HEC Montreal MBA Sample Essays for 2023-24
- In which direction do you wish to take your career by pursuing an MBA at HEC Montréal? (500 words maximum)
If you have previously applied for admission, you must also answer the following question:
- How has your situation changed since you applied last time? Make sure you explain any change in your work experience, studies and volunteering (250 words maximum).
HEC Montreal MBA Sample Essay – 1
Essay 1: In which direction do you wish to take your career by pursuing an MBA at HEC Montréal? (500 words maximum)
I have more than 5 years of professional experience as a Credit Risk Analyst in the financial sector. Post-MBA, I would like to transition from an analyst role to a consultant or an advisory role within the financial sector, Preferably with reputable financial advisory firms like the Big 4 KPMG, EY, PWC, and Deloitte.
My experience working as a credit risk analyst has helped in building a knowledge base in financial analysis. I have directly led engagements with varied corporate clients including industry leaders like Trident and government entities. Currently, I am leading a team of six analysts which has allowed me to develop my leadership skills as a team and engagement lead.
However, I now wish to assume a higher value addition role where I can leverage my technical skills and financial knowledge. Having exposure to a diverse set of industries, I think have meaningful insights into the financial aspects of a prospective investment. However, to achieve my career goal I need to fill two major skill gaps, i.e. financial knowledge and leadership skills for which I believe an MBA is a perfect place to be.
My experience in finance is limited in scope to assessing the credit risk of Indian mid-sized corporate groups and a handful of debt instruments only. Working in financial advisory will require me to be technically sound with a broad spectrum of investment instruments. After deep research, I found that HEC offers a great curriculum and courses in Finance and Financial accounting along with focused electives like ‘Understanding Investment Decisions’ which fits in perfectly with my desired knowledge gaps to be filled. Doing this in a competitive environment that HEC promises also works well with my desired goals from an MBA program.
Another area I wish to polish is my leadership and decision-making skills. While I was able to manage a small team in my current role, the recent three-fold increase in my team has taught me a lot about my challenges and skill gaps as a leader. I am most excited about the fact that HEC offers electives like ‘Develop Your Negotiation Skills’ which I would definitely take to develop myself into a better leader. In addition, the ‘HEC Challenge’ and ‘Consulting Field Project’ would provide a holistic experience in terms of practicing skills in real-time while working with a diverse group of people.
Through my interactions with Siddhartha Khetarpal (Co’ 2020), I also learned about HEC’s practical based approach, real-life projects and team assignments are great avenues to gain new skills while working in internationally diversified teams. In addition, other resources like Fonds De Placement Etudiant HEC Club and HEC’s vast alumni network can also provide opportunities to connect with industry leaders to achieve my goals.
That’s why I believe HEC’s MBA is a perfect fit for me to achieve my short-term goal of transitioning into a consultant or an advisor role and from there on I can aspire to be a partner in a firm in the long term.
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HEC Montreal MBA Sample Essay – 2
Essay 2: In which direction do you wish to take your career by pursuing an MBA at HEC Montréal? (500 words maximum)
I am an engineer with 10 years of project management experience in oil and gas, mining, infrastructure, and power utilities. I have worked in 4 different countries and gained a multitude of diverse experiences and led international teams to deliver successful projects. Now after 10 years in the project management domain, I would like to leverage my learning and experience combined with a business education from HEC Montreal to move into a senior management leadership position.
My family immigrated to Canada in 2002 and initially, I struggled to fit in the new social environment. But undeterred by the lack of cultural fit, I went on to pursue my dream and enrolled in a university where I started my Project Management Career. When I interned in a construction company for a hospital expansion program in Ottawa, I realized, I really like working in a project-oriented environment where I can move on from one exciting project to another. This also gave me the opportunity to work & network with diverse people & specialists from different industries to learn and grow my career. Although I struggled to fit in an international environment when I first immigrated but during the last 10 years, through my network, I have been able to find opportunities to work in 4 different countries which have helped me gain insights into different social perspectives and develop myself into a leader.
I have had ADHD since I adolescent age, but I have never let it come in my way of achieving success. My condition has always prevented me from developing a keen interest in one specialized field but I have worked extra hard to commingle my weakness with a career in the field of project management where I can move from project to project and maintain my attention while advancing my career. I have worked with global clients like emirates global aluminum where I delivered 5 million dollars in savings by implementing new technology for aluminum baking and casting and represented a Canadian natural resource company in a global conference for a debate on oil royalties.
At present, I am working in PSEG, in project cost management aspects which have given me additional insights into project finances. Now after working on the technology side and finance side of project management, I believe a proper business education from a reputable school like HEC Montreal can help me advance my career into senior management and leadership positions.
At HEC, I want to take the opportunity to focus and develop on missing leadership elements like organizational behavior or corporate strategy to complement my strong engineering and finance background. The variety of HEC Management and Leadership classes along with the classroom diversity of the program has really impressed me. Being a Québec resident, an MBA from HEC Montreal represents the best opportunity for me to strengthen my skills and advance my career. I believe with my 10 years of diverse experience I can bring value to the HEC program classroom and contribute to my peer’s learning by sharing my global experiences.