Hi everyone,

At present, I’m planning to get an MBA in Germany and transition my career to become a project manager or business analyst in InsurTech or FinTech Start-ups. As I lived in Germany for 10 months and enjoyed my life there, Germany is the only country that I will consider. My long-term goal is to have my own start-up in 5-7 years.

Here is a little bit more about my background:
Work experience: 6 years in Insurance field
GMAT: 640
IELTS: 7.5
German: currently at B1 and plan to complete B2 before September.

Because my bachelor degree was in Psychology, I have less choices of school. I am currently applying for 5 schools: HHL Leipzig, EBS, Pforzheim, ESB Reutlingen and HWR Berlin. In case I get offers from all 5 schools, I am wondering if I consider: HHL > Pforzheim > ESB Reutlingen > EBS > HWR Berlin?

Appreciate for your comments regarding the schools and career path. Thank you in advance!

Personally I might put ESB at the same level, or even above, Pforzheim.

Personally I might put ESB at the same level, or even above, Pforzheim.

Pforzheim (and Esslingen) are stronger on the manufacturing side than on services, and they have more experience in the international MBA market. However, ESB is a larger, more respected and more broadly-based business school with a better network in services firms (McKinsey, Amazon, Roland Berger etc) and financial services. Indeed, looking on LinkedIn, ESB, as a single school, has more MBAs in financial services than Pforzheim as an enture university. https://www.linkedin.com/search/results/people/?facetGeoRegion=%5B%22de%3A0%22%5D&facetIndustry=%5B%2243%22%2C%2241%22%5D&facetSchool=%5B%2211875%22%2C%2211814%22%2C%224055032%22%2C%22356082%22%5D&keywords=MBA&origin=FACETED_SEARCH

That's a solid point. I've also looked at the alumni and curriculum of ESMT, WHU, MBS & Frankfurt. It seems to me that if I consider 2021 intake (so that I have more time to get a higher GMAT score & better German language skill), ESMT is the best alternative for my career goal though the tuition fee is the highest among all these schools. If I don't get a seat at HHL, should I go for the 2021 January intake of ESMT instead of getting in ESB/Pforzheim?

That's a great idea, especially if you use this time to work on your German.

Hello. While it is definitely true that the area around Pforzheim is more conducive to the automobile line of profession, many of the MBA program alumni at Pforzheim took a totally different career path post graduation. As a current student enrolled in the program, I can definitely attest to this. Many of these alumni now work at attractive employers in consulting
(e.g. EY, KPMG etc.), IT industry (SAP, Microsoft), banking or tourist industry and others. Some of them even founded their own start-ups.

Besides a strong alumni network, we also have a new mentor-ship program with which they are trying to bridge the gap between current students and alumni and enable forming the right connections.

Hope this help :) Cheers!

A PMP or Prince 2 certification will benefit you more in your transition to PM than a MBA.

That's a great idea, especially if you use this time to work on your German.

Hello. While it is definitely true that the area around Pforzheim is more conducive to the automobile line of profession, many of the MBA program alumni at Pforzheim took a totally different career path post graduation. As a current student enrolled in the program, I can definitely attest to this. Many of these alumni now work at attractive employers in consulting
(e.g. EY, KPMG etc.), IT industry (SAP, Microsoft), banking or tourist industry and others. Some of them even founded their own start-ups.

Besides a strong alumni network, we also have a new mentor-ship program with which they are trying to bridge the gap between current students and alumni and enable forming the right connections.

Hope this help :) Cheers!

[Edited by jmailreg on Apr 14, 2020]

A PMP or Prince 2 certification will benefit you more in your transition to PM than a MBA.

Hello. While it is definitely true that the area around Pforzheim is more conducive to the automobile line of profession, many of the MBA program alumni at Pforzheim took a totally different career path post graduation. As a current student enrolled in the program, I can definitely attest to this. Many of these alumni now work at attractive employers in consulting
(e.g. EY, KPMG etc.), IT industry (SAP, Microsoft), banking or tourist industry and others. Some of them even founded their own start-ups.

Besides a strong alumni network, we also have a new mentor-ship program with which they are trying to bridge the gap between current students and alumni and enable forming the right connections.

