Hi everybody! I wonder if anybody is in an MBA program in french part of Switzerland or France? I am thinking of getting into one, something in project management or financial field. Could somebody share their experience about the study proses and your view on chances of employment after?

IMD on your doorstep.

Concept very 80s. You have given too little information.

dave

HEC Lausanne is also a good school...if you cannot afford IMD. More information needed...full time or part time.

As Dave just said you should give more information about your background, your expectations, and the resources (time, money) that you are willing to commit.

I asked myself that very same questions 4 years ago and decided to do it in France (Grenoble), the main factor was the ability to do it without impacting my job (1 full week of courses every second month that I did on my vacation time + online access to the courses content).

The main drawback was that being in Grenoble, I was mainly studying with French and a few international students, but no other swiss people, which makes it not so useful to build a network of contacts in CH. However I had a look at the alumni database and quite a few are now located in CH as well.

Overall I'm still very happy with my decision and feel that I got quite a lot out of a relatively reasonable investment whereas the MBA's that I saw in Switzerland were asking a much bigger commitment (financially and regarding their impact on my job) without adding significant benefits. This is of course very specific to my profile (based in CH but working internationally) and the industry I work in (IT).

Regards,
Alain

Bear in mind also that MBA not the only route to management education. Masters in Management+specialism are offered by many universities including taught elements, and may offer a better solution.

The fact you list your location as "Lausanne (soon)" am I right in thinking that you have already made your decision and want us to endorse it ?

dave

Woo hooo! My thread was moved to "Family mattes/Health"! It must be something to do with my idea of MBA study.... mental health?! No, I am not complaining! Just funny :-) Too little info...well....got into "middle age crisis", on the stage of moving after my spouse to another continent (again!), done too many job in too many countries, non-EU citizen (Canadian).... that is the picture now. Now I am thinking of my chances to find a job in Switzerland and I believe that spending a year on upgrading my skills (really feel like doing that!) and brush up my french might be much more useful for the future rather than frustrating job hunting now. European education might bring me more options to get a good job since I am unfortunate enough to be working not in IT but in project management and a bit of financial field. I am looking for a program in english, not too expensive (that is why it could be in France) , about a year or 1.5 long, full-time, in PM or International Management. Ideally I would like to start study in October, but it might be too late now, so, January will work for me also. IMD is super nice but not when I have to finance the study from my family pocket ...

Super! I was really looking into Grenoble also, the right program and even some opportunities to get a scholarship there! I do not want to lose another year that is a problem now! I want to start this year. Am I right that the school in Grenoble accepts non-EU MBA applications until later spring only and it is too late now? The idea of netwoking is quite important also.... How is your general feeling about the school? By the way, my main education is MS in IT with minor in economics. I just never worked in IT but went to management and finances.

Yes, I was thinking of Masters of Management. It might be an option also. The only thing puts me of this idea is my age...MS is usually a program for 25sh , no? I am much close to 40 now then to 25 :-) "Lausanne soon" is the decision of my husbands boss rather than mine , so , I do not mind to live somewhere else. Intensive and short term study which gives me more chances to find a decent job is the priority for me. Also, I hope to work a bit while study if I will be lucky enough to find something. Mind you, that is my ideas now, based on previous experience, reading info here and there, distance job hunts and info from this forum. I never lived in Switzerland before and might just do not see other opportunities...that is why I am here and asking questions Thank all of you that you are sharing ideas and helping! Really appreciate it!

You might want to add some paragraphs to your posts to make them easier to digest.

No. That's like saying MBAs are for yuppies and management consultants who want an easier way to management without paying their dues.

dave

HEC starts in September, so, I am late for this year but if I do not find anything else it could be an option. Thanks for sudgestion!

There are several schools in Grenoble offering MBAs & masters degrees in management.

http://www.iae-grenoble.fr/
http://www.grenoble-em.com/accueil.aspx?lg=en

I know of a few others but they seemed less credible to me.

I did a part-time program at IAE, in French (my mother tongue) and as I said was pretty happy about it. Things could of course have been better, considering the price paid, I think I got a pretty good bang for the buck.

Regarding application schedule, it is always worth giving them a call to see if they can fit you in their next class.

About networking, that's the part where I was the least impressed, but that will be very dependent on the composition of your class (international vs French), it seems that the French aren't too much into it. If networking is important to you and you plan to stay and work in CH then you might really want to consider a Swiss school.


Regards,
Alain

Ok! I will be a good girl next time!

Thank you! I will take a look at those links and give a call to schools I like to be in. As for networking, I have to be in english program, as my french is not good and I hope for more international mix in that case. French schools are much much more reasonable with their fees!

Hi Lima

I work at IMD in their MBA Office and would be happy to chat with you about MBAs in general and about IMD if you want.

Cheers
Nats

Hmm maybe you can answer a question, as I would have loved to go to IMD but found the costs to be prohibitive.

Which percentage, if any, of your MBA students are financing their studies themselves ?

Regards,
Alain

If you mean company sponsored as apposed to paying them selves then you will be VERY surprised - typically only have about 3 or 4 out of the 90 students are sent by their companies - it's surprising, I know

It would be awesome! I sent you PM with my contact info.

I've seen some ways to get a scholarship, that is one reason I am looking at EM Grenoble. But the initial cost of french MBAs looks much much more reasonable than Swiss programs. Lets see what could be done with this swiss one....

have you already done or intend to take the GMAT exam?

600 plus normally required for the top schools.

I found out about our relocation recently, so exams are not done yet. Btw, not all schools required GMAT! And most Executive MBAs do not ask for GMAT, they rather look at your motivation and work experience. If I need to take GMAT I will do it, of course.