Help choose where to go for MSc Finance
Hello everyone!
My brief profile:
GMAT 740
GPA (equivalent) 3.78/4
Finishing my final year of Bachelor degree in top Eastern European b-school in Russia (has CEMS with HEC Paris if that brings any value) with major in Financial Management
As for work experience: i've worked for 1,5 months in manufacturing company in logistics department and got really good with SAP, then i have 1,5 months as an intern in export subsidiary of Gazprom, was developing financial models for Russian LNG projects
My question to you, fellow readers, is what MSc in Finance i have good chances of getting into with scholarship? Important to mention is that because i'm a non-EU resident, i really need to get a scholarship and so i will probably end up only in a b-school that grants me one. I consider RSM (and their scholarship of excellence), Bocconi (merit-based scholarship) and Saint-Gallen (because it is quite not expensive as it is). So, again, what are my chances for getting a scholarship - in mentioned b-schools- and maybe in others you can suggest?
Big thanks in advance, i will really appreciate any help!
If cost is most important to you, then I'd suggest either Bocconi or St. Gallen (although I know very little about RSM). Bocconi offers one year scholarships pretty regularly, especially for international students with high GMAT. I know several people at Bocconi with 740+ who have a scholarship for their first year.
However, to have the scholarship for the second year, you need to have at least 27/30 on your exams, which (for the MSc. Finance) is quite nearly impossible because the courses are very complicated and have really shitty professors teaching them (well, they don't really teach, hence their shitty status). So, if you get into Bocconi with a scholarship, you most likely will have to pay ~12,000 EUR for tuition the second year.
Which brings me to the next point - if you can get into St. Gallen, 1. you'll pay much less tuition, 2. it's a one year master, and 3. cost of living in St. Gallen is more or less the same as Milan. St. Gallen is a much quieter town than Milan though, especially if you consider nightlife - although this is purely subjective and dependent on what your interests are.
Lastly: I'm friends with several Russians at Bocconi, and they had a real shitty time going through the Visa process to be able to go to London for assessment centres. They had to travel all the way to Rome and go through time consuming paperwork, interviews, etc to apply for the Visa. Italy in general is very shitty and bureaucratic when it comes to things like this, so I would definitely keep that in mind when making your decision. I would imagine the Swiss and Dutch systems would be much easier and efficient in that regard. Best of luck!
Thank you very much for a detailed breakdown of available opportunities!
I agree on the scholarship aspects, however I disagree on the whole maintaining 27/30 average. Know plenty people who managed to do so.
As for Visa etc., every Russian I know at Bocconi who was invited to go to an AC to go managed to do so, so the hassle may be annoying but if you want a job in London, then that's what you have to do. Switzerland isn't much better btw in that regard. At least not for Russian.
@Nick-Vakhabov - PM me if you want to know more about Bocconi
Have you considered London Business School or the Master of Finance program in Judge Business School in Cambridge?
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