HEC - Bocconi - Essec MSc in Finance Choice

Hi all,

I've been admitted to all three of HEC, Bocconi and Essec MSc in Finance for the 2018 year. I hold a Finance/Mathematics double bachelor undergraduate from an Australian University and I'm trying to decide which course to accept and where to go.

The decision is part academic, part financial and part about the how studying at each of them is. Basically the difference are Bocconi is 2 years, Essec is 15 months and HEC is 10 months. I have a 50% tuition waver for Bocconi and Essec and HEC scholarships aren't out yet. Which means Bocconi is 13k Euro, Essec is 14k Euro and HEC is 30k Euro.

Has anyone had experience with these courses - including how there placement in London for non-Italian and non-French nationalities, the difference in prestige (namely between HEC and Bocconi), which is better for placement in portfolio management, how the class size and culture is and whether it's that grim living outside of Paris compared to in Milan.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 
Best Response

Bocconi is in the centre so a great location, HEC is pretty far from the centre so you'll stay on campus with the occasional weekend trip to Paris. Don't know about ESSEC. If money is an issue then with Bocconi you're still getting a great name and paying half of HEC. Bocconi IMO is better than ESSEC so you can't go wrong with it. A note of caution: without Italian or French you won't be able to work in Milan or Paris. Assuming you don't speak those languages your choice for work would probably be UK, USA or Australia (if you want to go back home).

For the UK I think reputation with employers is: Bocconi=HEC>ESSEC. For the US I don't know and for Australia you're more qualified than me to answer.

As for uni culture I have no idea about ESSEC but for Bocconi and HEC you have mixed reviews. A lot of non-French friends than studied or did exchanges at HEC get the vibe from French kids that you almost don't deserve to be there. Some Italians at Bocconi give off the same vibe (but clearly I can't speak for all the Italians and French at those schools). The international crowd (based on stories) seems to band together more at Bocconi as larger groups where in HEC smaller ones form.

 

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