HEC v/s Dartmouth - Masters

Hi guys, I am looking to make a career change from biz development to strategy consulting and have to chose bw HEC Paris (MSc in Management - Grande Ecole) and Dartmouth (Masters in Engineering Management).

HEC has a gap year, where I can to intern for 12 months (as opposed to 3 months at Dartmouth) and I think that is a gr8 networking opportunity. However, Dartmouth will be cheaper by around 20k euros.

Which school do you think will position me the best? pls note that I will be an international at both the countries.

Thanks for your help in advance!

(PS: If there are guys out there from HEC, Dartmouth, Duke or ESCP, pls do let me know!)

10 Comments
 

I think the first thing to know is whether you want to work in the USA or in Europe. Hec Paris Msc in Management Grande Ecole Program is the best not only in France but in Europe and gives you the opportunity to have an extended view of many things (supply chain mgt, marketing, HR mgt, finance, strategy, etc) and to specialize during your second year. It is more expensive BUT it is the main program at HEC and better recognized than its Msc / MBA

 

i eventually want to work in india. I also came to the same conclusion about HEC and grande ecole. However, the two students at HEC (I know two is a very small sample size) whom I talked to, did not give me favorable (let alone passionately positive) reviews about HEC (one even ventured a step further and said i should go to dartmouth).

 

That's very typical. French people always complain about pretty much everything. They always think the grass is greener on the other side. That's true even for me, I complain about my school which is not a target though it is among the top 10 in France.

 

Dartmouth will definitely be better regarded in India..nothing better than a top american school ..it will be best if after ur education u get some work experience in the states and then move to India..many people do that.. but ya one is management and other is engineering management..I don't know how different are the programs..

 

Also know that students who attend the Grande Ecole program are around 22 24 yo, so if you are older, it may be better to join a Msc where people are a bit older. And I agree with Dartmouth for an Indian person, if you already have experience in business, starting over fundamentals of management at Hec might be boring for you.

 

But in terms of reputation HEC Paris I feel is lot higher than Dartmouth. Plus, if you want to end up working in India, it would be useful for you to know that HEC and IIMA recently signed a partnership agreement, and they have also launched a double degree program now - basically a year in Paris and a year in IIMA and you get two degrees in the end. SO it would be worth your while giving HEC a serious thought. In fact, you can have a read of the story on the BusinessBecause website about HEC and IIMA. I hope it isn't too late already! Good luck! :)

 

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