Hope this help :) Cheers!

Hi there,

Thanks for the sharing!
From your experience so far, is there any career fair / company visit that is connected with start-ups? And how does the mentorship programme work?

Moreover, would you mind sharing your experience about the admission interview you had previously? Thank you in advance :)

Yes there is a career fair every semester, it is great to gain visibility. Also, last semester they started a career breakfast concept and we now have a new career/job portal. The career breakfast for me personally was a great way to learn how German networking works and also gain some confidence in conversing in German. Don't worry, you can network in English as well.
The companies visiting range from startups and small sized to medium sized companies. Quite a few big ones too like SAP, Kaercher.
Company visits are great. You get to interact with the HR people, see around the company, talk to people from different departments and see how life at the company day-to-day is. Some cool facility tours too :)

The mentorship program has been running since last August and so far seems to be a success from what I hear from my seniors who participated. The MBA office finds out about you career goals and interests and pairs you up with a mentor. Introductions are made via email and then you take it from there. The program lasts for a year. The mentors are alumni who have been in the industry for at least 2 years post graduation. Their tasks include sharing knowledge, giving general and career advice and support and opening doors for the mentee.

About the admission interview, I was asked about my resume, presented with some regular academic life situations and my possible responses to those were assessed. Was also asked about my careers goals and life ambitions and last but not the least, financial planning to fund the MBA. I wouldn't stress about the interview part at all!

Hi, I've gotten an interview call for the ESB Reutlingen MBA FT course. It is scheduled on April 28.

[Edited by Ankit Nigam1 on Apr 20, 2020]

Yes there is a career fair every semester, it is great to gain visibility. Also, last semester they started a career breakfast concept and we now have a new career/job portal. The career breakfast for me personally was a great way to learn how German networking works and also gain some confidence in conversing in German. Don't worry, you can network in English as well.
The companies visiting range from startups and small sized to medium sized companies. Quite a few big ones too like SAP, Kaercher.
Company visits are great. You get to interact with the HR people, see around the company, talk to people from different departments and see how life at the company day-to-day is. Some cool facility tours too :)

The mentorship program has been running since last August and so far seems to be a success from what I hear from my seniors who participated. The MBA office finds out about you career goals and interests and pairs you up with a mentor. Introductions are made via email and then you take it from there. The program lasts for a year. The mentors are alumni who have been in the industry for at least 2 years post graduation. Their tasks include sharing knowledge, giving general and career advice and support and opening doors for the mentee.

About the admission interview, I was asked about my resume, presented with some regular academic life situations and my possible responses to those were assessed. Was also asked about my careers goals and life ambitions and last but not the least, financial planning to fund the MBA. I wouldn't stress about the interview part at all!

Heyo! Glad to hear it went well. All the best
About German classes, they are included in the course. You have some 3 odd hours of German class per week. To be honest, it is really what you make of it.  The lower levels are taught in English but I think B1 onwards is taught in German, which is great in my opinion. You take a placement test at the beginning of the semester and they put you in a certain level based on your performance. If you have valid language certifications, you will be exempt from taking the test and directly placed in the next level.
Last but not the least, language learning can't stop at just these classes. You get ample opportunities to practice your German on campus. With the MBA team, Professors, classmates and fellow university students. Also, during networking events. You just got to be pro-active about it 

It would be awesome if you came with some prior knowledge since a lead is very helpful. I came with a B1 and now i'm taking B2 after having cleared B1+.

Cheers! 

Hi, I've gotten an interview call for the ESB Reutlingen MBA FT course. It is scheduled on April 28.

[Edited by Ankit Nigam on Apr 29, 2020]

I've been accepted to the MBA FT course at ESB Reutlingen starting in Sep 2020. Anybody else have an update about the result?

I've been accepted to the MBA FT course at ESB Reutlingen starting in Sep 2020. Anybody else have an update about the result?

Does anyone have an update on the start of ESB Reutlingen's MBA FT programme in 2020? Will it get postponed or will it be online in the beginning?

[Edited by Ankit Nigam1 on May 26, 2020]