From ESCP Bachelor to MBB in London?
Hello everyone.
I am a 2nd year Bachelor's student in Management at ESCP. Spare the roasting, I've read enough reviews about the program on this very website. I had no idea what consulting was up until a year ago, or what a target school was, so I chose the BiM at ESCP for a multitude of personal reasons, although I had the high school grades for most if not all target schools in Europe. It is what it is, this stuff happens and it's not the end of the world, just trying to become as strong a candidate as possible now.
After a year at ESCP, I've decided to pursue a career in consulting. I did my first year of the BiM in London and would love to go back, so am wondering what master's degree to pursue in order to do that.
I've been told that pursuing a MiM degree after a BiM is somewhat redundant (does that rule out the LBS MiM for me?), but what other options do I have? I don't really want to do finance btw. I see LSE has some interesting degrees, like the MSc in Management & Strategy, or Imperial has MSc Economics & Strategy for Business. Do they place well in MBB? What are some other MSc degrees in the UK for MBB consulting in London? Anything in Oxbridge? Could one, hypothetically, land a London MBB job after a master's degree from HEC, HSG or Bocconi?
Here is my profile if that helps. I have only completed one year of uni so it obviously is lacking in some aspects:
GPA: 3.8/4.0 (top 2% of my class)
Experience: recently completed a Project Management internship at a sports media company in Italy, also worked for a well-known Italian sports magazine for a year leading up to that
ECs: currently part of a consulting society at ESCP called "JET", and recently had an interview with 180 Degrees Consulting (which I gather is fairly well-known in the consulting world) and am waiting to hear back from them (fingers crossed). I'd like to combine the two throughout this upcoming academic year (provided I do get into 180 DC)
Languages: grew up trilingual with Italian, Russian, English. Fluent (C1) in French and have basic knowledge of Ukrainian (which I am aiming to become fluent in by the time I graduate from ESCP in 2026). Are there some English-speaking offices in Europe apart from London that are open to foreigners? I am an EU citizen so no visa problems btw.
As for GMAT, my goal is honestly the highest score I can possibly achieve. 730+? Is that realistic? If I graduate from ESCP in 2026 and aim to start my MSc straight after that, what should be my GMAT timeline and my general application timeline?
Just wanted to thank in advance the people that are going to respond. This is a long post with tons of questions. I am just somewhat lost. Your help is very much appreciated, thank you thank you thank you.
I dont know anyone from ESCP at Bain, but LinkedIn says there's one person in London. However, I'd mostly put that down to the fact that most French students choose to stay in France vs coming to the UK.
That being said, in London you only need a Bachelors degree to apply, no need for an MSc.
Now, if you do want to do an MSc, obvious rules apply: the better the university, the better your chances. I dont know Oxbridge's business Masters (Im sure they have them, I just dont know them). I'd probably pick something from Imperial or LSE if I were able to choose freely.
From Oxbridge, if you can get a Masters in something else (say economics) thats also a good signal.
Hi! Thanks or your response!
I'm sure my ESCP BSc won't get me far. This is why I am planning to get a MSc from a target school. A friend of mine's older brother did a MiM at INSEAD because his BSc is from a UK semi-target, and now he works at BCG London. I saw there's some more people in the same office with the same MiM.
To your knowledge, might there be any specific MSc degrees that are pipelines to MBB in London? Is it not that common for foreigners who have a non-UK, non-target BSc degree to get a MSc in the UK from a target school in order to increase their chances to land an MBB job?
Also, just curious - why did you say that you'd pick a MSc from Imperial or LSE over Oxbridge? I thought Cambridge and Oxford were the two most represented unis in consulting in London?
Couple of things here, so going to address them one at a time
Not too sure about the details but I’ve got a friend that did an IBA at WHU > MiM at Bocconi and is now working at BCG in either Munich or Frankfurt
I assume your friend is German/fluent in German though?
Good to know that a Bocconi MiM can get one into MBB outside of Italy, though. I spent a big chunk of my childhood in Milan and would like to avoid it as much as possible 😭, but it is cheaper than most target MiMs/MSc degrees. Hopefully it's possible to land in Paris/London with it.
Thanks for the insight!
Yeah he was a fluent german speaker, which I'm sure helps
Good luck!
This is does Not apply: for german offices you can have studied at any decent target School in Europe or abroad, but its only valid if you are GERMAN (language + culture: you will work in German homogeneous Teams).
So it’s Not a good Argument to say that Bocconi Places well outside of Italy (except italians who want to leave italy in international Locations like London or Dubai)
Germans can do it for their job market, cause their country is packed with Jobs but local employers only want to hire Germans and will discriminate and bully foreign applicants. If you don’t believe me check the Teams on LinkedIn at German offices in Munich or Frankfurt. This created a Situation of scarcity in their job market and makes target universities less relevant
If you are however a non-german speaker you better study either in your own country, or if you are from a country with a job market you cannot be proud of, study in the UK, even if it is damn expensive. You can also choose a different english speaking country (only study in english speaking countries, avoid all other ones, especially Continental Europe: Bocconi, HEC etc. Are bad destinations for internationals)
I'm an international at Bocconi currently, hoping to work in London in the future.
How do you think Bocconi places for internationals? I'm a British citizen, so visa isn't an issue for me.
For MBBs in London, your masters is absolutely irrelevant. We will assess your undergrad performance instead (+ internships, charity work, extracurriculars, etc.).
The best way to get into MBB London from ESCP would be to start at a French/EU office first, be a top performer and move over to London after 2 years
Interesting, understood. That may change things. Thanks for the input!
So if I were to drop 50k on a master's degree from LBS/LSE/Oxbridge, I'd be wasting my money?
I mean depends if you want a year of a break but no one at Oxbridge themselves or at MBBs will care about it - undergrad is your education
Rather disagree here, at least for McKinsey. Tonne of folk with Oxford/Cambridge/Imperial/LSE MScs, with semi/non target undergrads. Can double check data but it feels like far less than half of the BA class came straight from undergraduate, most either postgraduate or a year or two of other work experience.
Hi! That's great to hear! Will do my best to build a strong application for an MSc degree in these unis!
After a bachelor at ESCP, it is a must to do a master at a better school or like you said it will not take you far...
may i ask what is the added value of your comment? you reiterated what i said in my original post and took a cheap opportunity to belittle the escp bachelor for no reason. just don't comment if you have to act this way lol
anything to share or are you just here to hate?
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