MBA Student Profile: Alexis Ari, University of Cambridge

Alexis Ari tells us why she believes her MBA degree from the University of Cambridge is her passport to her dreams.

1. What were you doing before your MBA?

I have been working in Investment Banking during five years, essentially with Merrill Lynch and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein in London, focusing on Mergers and Acquisitions across a wide range of industries and countries.      

2. What were your main reasons for deciding to attend business school?

I wanted to expand the scope of my horizon! I believe the MBA is instrumental to succeed in a career shift when you want to build upon your skills to find a new challenge.      

3. What research did you undertake in selecting your school?

I went to MBA fairs, which provide with the opportunity to meet with alumni of the leading schools worldwide, and ask any question while getting a feeling for the specific culture of each MBA programme.

Then I scrolled through the web site to get more precise information about the programme, the electives essential to customise my MBA, the faculty and also the students diary!      

4. What were the main criteria in your selection?

A strong brand name, a very international mix of classmates, the cost of the programme, the specificities of the business school.

Many people rely exclusively on the various rankings published regularly in business magazines. These are to be used as nothing more than a validation of the other criteria as their fabrication is rather opaque, and they are usually based on past data so do not reflect the future potential of the class!      

5. Why did you decide to study either in your own country or overseas?

I decided to study overseas rather than in my own country - which by the way offers some of the leading MBA programmes in the world! - because I am convinced that an essential part of the MBA experience is to be in a new cultural environment, on top of being in a class which mixes thirty to forty nationalities.      

6. How well do your think the MBA is regarded in your home country?

Cambridge is an incredibly strong brand name which is known worldwide, even in the most remote locations. The best proof of this is the variety of nationalities I interact with in my class! I think that, in any European country, an MBA is a synonym of excellence.      

7. How are you financing your studies?

I have decided to finance it myself, using my savings as I consider that the best investment I can do is in myself! Furthermore, this ensures that I am fully committed to succeed in my studies and to earn a significant return on my investment.

8. Have you already been, or do you intend to become an entrepreneur?

I have never been an entrepreneur, but I think the MBA is providing me with a set of skills and ideas that would enable me to take this route, tapping into the pool of talents around me to set up a team and start a new venture.

9. How much do you expect to earn on graduation?

I would expect to earn a salary within the range of 50,000 - 70,000 depending on the type of job. I personally am not driven by the salary but rather by the type of job you can apply to following the MBA. The MBA experience is so much more than just aiming at a salary increase!      

10. What do you expect to do on graduation and where do you expect to be based?

I expect to build upon my previous experience and skills set, so I am discussing with venture capitalists, strategic consultants, investment banks.

I am happy to be based anywhere in Europe, but also would consider moving to Asia.      

11. How easy or difficult do you expect it to be to achieve these objectives?

I think the MBA is a passport to get there! It opens the doors for many opportunities, you just have to be willing and capable to seize them!