The INSEAD MBA Experience

I have just returned from the break between P1 and P2. One period has gone and what is true is that it goes by so fast. But it’s dense, so full of everything. It’s international. Everyone knows that and many choose INSEAD because of this unique opportunity to be exposed to such diversity. This diversity does not end there.

Housemates
I live outside the forest, a 10 minute drive from campus… I might even see a deer or a boar along the road, Fontainebleau is wild! Coming back home I’m ready to join the crowd: two Brazilians, two Indians, one American-Chinese, one Aussie and a Brit… plus me, the Italian. We usually meet in the kitchen and conversations go in multiple directions. Stories are shared while someone is eating and others are checking their laptops and emails do come from everywhere (quick look at my inbox and I have a report of expenses from the last trip to Chamonix, invitations to company presentations, new clubs’ leadership elections, daily digest from yammer, a survey on my consumer habits from students exploring new businesses, the last update to the calendar for P2, etc).

Group mates
In my work group we spread from Santiago to Shanghai, stopping by Rhode Island, Venice, Riyadh and Mumbai. It’s quite a trip and a constant discovery. Being so different brings into play patience, adaptation, curiosity, respect, reciprocity. And as time passes, we get to know each other better and we develop a sense of belonging that will tie our lives together.

Classes
P1 was very intense. I didn’t think I needed all those career info sessions and CV workshops so early on in the programme, but now it’s already P2 and summer internship applications are almost due. I definitely need to catch up by writing a few cover letters this week and do more research on companies I am interested in.

Classes were mainly quantitative in P1; accounting, statistics, micro economics, financial markets… but I think organizational behavior was the best one. It was filled with classroom interaction and group work and there was not necessarily a “right” answer to most things. It really exercised one’s judgment and critical thinking which is one of my main areas of interest. We took all the exams in two and a half days and I have never seen the campus so populated at night as it was a week before the finals. Before this, all I heard were of people sleeping at the library to recover from parties, but during exams, students were sleeping with their books under the pillows!

Social Life
P1 was indeed a rush. As soon as we started, parties were thrown all over, Club 16, Villa Foch, Chateau Fleury, Tavers (social life is core at INSEAD). There are so many different and interesting people around, that you want to meet them all. In February, the Lowlands week transformed campus to the world of the Dutch and Belgians. Beers and delicacies appeared on the tables of the Belgian dinner while red lights shone over the Dutch final party! It was colorful and full of enthusiasm; I can’t wait to organize the Italian week in June!

There’s always something going on at INSEAD and I believe that one of the best ways to get to know other classmates is travelling together. So far I’ve been to Amsterdam, Chamonix, Champagne while others have travelled to Turkey, Morocco, Portugal, etc. It is a real journey at INSEAD! Stay tuned!

Week 1 at INSEAD just concluded. Finally some time to breathe and blog…

#WeatherUpdate: Some snow with temperature between -5 and 5 degrees C

#FoodUpdate: Salmon is the week’s winner followed by tandoori chicken <food IS a very important part of life at INSEAD… at least my life >

#NerdUpdate: 
We usually have just 3-5 hours of class everyday. It’s the preparation that goes into the readings and assignments before and after class that really tests time-management and prioritisation skills. Most classes have started with the absolute basics (sometimes boring) but I think the pace is going to pick up very rapidly once everyone reaches about the same level (and every professor keeps scaring us about how we just can’t afford to fall behind..sigh!)

I can’t believe I’m writing this but the one class I do find myself looking forward to is Uncertainty, Data and Judgement by Theodoros Evgeniou. Unlike most other Statistics teachers, he UNDERSTANDS that not everyone ‘gets’ numbers and some folks (such as yours truly) really do ‘fear’ them. But simplicity, humor and excellent command of his class clear the cobwebs in my head and help me enjoy the class.

The other class I absolutely love is Organizational Behavior by Roderick Swaab.  We recently climbed Mount Everest in a team-simulation exercise and it brought out amazing aspects about the functioning of our study group.
(Note: The surprise gift we won as the team with the highest score might influence my particular love for this class )

#SocialUpdate:
Last week was Splash and it was a wonderfully rewarding experience. We built a bike-track for a charity that works with differently-abled children in a village about 30 mins from Fontainebleau. It was a cold day. We were a bunch of business students. And we built a proper bridge – from sawing wood, to digging the ground for posts, to setting concrete… even we couldn’t believe how much we’d achieved but I guess that’s the power of teams

Week coming up? Here’s PART of my calendar in terms of social activities, job hunts, daily chores and other stuff beyond academics. As you can imagine, there are many fun if sometimes hard choices to make!

