Hi all,

I have applied to ESADE and IESE, and are thinking of which one to go. IESE is objectively a better school, but I am slightly concerned about its connection with Opus Dei. Are any of you aware of how influential Opus Dei is in the MBA?

Regards

I wrote a long reply to this and it got lost. So, much more quickly, Opus Dei has a similar place [in the business culture] to that of the Jesuits of ESADE. While they are different prelatures certainly have different attitudes towards staff, I don't think this has any real impact on students. Just ignore the crucifixes.

[Edited by Duncan on Mar 21, 2021]

Somebody talked about this here:

http://find-mba.com/board/europe/esade-or-ie--1389

"IESE, on the other hand, was founded by Opus Dei and they have crosses on the wall and stuff (which to me at least, was a little weird even though I'm Catholic. I went to a big public school. If you're catholic and don't mind seeing jesus everywhere you go, then by all means...)"

Hi, IESE is clearly strong Opus Dei, they even told some female students to wear longer dresses...., at ESADE you don't have any religous impact

False - ESADE is clearly connected to the Jesuits:

http://www.esade.edu/web/eng/about-esade/aboutus/jesuits

Not that that, or IESE's connection to Opus Dei, should make much of a difference to anybody thinking about an MBA. Neither place will force you to convert, nor will their religious connections have a substantial impact on your day-to-day studies. Focus on what's important - your career progression, networking, personal growth - not these irrelevant issues.

I don't think the claim is that ESADE doesn't have a Jesuit affiliation (that has, after all, already been said on this page), but that there's almost no religious impact on students. ESADE is a common destination for staff who are forced to leave IESE, for example after separating from their spouses, and the religious impact is notable there. At ESADE, do they even have cruxifixes on the classroom walls?