EAE News
Welcome MBA, a 10/10 experience
25 de April de 2019
EAE's Barcelona Campus has welcome its new MBA students with activities, cultural visits and contact with leading companies.
Almost a month before classes start, the new MBA students of EAE Business School have taken part in a unique and pioneering experience that has given them the chance to get to know their classmates, the School and city that they will be studying in. "Being held for the first time this year, the objective of this welcome event is to help the students to settle in, focusing on a few important points: a competence development program (with individual mentoring), cultural visits, both in Barcelona and further afield, and networking and knowledge generation activities, encompassing entrepreneurship, internationalization and leadership, which we consider to be the three key pillars underpinning an MBA. It has been a really positive experience", explained Úrsula Molina, the Head of Events and Conferences.
Over the course of the week, the students have taken part in mentoring activities and workshops on soft skills with EAE lecturers and professionals currently working in the field. "It has been an incredible experience. Not only have we formed a group, but also we have learned a great deal and grown both personally and professionally. We really appreciated the fact that a mentor has been support us throughout the program. In addition, the soft skill classes really us help to get a clearer idea of why we have chosen to take an MBA, as well as preparing us to take full advantage of the experience", reflected Carmen García, from Peru, and Gianina Macu, from Paraguay.
Moreover, they have had the opportunity to gain a first-hand insight into important institutions, such as Acció, the Catalan Government's Business Competitiveness Agency, where they have discussed how to internationalize a company. They also visited key locations related to entrepreneurship, such as Barcelona Tech City, where they heard about the experiences of founders of various Catalan companies that have grown exponentially, such as By Hours, which is currently looking for professionals in Mexico and represents a present and future opportunity for the MBA students.
The students on the Executive MBA welcome program in Barcelona enjoyed an entrepreneurship session, with the former EAE student David Gorgues, who set up the company Total Safe Pack. They then took part in a Speed Networking Session, in which the coach David Potin gave them a professional self-awareness workshop for the students to gain a clearer idea of their professional profile, with the aim of identifying their ideal job and defining a plan to achieve it. The presentation included exercises and self-awareness tests focusing on ascertaining their talents. "The feedback from the students is really good and some of them have asked for personalized one-to-one coaching sessions with me after the presentation, in order to fine-tune their objectives and consolidate their action plan for achieving their ideal job", explained the coach. The participants also heard first-hand about the leadership experience of Javier Pijoan, the Managing Director of Bacardi, who shared his insight into running a international family company.
José Luís Marín, the Director of the MBA welcome program, reflected on the success of the program, concluding that it had surpassed his expectations in all respects. "We didn't have any previous experience to draw on and it has all gone really smoothly. The students are really happy. We have set high expectations and it is essential that this is maintained". The lecturer emphasized that the students are very flexible and had really participated well, all showing a great desire to learn.
Getting to know the city and the surrounding area is one of the key goals of this Welcome Program. The students visited the city of Girona and the Dalí Museum in Figueres, before relaxing with a drink at a hotel in Barcelona to bring the MBA Welcome Program to a close. "The thing I have liked most about these few days is that we have had the chance to know businesspeople who have made a success of their ventures, and this is a really positive message for us all. Moreover, I think it is great that the School incentivizes Catalan culture, with a trip to Girona. I also really appreciated the talk with the Director of Bacardi", explained Carlos Ramírez, from Paraguay.
"It has been ideal to get to know our classmates before the classes start. We all know that an MBA opens doors for you but you never know the extent to which it can help you. That is why the mentoring sessions are rerally useful", added Cecilia Gravora, from Uruguay.
Fellow student Francisco Hott expressed a great interest in the world of entrepreneurship. He is keen to launch a tourism project in his home country, Chile. With respect to the welcome program, in his opinion, it is a great initiative because it helps them prepare more effectively to embark on the Master. "It has been entertaining and informative, always with a clear message". Meanwhile, Jorge Luis Panillo decided to do an MBA at EAE because he knows the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya and valued the business school's close links with the institution. Nicolás García added that these days of the welcome program have helped him gain a clearer idea of why they are all here.
Peruvian student Zarela Salazar has made the most of the workshops and other activities. She explained that she is really motivated to begin the classes, which is a sentiment shared by Dersi Pérez, who added that the program strives for full integration, "which enables us to think about and identify points to improve before we start the courses". Systems engineer Dersi wants to learn how a company operates at a general and managerial level because she wants to take a different route professionally. She hopes to stay and work in Barcelona.