Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone knows the reputation of SDA Bocconi at European level. I am not talking about "international reputation" based on the rankings but on the chance you have to get a job outside Italy (Europe) after the MBA.

I have been rejected by Kellogg and it seems that my profile is a strong match with Bocconi ( GPA, GMAT, work experience..) but I am not sure I want to pursue a career in Italy once finished the program or at least have an international experience (I'm Italian).

I want to specify that my profile is not a really strong mach for Bschools such as INSEAD, Said,Judge or LBS (that is more that 1Y program so I didn't even considered that) and that I would have to wait next year anyway. Except for those Bschools I think that SDA Bocconi is a really respectable program but I would like to hear your opinions.

Thank you

A German friend of mine studied at SDA and found it really hard to get traction back in Germany, essentially returning to a very similar role to her-pre MBA role, but at a competitor. It's a great school, but international employers won't go there for roles in other countries. So, you'd be job hunting through your personal network.
Europe has national labour markets, and only the top schools you mention, plus IMD, IESE and ESADE have real traction internationally. The layer below (HEC, MBS, Cass, RSM and SDA) are really serving multinationals in their national markets.
Prioritise your target countries, and then pick your MBA.
Also see:-
Do you need to speak the local language? www.find-mba.com/board/34713
Best schools for international students' placement http://www.find-mba.com/board/41143

Hi Duncan thank you for your answer and the other great post.

Didn't the MBA help your friend to speed up her career? Can I ask you in which sector she works?

My target market is the UK (where I reckon that the remaining Bschools Cass or Imperial are at the same level or even lower than SDA) or the other option is to work at European level in the marketing team (for this option I don't think it really matters where you start from). As previously mentioned I'm Italian (no problem with Italian then) and I gained my Master degree at Imperial College, potentially I can speak a good English.

Really wondering if it worths gain the MBA in Italy or I should wait for another year and try to improve my profile.

No, I don't think so. She did sales and marketing for a consulting firm in the tech industry, and is now in a similar, but more strategic role, on the client side.

I don't think your profile is the issue: it's the clarity of your goal. if you clarify that, then you could aim for a January start There are some great schools with January starts, like IMD, RSM, HEC, EDHEC and WHU.

I got a job offer at a bulge bracket investment bank in London after bocconi so that's that.

It's MSc finance is the third highest represented program in the UK investment banks so it's a much better place than most of the British schools even for top IB roles in the UK. Strong ties to insurance firms like AXA, Generali etc too for international roles. I know a lot of people from my batch who got jobs back in Germany etc at top firms depending on their interests. Most people in top European firms know about it and hire from bocconi for international roles however they are restricted to Europe.

MSc in finance degrees often have better international mobility than MBA. Searching LinkedIn accounts in London for MSc Finance the top schools seem to be LSE, Cass, LBS and Imperial. If you wanted to work in finance roles in London, especially at Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs or JP Morgan, they seem like strong options.

PS Bocconi has notable numbers of alumni at Citi, Goldman and a firm called PJT, which I am not familiar with.

[Edited by Duncan on May 31, 2018]

Thank you both for your answer.
I want to specify that after the MBA I'm not planning to move into consultancy.
I'm a biomedical engineer with a degree from Imperial College and I want to do an MBA to move from clinical to marketing/product management. Therefore, I want to stick with the medical devices field.

Thank you both for your answer.
I want to specify that after the MBA I'm not planning to move into consultancy.
I'm a biomedical engineer with a degree from Imperial College and I want to do an MBA to move from clinical to marketing/product management. Therefore, I want to stick with the medical devices field.

You clever dick, Imperial College was my dream undergraduate school why Kellogg turned you away I don't know. Come to schools around Boston, MA area they have strong clusters of schools/companies focus on smart engineering and I believe you will do good.

Did you try to get admitted? Can tell it was an amazing experience. Unfortunately I know that Imperial Business school is no as good as other departments.
I don't feel like my application at Kellogg was a good one (as my GMAT score wasn't)
Thank you for your suggestions, but don't you think that I could have work permit related issues in US?

Hi Iazz, may I ask you what your GMAT is? If it is around 650 and UK is your target job market, I will not rule out Judge Business School (where I did my MBA) or Said Business School.
Italians tend to be an unrepresented group at both and that can help, moreover you already have a degree from a top-notch UK university and a very clear (and I would say realistic) career plan. At JBS, at least during my year, they expected GMAT above 700 from certain demographics (mostly American, Indian and Chinese students), and they were more lenient with other groups.

[Edited by Pat_parr84 on Jun 04, 2018]

Great suggestion.