Hi MaximusMB,

In your experience, how important is to attend to the assessment day during the application process? I'm currently applying to IESE and I was interviewed last week. Now I have to wait until December 12 to get the final answer and I'm kinda getting anxious. I didn't go to an assessment day because I couldn't afford it at this moment.

Thanks in advance.

Hi,

My first thought is that the event is an important tool for the school to assess the fit and social skills of the candidates (IESE is among the top schools which focuses mostly on this aspect), however, if you have a legitimate reason I see no reason that this should hurt your application, especially if you are from outside of Europe.

In general the admissions office is very human and understanding.

As a student it is hard to completely respond to this question, but that is at least my first take on it.

Did that give you any value?

Best regards,

Hi MaximusMB,

Thank you very much for your answer. I hope you're right about this. Although it sounds completely logical, specially for most latinamerican applicants, such as myself, who can't always afford a trip to NY or Barcelona with just a couple of weeks notice. I felt the video chat interview went very well, even taking into account some technical difficulties with my internet connection.

One last question: considering the important roll that the Opus Dei plays in the University of Navarra, how strong do you feel is the catholic influence on the Business School and MBA program? Is it felt in the extracurricular activities organized in campus?

Great to hear you had a fruitful conversation.

I think the element of Opus Dei is a bit overrated. It is part of the foundation of the institution but you rarely see elements of it anywhere apart from a church which is placed nearby. I have several people from different belief systems (i.e. the middle east) in class and they do not feel uncomforted in any way. One interesting facet is actually that some of the faculty which is part of Opus Dei (only around 15% of the faculty is connected to this) are among the most acknowledged researchers at IESE following their profound desire to represent a positive force in todays world. In their mindset that is by providing top research and supporting the corporate community and social projects to perform at the best possible level.

Was that useful?

Some info about IESE published in Poets & Quants couple of days ago:

https://poetsandquants.com/2015/02/06/ie ... whats-new/

Professors from Harvard and IESE meets once a year to discuss central issues related to business management. This is a comment from one of the HBS-professors:

"When me an my colleagues come over here, we learn a lot about global management education because I think IESE is really a leader in that, perhaps more so than we are (Harvard Business School)". - Professor Kester from Harvard Business School.

https://www.iese.edu/en/about-iese/news- ... rrows-ceo/

Hi Maximus,

I'm currently assessing my MBA options and planning to begin my studies in September, 2018.
My main goal post-MBA is to work in consulting, preferably in Spain.
Could you give me some thoughts about the differences between IESE, ESADE and IE in relation to achieve this goal? Can you comment about the differences in perceived prestige of the schools in Spain and in Europe? Do you think the three of them will provide me the same opportunities?

Thank you!