ESCP Business School offers a Master in Management in two years.
Rated 7 th best Master in Management in the world by the Financial Times, it enables students to choose from among 60 professional specializations and gain international experience on the various ESCP campuses.
Alice, a first-year student in the Master in Management (Grande Ecole Program), explains her background and her student experience at ESCP.
Profile
FIRST NAME : Alice
NATIONALITY : French
NAME OF COURSE FOLLOWED : Master in Management (Grande Ecole program)
UNIVERSITY NAME : ESCP Business School
HOME UNIVERSITY : King’s College London
Study abroad
What was your educational background before entering the Master’s program at ESCP?
I was at the Lycée Saint Jean Hulst in Versailles in the Economics and Social Studies stream (ES) in Terminale.
I passed my baccalauréat with honors and went on to do the Bachelor of Science (Bsc) in Economics and Management at King’s College London.
After this Bachelor’s degree, I went on to do the ESCP Master’s in Management on the Paris campus and I’m currently in my first year at the Madrid campus for my second semester.
Why did you decide to study abroad?
I wanted to go to business school after my baccalauréat.
I had the choice between going to an ECE preparatory class in France or going abroad.
I’d heard about the many opportunities to study abroad.
I chose the second option because I wanted an international experience.
The advantage of studying abroad was also that I could study the subjects taught in business schools, such as management, without having to spend two years in a preparatory class.
I don’t regret my choice at all.
Why did you choose ESCP?
What were the determining factors in your choice?
At the end of my Bachelor’s degree at King’s College, I wanted to continue my studies in management.
I chose a business school because I’d like to work in France in the future.
A recognized Bachelor’s and Master’s degree is essential in the French job market.
So I was interested in the ESCP Master of Management (Grande Ecole program), which is particularly well regarded.
Were you interested in other Masters after your Bachelor’s degree?
I had looked at a lot of Masters programs, both abroad and in France.
In particular, I was very interested in ESADE in Barcelona, because it offered courses focused on innovation and the possibility of specializing in a Master’s degree.
In the end, I chose ESCP because it offers a tailor-made program that combines the choice of a specialization with a gap year between the first and second year of the Master’s program.
I had missed out on this aspect during my studies at King’s College, where I didn’t have the opportunity to take a gap year and therefore gain extensive professional experience.
What was the admissions and selection process like?
For ESCP, there are four application sessions a year.
The first is between November and December, the second in January, the third in March and the last in April.
I sent in my application between November and December.
As I was doing my Bachelor’s degree in England, I was considered an international student.
I therefore had to provide all the admission documents in English: a CV, a cover letter, my transcripts, letters of recommendation (from a teacher and a professional) and answers (200 to 250 words) to three questions.
The questions covered work experience, international experience and extracurricular activities.
Once I had sent in my application, I was declared eligible.
I had to take a management test, which could be the SHL (ESCP admissions test), the GMAT, the GRE or the Tage Mage.
I chose to take the SHL, which is an internal ESCP test of mathematics and logic.
I also had a one-hour interview with two ESCP professors on my motivation, my career plan and current events, as well as some role-playing exercises.
The admission process was relatively quick: I sent in my application in November and was admitted in December.
How did you prepare for the new school year?
Once I’d been accepted, I had to choose my campus for the first semester of the first year of the Master’s program.
We could choose between Paris, London, Madrid, Berlin and Turin.
Courses are the same for all students in the first semester.
During the summer, I had to complete my administrative registration online.
1st year courses
What makes the ESCP Master in Management so special?
ESCP operates on a semester basis.
Each semester we have the opportunity to change campuses and courses.
ESCP offers a very wide variety of courses.
The courses in the first semester of the first year of the Master’s degree are compulsory and are classic management courses, quite similar to those I had at King’s College.
This is essential, however, to ensure that all students have the same theoretical grounding to pursue the Master’s degree.
Then, in the second semester in January, I had to choose a specialization.
I chose the specialization ” International Business Consulting “on the Madrid campus.
Everyone can choose their own campus and specializations.
The choice of a specialization relatively early in the curriculum is a specific feature of ESCP compared with ESSEC or HEC Paris, for example.
Another special feature is the gap year and the possibility of a university exchange in Master 2.
Do Master’s specializations differ from campus to campus?
The most popular specializations, such as “Consulting” and “Investment Banking”, will be present on all campuses.
Specialization themes such as “Marketing” or “Entrepreneurship” are present on all campuses, but the courses, approaches and professors will differ.
For example, in Madrid the specialization is called “Digital Marketing”, while in London it’s called “Creative Marketing”.
There may also be more specific specializations.
On the Turin campus, for example, there is the Food and Beverage Management specialization.
There are also campus trends.
The London campus will be particularly oriented towards finance, London being a major global financial hub, while Berlin will be more focused on entrepreneurship.
Students can choose one specialization per semester.
Which Master’s courses do you enjoy most?
The first semester’s courses were fairly standard.
We studied accounting, strategy and management.
Since I’d already studied these concepts, they weren’t the courses I liked the most.
I prefer the courses I have in the “Consulting” specialization.
