number one business school? Director of Admissions for HEC MBA programs, Louise-Marie Fischer, revealed her tips and advice for how to get into HEC Paris.
HEC Paris MBA programs come in three forms: the Full-time MBA, the Executive MBA, and the Trium Global Executive MBA.
Applicants for the HEC Full-time MBA usually have around six years of experience before starting the course. It is designed to fine-tune their leadership skills and ultimately prepare them for the global market.
The course is heavily focused on helping students achieve their career goals. Louise-Marie explains, “It incorporates a personalized career development program with our career center as well as unique hands-on learning and leadership opportunities.” (01:10)
The HEC Executive MBA is for those who are in employed full-time and want to study around their work. The Executive MBA is aimed at executives and (aspiring) leaders looking to take their careers to the next level. Due to the constraints of studying with a full-time job, HEC has created five different tracks that allow you to choose the format and intensity that works best for you. The program has consistently ranked in the top 5 in the world over the last four years, according to the Financial Times EMBA Rankings.
For international executives, the team created a HEC MBA jointly with NYU and the London School of Economics. The Trium Global MBA sees some of the world’s best minds come together for an 18-month part-time program focused on global business. As a result of the teaching methods, program design, and more, it ranked #6 on the Financial Times 2022 EMBA Rankings.
The HEC admissions process is broken down into multiple steps:
Before the application process, Louise-Marie and the team get to know each candidate either over the phone or by email to fully understand their personality and career goals. A recruitment manager then guides them through the entire process until the application is fully submitted.
The application process itself takes place on the HEC portal. Aside from personal details, candidates need to submit six essays. The first five essays range in length, but none exceed 500 words. These deal with topics such as the motivation behind your application, why you chose HEC, and some hypothetical questions where you can really show your flair.
HEC’s sixth and final essay is open and allows the applicant to share anything they’d like to. For example, many students applying for the diversity scholarship will focus their efforts on explaining their suitability for funding.
While the sixth essay is technically optional, Louise-Marie explains why she feels it is important: “As it’s not a mandatory essay, the students may think ‘Okay, I don’t need to do it, I don’t have an obligation to do it, so I can just skip it.’ But I really think it can be very useful for us in getting to know our candidates, and understanding their situation better if they have a particular one.” (05:48)
Around two to three weeks after application, candidates find out if they have been selected for the round of HEC alumni interviews. Describing the interview section of the HEC Paris admissions process, Louise-Marie says: “It’s really an open discussion with the interviewer, and the alumni will have the chance to assess the fit of the candidates to the program.” (03:54)
Using alumni has a second advantage of allowing HEC to conduct the interviews in person in one of 80 countries. Two alumni carry out the interview: one from the candidate’s culture and one from another country.
Louise-Marie explains the thinking behind this stage: “We really believe that our alumni know best who will succeed and fit [best in] the HEC Paris MBA program and we put our ultimate interest in our past students.” (07:32)
Following the alumni interview, the admission jury makes a final decision on acceptance. As the degree is recognized by the country of France, a state-affiliated institution is also responsible for formalizing the admission decision. The entire process from submitting the application to the final decision takes only five weeks, meaning students can quickly begin making plans if they are accepted.
There are a wide range of scholarships at HEC, some of which require a specific application or circumstances. These scholarships include:
Unlike the scholarships mentioned above, as Louise-Marie tells us, there is no prerequisite to apply for this scholarship. “The candidates are automatically considered for the merit-based HEC scholarship and it’s pretty fast because they receive the scholarship decision just a week after the final admission decision,” she explains. (04:36)
Based on academic excellence, the strength of the application and interviews, and the HEC Paris GMAT score, the merit-based scholarship can cover up to 50% of the student’s tuition fees.
Louise-Marie gave us a range of qualities she looks out for in HEC MBA candidates:
While the requirements are different for each of the MBA programs, the minimum expected experience is two years of full-time work. Priority goes to candidates who can show evidence of career progression during that time.
As the HEC MBA programs are international in nature, exposure to other cultures is a key advantage for applicants. As Louise-Marie says, “The HEC Paris MBA is really one of the most diverse programs in the world, so we also look for demonstration of open-mindedness, such as having lived, worked, or studied abroad, maybe just an exchange during their bachelor’s, or having worked with different cultures is also something that can add value to your application.” (09:25)
For the best chance of success, it’s important to demonstrate a strong reason for embarking on the HEC Paris admissions process. This involves future goals and how an MBA-level education and experience would help them achieve those goals. Louise-Marie and the team also put a strong emphasis on the timing of the MBA. Why is now the best time for the applicant to study an MBA?
It’s not just academic and professional experience that the HEC admissions team is looking for. They want to attract well-rounded people. Louise-Marie adds, “We also have a look at what they do outside of work. Do they have hobbies? Do they have a passion? Do they practice sports?” (08:55)
Preparation is crucial to a successful application and these tips are the ideal place to start. Then, as Louise-Marie says, get in touch with the HEC Paris team as soon as possible and they’ll be delighted to help!
