QS EDHEC Business School Scholarship: 2019 Winner

We're pleased to announce that one of the winners of the 2019 QS EDHEC Business School Scholarship is Ivan Ivliev.

The scholarship, offered in partnership with EDHEC Business School for two postgraduate students every year, is worth 50 percent of tuition fees. Applicants must have been successfully admitted into EDHEC Business School for their MiM and MSc programs only. They must also have registered and attended the QS World Grad School Tour. Scholarship applicants must be able to demonstrate strong levels of academic excellence. 

We caught up with Ivan to find out how the scholarship has made a difference to his study plans.

What are you studying and why did you choose EDHEC Business School?

I am studying a master's in Corporate Finance in Banking in Nice, France. While studying my final undergraduate year in Russia, I started thinking about continuing my education abroad. I was looking for a program in corporate finance, which is my topic of interest.

I chose EDHEC because this business school in general and my program particularly are highly rated by international rating agencies such as QS and Financial Times. Although I do not speak French, I was confident about choosing France as a place of living because I had been there previously and was familiar with its people and its culture.

My final reason to choose EDHEC was based on conversations I had with the representative of the business school in Russia, Julia Dubina, who explained to me the benefits of studying at EDHEC.

What do you hope to gain from your degree?

I know I will receive not only theoretical but also practical knowledge here, which will help me in my future career. Besides education, my goal was to enrich my experience by living in a foreign country and interacting with people from different regions of the world in order to understand the difference between Russian culture and European culture.

I believe this knowledge will help me not only in my career but in every aspect of my life since the world is becoming more globalised every day.

In terms of a future career, I am confident this education will give me access to working in Europe, which would be hard to achieve after graduating in Russia.

How did you find the scholarship application process?

After being enrolled at EDHEC, I received a 30 percent discount from the school. However, I was looking for other scholarships as well and QS was the first one I applied to.

The application process for me was quite straightforward. I applied by writing a short essay about myself and my career goals. It was not difficult for me since I was confident why I was applying to EDHEC and what career I was pursuing.

What was your experience of the QS World Grad School Tour like?

I had known QS long before I applied to the scholarship. Since 2018, I have attended several QS World Grad School Tour events in Moscow where I have managed to talk to representatives of different foreign universities and business schools. It helped me understand the basic requirements for my area of interest and ways to prepare for enrolment processes.

I would recommend future attendees of QS events prepare before coming. Usually, the stands are crowded with potential students who ask basic questions. Preparing questions in advance would help you both save your time and show the universities’ representatives your interest in their institution in particular.

What difference has this scholarship made to your life?

My education and living in Nice are fully sponsored by my parents. I am grateful to them for the opportunity to study and live abroad for almost a year.

Without this scholarship I would still be studying in EDHEC, but I am very happy that with this scholarship I have managed to significantly decrease my parents’ expenses on my education.

What advice do you have for other prospective students applying for scholarships?

I believe that appliyng for a scholarship is in many ways similar to applying to a university or a business school. A candidate must show why they are worthy of the scholarship, more so than other potential recipients.

From my point of view, showing your ambition to study at these particular universities by focusing on your concrete personal interests and future goals is important. You must also show your achievements in order to prove you have worked hard to enter the university.