It’s all about practical teaching, and we have theoretical courses such as “Fundamentals of Consulting”, as well as practical courses called “live case studies”.
These are practical examples of advice we give to a customer.
They are based on current themes.
For example, we currently have one on digital transformation and another on sustainable development.
We also have auditing courses, math and logic tests to help us succeed in our consulting interviews.
We’re really being prepared to enter the world of work and acquire the methodologies that will enable us to perform.
Did you find it difficult to adapt to the ESCP academic system?
Did you feel that there was an academic gap between students entering the Master’s program?
There’s a big disparity between those admitted on the basis of academic merit (AST) and those who have completed a preparatory class in France, who have already known each other for a year.
Students coming from the preparatory classes are already very much part of student life and know the associations well.
Coming from abroad, we’re not necessarily aware of this integration system.
As a French student coming from an international education system, it wasn’t difficult for me to integrate.
However, it can be more complex for foreign students, even if they generally manage to integrate well.
All specialization courses are taught in English.
As far as the educational system is concerned, I have more classes than in England, but less personal work.
Do you have to take language classes in your Master’s program?
ESCP is a European school, with many campuses. Languages are therefore important. By the end of the Master’s program, students must have a C1 level in two languages (English, Spanish, German). All those who come from an Anglo-Saxon educational system are exempt from English courses. On the other hand, we must have a second language. So I have three hours of compulsory Spanish lessons a week. You can also choose to study an additional language, such as Arabic, Russian or Chinese.
Do you have a lot of work to do?
I have less personal work than in my Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Management, where I had to hand in assignments every week.
However, there is a lot of group work in almost all subjects.
It’s either work from one week to the next or projects that last the whole semester.
How many hours of lessons do you have a week?
I have about twenty hours of lessons a week.
I’d say we have eight subjects per semester and about two hours per subject.
How do the exams work?
We have exams at the end of each semester, in December and April.
There are between six and eight exams at the end of the semester.
There are some courses whose final grade is based solely on the exam.
This is the case for Finance or Accounting.
There are others, such as Marketing, whose final grade takes into account an exam and a group project.
Case study” courses have no final exams, and the end-of-semester grade only takes the project into account.
Student life at ESCP
What is student life like on the various ESCP campuses?
Paris is the school’s historic campus. It’s the heart of student life, as all ESCP associations are based on this campus. One of my tips for students admitted on the basis of academic qualifications is to start their Master 1 on the Paris campus. It’s a good way of integrating into student life. There are associations of all kinds: professional, sporting, creative… All associations have their own premises. There’s also a student bar on campus, in the basement. This provides a place where students can meet up after classes within the school itself. There are also sports clubs that offer real group and team cohesion, and sometimes even go on to the French and European championships in their categories. For example, I was a member of the horse-riding club. We got together once a week and the atmosphere was great. I was also able to get involved in student life on the Paris campus, in particular with the Yachting Club, which organized a cruise during the All Saints’ vacation. I was lucky enough to be able to take part in the cruise as an admitted student. We had a thirteen-person boat. There are no associations on the Madrid campus, so there are fewer events organized. So it’s more the students who take the initiative.
What did you think of the Paris and Madrid campuses?
I loved both campuses.
The atmosphere is very friendly.
The Paris campus is in the heart of Paris, in a very lively district, and the location is ideal.
The Madrid campus is about 30 minutes from the center.
Nevertheless, it’s very easy to get to.
It’s a smaller campus, so it’s easier to meet people.
It has a glass roof and a small garden.
How did you manage to find accommodation? Does ESCP help students with this process?
I was sharing a flat in Paris.
I didn’t have any trouble finding a place, as it was a family home.
However, this is usually quite complicated for students.
It’s also relatively difficult in Madrid: I’m also sharing but we only found our apartment a few days before we arrived.
The short duration of each semester often poses a problem when it comes to renting, and ESCP unfortunately doesn’t offer much support in this area.
What do you like best about ESCP and what would you like to see improved?
I would say that ESCP’s administration is not always very well organized.
Some progress is being made, such as improving the intranet.
On the positive side of ESCP, the variety of campuses is an undeniable asset.
There’s also the fact that the program is truly tailor-made, meaning that each student can choose his or her specialties, gap year and exchange.
Into the future
What are your plans for the future?
I’d like to do a gap year between my first and second year of my Master’s after my final exams.
I’d like to do two six-month internships in consulting.
Then, in Master 2, I’d like to do a university exchange in the first semester.
Selection is based on grades.
To finish my Master 2, I’d like to choose a second specialization and then pursue my professional career in strategy consulting.
What advice and recommendations would you give to a French student interested in attending ESCP?
My advice would be to capitalize, in your cover letter or during the admissions interview, on the specific features of ESCP.
Don’t hesitate to project yourself, to demonstrate that one of the specializations is consistent with your career plans or the reasons why a particular campus appeals to you.
Once you’ve been accepted, my advice would be to start with the Paris campus, which offers a dynamic student life and good integration facilities.
Don’t hesitate to reach out to other students and join associations!
If, like Alice, you’d like to join ESCP or another top business school in France or abroad, don’t hesitate to >contact us at to discuss your plans!
