Student profiles

Mike Salvaris (Australia)
Pre-MBA: Lawyer at Deacons
Law & Economics at Monash University, Australia.
Australia/New Zealand Scholar

'I chose to attend London Business School for a variety of reasons: academic (awesome faculty and a good mix of class and practical learning); professional (London Business School has an excellent reputation with all top banks, consultancies etc) and personal (my girlfriend, also a lawyer, would find it difficult to work in the US or France). London Business School has delivered all that I thought it would in regards these factors.

I did not choose London Business School for its diversity of students. To be honest, I shrugged it off as marketing hype that didn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. Six months into the course I can honestly say that I was wrong. Diversity does matter, and it's not just because it makes for interesting class discussions or nights out on the town. It's more than that. It's a core part of what you learn. It's about perceiving the cultural dynamic in your team, understanding how that team may be different because of cultural factors and how to use this to propel the team towards whatever goal it seeks.

Looking back, I now think that diversity is the single most important factor why you should apply to London Business School. Most of the top schools will boast an excellent teaching program, alumni network and career services program, most will tell you that they will make you leaders. All that is probably true. However, London is one of the very few schools that can offer you this and the chance to develop the cultural 'soft skills' that are becoming as relevant as the traditional 'hard skills' in today's business world. Good luck with your decision!'

Will Harbaugh (USA)

Pre-MBA: Consulting Principal at Fujitsu Australia
English Literature at Miami University, USA.

'I chose to apply to London Business School and other top business schools in the United States. When I finally received my offers, I selected London Business School for its people, its reputation, and the opportunities it offered me, and my wife, in London. London Business School offered the best international experience, the most diverse student body, and the most challenging finance and entrepreneurial coursework. It also offered my wife and me the best lifestyle choice – the chance to live and work in London and a strong Partners' Club for my wife.

I am happy to report that the School has exceeded my expectations and has been well worth the investment thus far. The professors are world-class and my peers represent more than 60 countries, each with a unique perspective. Every class is a study in international business and an opportunity to learn from others and share my own experiences.

The Faculty make an effort in every class to apply the theory to the real world, to make each formula relevant, and to prepare us for life as managers and business leaders. For example, my course in Managing Organisational Behaviour required our study group to conduct an internal audit of a London based company. We made our proposal to Arsenal Football Club and spent the term interviewing their senior management team about the challenges faced by the club ahead of its move to a new stadium. I even spent an hour with the Managing Director discussing his vision for the club and his views on management. I believe that type of experience is unique to London Business School and one great example of the "London advantage."

Socially, my wife and I have made many friends. We have already travelled to France, Italy, and Denmark and have several other trips planned for the year, to visit our new friends in their home countries. A member of my study group is even organizing a trip to climb Mount Everest! The opportunities are limitless for students.'

Jocelyn Aw (Malaysia)

Pre-MBA: Manager, PriceWaterhouseCoopers
Accountancy at University of Otago, New Zealand

'Before my MBA I worked for PricewaterhouseCoopers in Singapore as a Manager in Valuation and Strategy Services. I chose London mainly because the School provides the best international mix of students - US MBAs are US centric in both their student profile and their exposure to business. Another reason for coming here is that I have a baby daughter and a partner; as the spouse of a student he has automatic legal authorisation to work full-time.

Most prospective students think the opportunity costs of studying for longer than a year means losing business experience and income. Even with the new flexible programme, London students graduate with 100 hours more of structured business/management insights and many more business cases. Second year fees are often funded through a number of externally paid strategy, finance or marketing projects with leading commercial firms. These projects provide additional business insights into the dynamics of various companies, industries, and geographical markets.

Everybody at School is just so keen to help. Whenever you throw a question at the student community, be it technical, of general interests or about places to visit in London, you receive an immediate response. I had an interesting project for a major oil and gas company in the UK, but while I had the relevant functional skills I had limited industry knowledge. I approached the Energy Club for help and within the same day received many calls and emails that pointed me to the right resources. The energy on campus is just amazing!'

Nirm Shanbhag (USA)

Pre-MBA: Account Planner at Connelly Partners
Economics at George Washington University, USA

'After working in advertising and marketing for six years, I felt frustrated by the limited impact I could have on my clients' businesses. Despite believing that brand issues needed to be addressed by more than just advertising, my narrow and limited business knowledge prevented me from engaging clients in the way that I wanted. Also, I was reaching a sort of pinnacle in my career where I could easily see where I would be in five, ten or 20 years and my options were becoming more limited with each passing week. An MBA was my way of ensuring that I developed as a businessperson; it represented a way of opening my future to a wide range of possibilities.

When I decided to pursue an MBA, one of the most important criteria was a programme that provided a truly global perspective. I wanted a top programme with top rate faculty and students, but being prepared to do business in a global economy, where businesses, clients, consultants hail from around the world was critical to me. I could have gone to school in the US and met students from numerous countries, but to me the London difference is that the students don't leave their individual cultural perspectives at the door. Each of us brings a different view of business, politics and the world in general, and that helps to make us all better able to work in international business. I had the opportunity to take an elective this spring that had students from not only the full-time MBA, but also the Executive MBA, EMBA-Global, and Sloan programmes. The different perspectives represented at least 50% of what I was able to take from the course.'

Saleem Arif (UK)

Pre-MBA: Director, Cambridge Guides
Economics at Cambridge University, UK

'I have been running my own publishing company, Cambridge Guides, for five years. By the time I began my MBA the company had grown substantially but I felt that I needed the tools and knowledge that the degree would give me to take the firm to the next level. I know that much of what I have learnt already can be put to practical use in my business, including my experience as a Summer Associate at McKinsey & Company in London where I was consulting on marketing strategy effectiveness for a major oil company.

My MBA experience has surpassed my expectations – I expected I would get a rounded business education but never did I think I would meet so many great people, learn so much about different cultures and have such a good time. The Eastern European/CIS Society trip to Bratislava and Budapest was absolutely amazing. The group from School was about 35 strong and really bonded over a long weekend, which was then followed by a reunion a few weeks later to relive some of our experiences. Another highlight was the Santa Pub Crawl where several hundred students dressed as Santa and invaded central London – the tourists had never seen anything like it!'

Sigal Duvshani (Israel)

Pre-MBA: Branch Chief, Investigations Department at Israel Securities Authority
Accounting and English Literature at Tel Aviv University, Israel

'Before starting my MBA I was a Branch Chief and Criminal Investigator at the Israel Securities Authority where I was responsible for managing a team of four investigators and investigating high profile criminal violations of the Securities Law. I chose London Business School because I wanted to study in London, in an international community, rather than a purely American community. I wanted a longer programme to enable me to experiment with my career change and to enjoy the break in my professional life to the fullest extent, and I also wanted to change my career path to marketing/merchandising with a specific interest in luxury goods.

My first year study group was mostly about learning how to combine different ideas into one agreed upon piece of work. We all needed to stop falling in love with our own ideas and understand that others have good and plausible solutions that work just as well. It was great to learn from other people's experience and use each person's individual strengths. The biggest challenge was in having to make all the decisions in a group that included a French internal bank auditor, a Canadian project manager in the pharmaceutical industry, a German consultant, an American military officer and a Peruvian lawyer.

The student body at London Business School is first in its kind. The internationalism of the program as well as the nature of the people is outstanding. Everyone is genuinely friendly and collaborative, something that is rarely experienced at MBA schools. My friends from School are friends for life.'