Blandine is French.
After a Bac ES at Lycée Notre Dame Sainte-Croix de Neuilly which she passed with flying colors, she was admitted to ESCP Europe‘s Bachelor in Management.
Read her testimonial below and find out more about her university experience at ESCP Europe!
Profile
FIRST NAME : BlandineNATIONALITY Frenchçaise
NAME OF COURSE FOLLOWED : Bachelor in Management UNIVERSITY NAME : ESCP Europe
TYPE OF BACCALAURÉAT AND RESULT Bac ES with honorsNAME OF YOUR SCHOOL : Lycée Ste Croix in Neuilly-sur-Seine
Why did you choose to study abroad?
Which courses did you apply for abroad (in the UK and elsewhere)?
Why did you choose this subject/curriculum for your Bachelor’s degree?
I applied for Bachelors in Management.
Management is very professional, it’s also flexible enough to choose a Master’s degree later on, and it gave me a few more years to think about the exact job I wanted to do.
What other universities did you apply to (in the UK and elsewhere) and why did you end up choosing this university?
I applied to the Bachelors in Management program at Warwick, Bath, King’s College and ESCP.
What attracted me to ESCP was first of all the 3-year course instead of 4, and also the fact that I could change countries every year.
What was the admissions process like for you?
What readings/resources did you find useful to mention in your Statement, and could you recommend to a student interested in applying for the same course?
I mentioned business journals.
Any interest of the student that can be related to the studies for which he or she is applying can be a plus. 
Did you have to go to an interview?
Yes, I prepared for this with my parents and in front of a mirror ! It’s a technique that comes to me from the theater and I use it systematically, because it allows me to see my bad habits and correct them instantly.
Why did you choose this particular university?
Have you been influenced by the rankings?
Do you think students should look at rankings to choose?
With today’s offer, ranking is always a reassuring means of comparison.
However, at the time I applied, as the first class hadn’t graduated, it was a bit of a gamble, the reassuring element being the school’s reputation.
It’s a subject we often talk about among students, and some universities in Europe are less well ranked than others, but there’s often more work to be done, and students are more intellectually stimulated.
You have to make sure that the choice you make suits you, and not always be strategic!
Did the content of the curriculum at your particular university influence your choice of university?
No, I chose it mainly for its cultural diversity.
The ESCP Bachelor’s curriculum combines social sciences (psychology, history, rhetoric), management and foreign languages.
The first year is a good transition from high school, and includes international relations, history of contemporary law, math, micro-economics, rhetoric and a method for working effectively at university.
The Bachelor’s degree is a “BSc”, Bachelor of Sciences, as the emphasis is on quantitative subjects: a total of 2 semesters of maths, statistics, accounting and at least one semester of finance.
We also learn to program in2nd year, which is quite unique for a management program.
Each student studies at least 2 languages for 3 hours a week.
These are generally the languages of the2nd and3rd year campuses, but if they are already fluent they can request a language of their choice.
In3rd year we have elective management courses (marketing, finance or entrepreneurship) and elective social science courses (politics, law or international relations).
What do you think of the campus and the city in which it’s located?
We change campuses every year, and they’re all very different.
In Paris, the campus is in République, a lively neighborhood that’s easy to get to.
There’s plenty of space and no shortage of things to do!
In Madrid, the campus is a 20-minute bus ride from the city, smaller but particularly pleasant with its terrace and garden.
The staff are very friendly and everyone knows everyone else!
It’s more of a family atmosphere.
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What are the 3 things you like best about your university and the 3 things you’d like to improve?
I really like the multiculturalism, the compulsory language learning and the student associations. What remains to be improved is the inter-campus organization, sports activities which are very limited outside Paris, and the fact that there are no cafeterias on all campuses.
Do you have any international friends (French or otherwise) at your university?
Are there many international students at your university?
How easy do you find it to integrate and make friends at your university as a foreigner?
75% of the students in my year are foreigners.
So it’s extremely easy to integrate no matter where you come from.
What’s your student residence like?
Do you live on campus?
How was your student residence in 1st year (comfort, cleanliness, proximity to the campus…)?
In my first year in Paris I lived with my parents, and in Madrid I stayed with a family.
There is no possibility of accommodation on the ESCP campuses.
There is a website reserved for ESCP students which works well in Paris, but is not yet developed in other cities.
In London, most Bachelor students stay at the Nido residence because it is close to the campus, but there is no agreement with the school.
The only campus that has a partnership with a residence is Berlin: in January 2019, they signed an agreement for us to have discounts in the VonderEurope shared flats.
In Madrid and Turin, it’s easier to find accommodation, so the school hasn’t set up any special arrangements.
In Madrid, it’s highly recommended to settle close to Moncloa, where the bus leaves for the campus (20min from Moncloa).
Turin is smaller, so students have fewer location constraints.
Could you describe your experience at your university?
How many hours of lessons do you have each week?
20 hours a week.
How much work?
We’re very independent and everyone can work as they wish.
I prefer to work from the beginning of the semester at a reasonable pace (3-4h per day) but it is also possible to work intensively 2 weeks before exams. ! E
Do you have exams once or several times a year?
I have exams 4 times a year, i.e. 1 session after 6 weeks of classes.
Are you involved in any student associations at ESCP?
Yes, ESCP’s diplomatic association, Call ON’U.
Every year, we prepare a week-long simulation of UN negotiations in New York.
It’s one of the few associations present on several campuses. Is there anything about the university system in the country where you studied that you’d like to improve? The unnecessary rivalry between Bachelors and students coming out of pre-pas.
Most of us don’t want to do our Master’s in France, and in no way do we represent “competition”!
At present, there is no gateway to the Master’s program after the Bachelor’s, and there’s no guarantee that there ever will be.
The two programs are distinct. If someone wants to enter the master’s program, the Bachelor’s is not the solution, and should not be confused with a solution to the “classe prépa”.
All existing master’s partnerships are with foreign universities : The University of Melbourne, Chinese University Hong Kong, Singapore Management University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Simon Fraser University in Canada, Cornell in the USA, etc.
Do you have any other comments or advice for students interested in applying to ESCP Europe?
You have to enjoy working in a group : it’s often difficult in the first year to make concessions and collaborate with students who have very different cultures/working methods.
You learn little by little and it’s very rewarding but it does take effort, especially when you come from the French system.
At ESCP, it’s easier to integrate if you’re at ease in English, and mastering another language is a considerable advantage ! Most students speak 3 languages fluently, and some even 6 ! 
