IÉSEG School of Management, France, is a prestigious institution which impart quality education in management, specifically, in international business. IÉSEG has triple accreditation from EQUIS, AMBA and AACSB, and has two campuses: one at Lille and another in Paris.
I was at the Lille campus, the oldest of the two, as part of the student exchange programme sponsored by my home university, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi, to pursue the third trimester of my MBA. I was also selected to the Grande École programme here. IÉSEG belongs to the Conférence des Grandes Écoles (CGE), a French national institution, established in 1973. Conditions of entry to the CGE are strict, and the member institutions and the degrees they award are highly regarded by academia and the industry alike. It was a tremendous experience, where I got to meet budding professionals from universities in Australia, Canada Argentina, and Korea. There is also a huge community of Indian students from various institutes such as the IIMs, XLRI, SP Jain, NMIMS, and more, making it hard to feel homesick.
Pedagogic style
The skill imparting techniques used at the school were unique. There were several world-renowned faculty, including French diplomats and persons of eminence in public service, with proven ability in the field of management. The course content and syllabus were also different. Critical management problems are formed as subjects. Knowledge was imparted intensively through group work, presentation, debate and continuous assessment. Our deliberations involved many case studies from current problems happening in the world.
In between, there were also discussions about business challenges and opportunities in various countries. In this era of globalised business, the networking opportunities given to the students of this programme is a tremendous advantage. IÉSEG offers many courses in management for international students, in French and English. Knowledge in French is an advantage, but not a must. Non-French-speaking students have separate classes for French. IÉSEG offers various graduate, post-graduate and Ph.D. programmes.
In partnership with IÉSEG’s Alumni Network, the school organises meetings throughout the year between its students and professionals from across business sectors. The campus recruitment team holds career fairs where students are offered internships (6 months), gap years ( césures ), apprenticeship contracts, consulting projects or job offers from major brands.
Lille, the scenic city, is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region in northern France. A cultural hub and bustling university city today, it was once an important merchant centre of French Flanders, and many Flemish influences still remain. Being well connected with the Eurail system, the whole of Europe is truly just a train ride away. Exactly why students head out to neighbouring Belgium, Luxembourg or Amsterdam for weekend getaways!
The author is a first-year MBA student at the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi.