Club Meeting for Women in Business | 13D Women’s Dinner | Social Club dinner: Diamonds! | Career Services Day | Introduction to Entrepreneurship | CV Group Workshop | Energy Talk by a senior partner at BCG | Drinks with Prospective MBA Students | Three ‘Information Meetings’ with people who have jobs I really would love to do | Two house parties | Bank visits | Grocery shopping |

Life feels like a sandwich somedays and I’m down with flu like everyone else in class, but there’s nowhere else I’d rather be

Now there’s an often unconsidered, but life-changing question!

For an Asian city mouse like me, adjusting to Fonty’s food situation was initially disastrous. I’m used to 2AM drive-ins at 24/7 fast food joints, scrumptious hawker fare at rock-bottom prices, and groceries at every corner!

Fonty initially felt like a wasteland! Groceries closed at 7:30PM and even had lunch breaks – yegads! They closed by noon on Sundays – who goes supermarket shopping early Sunday morning anyway?

Most restaurants were pricey with very specific opening and closing times. I remember walking into a pizza place and being told they didn’t open until 7PM. But I was famished at 5PM (in Hong Kong they probably would have opened the restaurant just for me to rake in some extra moolah)! And I had to learn just enough French to squeak by ordering “une carafe d’eau”.

After the first month, the charms started to unravel. I learned of a wonderful farmer’s market open Sunday mornings serving fresh produce, seafood, cheeses, and jams (and paella!). I took up cooking on weekends. I did finance cases with a slice of Emmental and a glass of Riesling. And probably the best discovery ever: I went to Picard and chanced upon duck confit for just 3 Euros!

And here’s something INSEAD doesn’t advertise – the canteen in Fonty is AWESOME. I officially scheduled my life around lunch! And as if to prove how much of a devotee I am, I buy their packed leftovers each weekday for dinner. Who in their right mind has ever had veal au jus with a side of gratinated potatoes for less than 4 Euros? Well, I have now.

So city mice – don’t fret! As with most things here at INSEAD, good things come to those who taste.

I came to Fonty a week before orientation, hoping to buckle down in relative tranquility before classes began. And hoo boy, have I been settling in.

I’ve been to a party, group dinner or celebration every other night – often after a day fraught with campus activities and can’t-miss chores. (Mobile plans, home internet, bank account, rental contract, residence permit docs, groceries – check!) For INSEAD standards, this actually falls disappointingly short! I’ve met people who’ve added business foundations courses, language certifications and exemption exams into the mix. And many more for whom daily dinner and drinks well past midnight wasn’t just a norm but an expectation!

I’ve been a disgruntled sous-chef, pondered the fate of a Belgian airline, was at the cusp of presenting a PE deal to an auditorium of classmates (I have no Finance background and just learned what PE was at that point), and discovered hitherto untapped upper body strength while climbing a 12-foot boulder in Fonty’s freezing forest (with much help, I should add)!

Life truly is more intense at INSEAD. All the things you need to do at a two-year business school, you have to fit into one. Thankfully, there is something about the vibe of the people and the place that elevates your energy in ways you never realized. You are literally buoyed by everyone’s positive attitude, enthusiasm, and willingness to help.

For my sanity, I hope things slow down a wee bit when REAL classes begin. After all, I do have to squeeze in graduating in my list of things to do!

Leaving Paris??
Unlike many of the INSEAD students, we already were living in France before the MBA application process even started, so maybe on first impressions this does not seem such a big adjustment. However, Fontainebleau is 60km south of Paris and mentioning to any lifetime Parisian such a move “to the provinces” raises eyebrows and comments of “But what will you DO there? There’s nothing at all…. ” Thankfully, we do not share this point of view and are rather excited by the change of environment!

Stuff
For us the logistics is about dealing with our possessions, various bits of furniture which have done the rounds themselves already -  between us we have moved to several countries in the past few years with our jobs…
Having tried and failed to convince our landlords to let us sublet our Paris apartment for the year, we had to think quickly. OK, we are moving with all our “stuff”, so should we put it in storage or rent unfurnished? Most of the campus support for renting is understandably for people renting furnished places and for most without even visiting the town beforehand. After a few chats with local agents, we decided to go it alone as we have a good level of French in order to negotiate and put together the inevitable “dossiers” to prove that we are not a risk for the local landlords… after a flurry of visits we settled on the cheapest place of all which has very dodgy entry décor (if anyone visits, please don’t hesitate to laugh!!), but lots of light, a good location and more room than what we were used to in central Paris.

What no water?!!
So just before Christmas, we made the leap after a very stressful Monday when we still didn’t have water or gas and for the first time in my life I learned how to really scream in French until I got service…(postscript : they sent us a refund cheque already to apologise!)

We were probably amongst the first people to get here for the 2012D class, so we were able to go see family and friends over the holidays with all the stress behind us. There are still the remaining boxes to unpack and a few odd noises emanating from the psychologists offices downstairs to figure out, but we are now here (phew) and enjoying discovering the restaurants, the Castle park and finding nice cheese shops and great bakeries to keep our Parisian-acquired tastes happy.

