Meet The HEC Paris MBA Class Of 2021

Inside HEC Paris

SUMMITING A VOLCANO…RIGHT BEFORE ERUPTION

Léa Urien has already changed industries and locations during her career. Now, she is seeking to complete her triple jump at HEC Paris. Before starting her MBA, Urien was an attorney for Taylor Wessing LLP, one of Europe’s largest and most prestigious law firms. After graduating from HEC Paris, she plans to transition into senior leadership at a leading international luxury or hotel company. Technically, however, the law wasn’t Urien’s first love.

“I started opera singing at the age of twelve and studied at the French Music Conservatory for six years,” she writes. “At that time, I was a soprano and performed various roles in theatres, such as Barberine in The Marriage of Figaro (Mozart) and Eurydice in Orpheus in the Underworld (Offenbach). In my early twenties, I also composed and recorded my own songs that I sang on stage in Versailles. Classmates, be prepared: my guitar is always near!”

HEC Paris graduation

Outside of class, Yejing Li is a kitesurfer, while Krishna Mehta Shah – an Australian by way of JP Morgan – has developed a taste for cooking. Although Fang-Ling Hsueh considers herself a “numbers person by day,” she spends her nights managing a citizen media website. At the same time, Cecilia Fernandes Ramos has recently become a “travel addict.” Her biggest adventure could be described as legendary.

“During one of my most emblematic hikes, in Atacama Desert, I decided to climb Lascar volcano, one of the most active volcanos from Chile. The climb started at 6 a.m. with one of the most astonishing landscapes I have ever seen. When we were less than 300 meters from the crater, Lascar erupted and we had to run down for our lives. The cloud of ashes reached Buenos Aires, San Pedro de Atacama village entered the yellow alert stage, and my friend and I gave an interview to TV Chile about this incredible and terrifying experience!”

PAY BOOST FOR GRADUATES

Like INSEAD and Columbia Business School, HEC Paris conducts two student intakes. This year, the school is projecting an overall class size of 295 students, with an acceptance rate of 19%, slightly down from the previous year’s 16%. By the same token, the incoming class’ incoming GMAT (690) and percentage of female students (31%) remain consistent with the previous year. That said, the percentage of international (i.e. non-French) students climbed from 92% to 95%. In other words, HEC Paris is a legitimate rival to the London Business School and INSEAD for being the most diverse business school in the world.

Applications could soon begin surging. Last year, HEC Paris revamped its curriculum, adding specializations that centered on cutting edge trends like entrepreneurial thinking, digital disruption, and social entrepreneurship. Overall, the school is renowned for its academically-rigorous and leadership-oriented programming. In fact, HEC Paris consistently ranks among the top Masters In Management programs in the world according to The Economist.  At the same time, it has emerged as a darling of students and employers alike.

In the 2018 Economist survey, students ranked HEC Paris as the #1 school to network. Owing to the program’s emphasis on diversity, it finished 4th worldwide for the internationalism of alumni and 7th in the breadth of the alumni network in the same poll. After crunching salary data, The Economist ranked HEC Paris 2nd worldwide for post-graduation pay increases. This trend was reinforced by this month’s Forbes ranking, which also evaluates MBA pay. Here, HEC Paris placed 2nd among non-U.S. two-year programs, with graduates enjoying raises over $79,700 within five years of graduation.

Go to Page 4 for 12 In-Depth Profiles of Members of the Class of 2021.