Meet The CEIBS MBA Class of 2017

Ekaterina Mishustina

Ekaterina Mishustina

CEIBS

Hometown: Moscow, Russia

Undergraduate School and Major: University of Edinburgh, Master of Arts with Honors in French and English Literature + German

Employers and Job Titles Since Graduation: Logistics manager at international logistics company M&TM Freight

Recalling your own experience, what advice do you have for applicants who are preparing for either the GMAT or the GRE? I did the GMAT and at the end of the day I believe it was worth the pain. It is a challenge that gets you to the next level. Everyone can do it and everyone has their own approach to getting it done. For me it was a long journey that involved group and private classes, as well as time, effort, and dedication. What helps a lot is signing up to a TEST and working at your pace toward that deadline.

Based on your own selection process, what advice do you have for applicants who are trying to draw up a list of target schools to which to apply? I believe it should be: Rating/ reputation, program length, specialization and course structure, location, and gut feeling.

What advice do you have for applicants in actually applying to a school, writing essays, doing admission interviews, and getting recommenders to write letters on your behalf? I would recommend that students speak to as many people as possible. Talk this through, hear what they think, and find out what advice they have. Then, do a self-reflection, brainstorm, plan and put it all down. Once written, I recommend also sending it to people you trust to get external feedback.

What led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA? I chose CEIBS because it has a good reputation (#1 in Asia and #11 in the world as per Financial Times), an interesting program with flexibility of length (1 or 1.5 years) and the possibility of exchange at other top universities across the globe. Moreover, I wanted a change and a challenge in a dynamic location full of possibilities (cosmopolitan city of 30 million people). At the end of the day, I had a right feeling about it from communication with the admissions office.

What would you ultimately like to achieve before you graduate? I want to learn Chinese, expand my network, learn useful information, explore successful leadership ways and grow as leader, get out of my comfort zone every day to be successful, and find happiness at the end of this journey.

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