Getting out of Gare de Lyon, in Paris I felt almost like I had been transported back in time 50 years. The magnificent architecture, the cobblestone roads and the narrow winding lanes all spoke of an bygone era. If you have never been to France, the first 30 minutes on being on the streets of Paris can be a truly breathtaking experience. There was a cacophony of horns and people all jumbled together into an incomprehensible song, and my wife and I were just glad to be there. We took a taxi to Fontainebleau, which is an expensive but a highly recommended option when you move there. Our English speaking driver, Lee, who we had booked earlier, welcomed us and made us feel comfortable during the one-hour car ride.

We left the suburbs of Paris and as we neared Fontainebleau, the forest surrounding it looked beautiful even in January. The town itself has its own identity, it’s quieter than Paris and it’s definitely more comfortable with tourists. There are plenty of little lanes, packed with restaurants and boutiques, so the shopaholics need not fear. The Château de Fontainebleau stands out in the middle, and is very prominent with its decorated walls and elaborate staircases.

The first few days were spent getting a phone, signing the lease for the apartment, setting up the bank account and buying groceries from the nearest supermarché. The prerequisite for most of the important things is to get a RIB card and a chequebook from your French bank. This was a relatively painless process for me. Orange seems to be the most preferred 3G provider for phone, internet and TV. Make an effort to speak French with the locals and they will be glad to help you the rest of the way.

The Business Foundations Programme kicked off today, but I will not be attending it. Instead I will be using this time to get familiar with my new home away from home. First impression: This is going to be a memorable year.

This is my first blog entry and it’s a week late because I almost forgot to write it.  Right now, I’m taking the Eurostar back to Paris after a week in the UK.  In the next car, there are some fifty French teenagers returning from an English summer camp, all bristling with excitement for La Rentrée (back to school).  As we all crowded together on the platform waiting to board the train, it suddenly occurred to me that I’m also going back to school…in two days.

A week ago, I thought I’d write my first blog post about some of the stuff that’s been going on inside my head in the last few months, to give a sense of what life is like before starting business school.  For example: (in no particular order) accommodation, job search, pre-readings, visas, insurance, financing, which laptop I should buy or whether I’ll manage to pass that Chinese test for my exit language requirement.  But, as it turns out, I’m just going to have to leave those things for another post, because right now I’m not thinking about any of it.  A profound sense of calm has descended on me in this past week.  As I watch the French countryside rolling by through the window, I find myself wondering whether it might be nice to go on one last Sunday morning bike ride along the Seine, instead of pondering the consequences of the fact that my package for the Business Foundations Programme has been lost in the mail.  I don’t remember ever being this relaxed before.  A short list of my preoccupations over the last decade goes something like this:  law school applications, finding a job after law school, bar exam, clients, clients, clients, financial crisis, clients, clients, clients, business school applications, and then all the stuff I listed at the beginning of this paragraph.

I have no doubt that in a few days, things will revert to their usual frenetic pace.  But until then, it appears that I’m not going to worry about it and I’m certainly not going to write about it.  Next week, I’ll give a full account of the INSEAD Business Foundations Programme August 2011.  I promise, I won’t forget.

This time is special as the campus-switching period has started. After spending 4 months with the same people, our paths are starting to diverge. Some are going to Fontainebleau, some are staying in Singapore. This is one of the unique characteristics of INSEAD: having the possibility of doing the MBA in two totally different but interesting campuses. Next periods will be even “worse” with some people spending 2 months at either Kellogg or Wharton in the US.

Not surprisingly, the mood on campus has been a little bit emotional. Starting one week ago with the traditional “Black or white” Monday, in which everybody on campus had to wear a color according to their P3 destination, the last week has been spent doing a classification of our mates: “See u in P3!”, “See you later in the year!”, “Will I see you again?”. The last category is slightly sad, but because of different priorities for the switch there are quite a few people in that category for me. However, this will also be an excellent excuse to visit one of the more than 80 countries represented at INSEAD!

The week continued with 6 tough final exams for the second period, which made people spend insane hours in the library and break-out rooms (small rooms perfectly suited to study with your group up to 6 people) including the whole weekend. Finally, we had small section-based farewell parties (sponsored by the student fines for arriving late to class and having their mobile phone turned on during class) and the final party including the live performance of the FOMO-Sapiens INSEAD band.

I also felt emotional these days, but my rational side also is giving me quite a few good reasons to be happy and excited about the next period. We are only one third through the program and through this super exciting year. I don’t believe the pace is going to decrease; as a switcher, I’m going to know a new campus, full of new interesting people to meet, and close to one of the most charming cities in the world. We are also starting the elective period so we can tailor the program closer to our tastes and objectives, making it even more appealing.

Although slightly sad for how quick this is going, I gladly welcome P3!