New MBA Scholarship Reaches Out to Women Leaders from Underprivileged Backgrounds
France’s most prestigious business school has kickstarted its search for candidates to HEC’s brand new Laidlaw Foundation Scholarship. This scholarship for the MBA program is supported by both the HEC and Laidlaw foundations. This rewards exceptional women leaders living in underprivileged environments. The annual scholarship drive begins to examine candidates next month, March, hoping to unearth 10 remarkable talents who face financial barriers in applying to one of the world’s best MBA programs.
“Over the past years, we have been trying to widen our net, to incorporate institutions like HEC. This will help propel the careers forward of these remarkable women who are hampered by socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.” Susannah Kempe, Chief Executive of the Laidlaw Foundation smiles and points to the Pavillon Dauphine auditorium where HEC Paris is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the introduction of women students into its fold. “This event reflects the spirit we’re looking forward to enhancing with this scholarship. I met the school’s Dean, Eloïc Peyrache, and I immediately saw that our objectives are aligned: He’s all about equality, about addressing social injustice. I saw a kindred spirit and I thought, his team will be a safe guardian of the scholarships. So, that’s how we ended up doing it here. HEC is a great addition to our Women in Business Scholarship program.”
The festive gathering in November 2023, organized by the HEC We&Men club, was indeed an appropriate setting to discuss this landmark program. It marked HEC’s growing commitment to women leadership and equal opportunity across economic, social and geographical divides. The Laidlaw Foundation has been funding a Women’s Movement at London Business School and Oxford University’s Saïd Business School for many years: “But we wanted to be sure that women in continental Europe had equal opportunities to advance their careers and so we looked for a fantastic partner there too” continues Kempe. "In addition to the business school scholarships, the Foundation funds undergraduate Leadership and Research scholarships so HEC scholars will join a cohort of about 2,500 current and alumni scholars at 19 partner universities, young people who are passionate about ethical leadership, and really want to make a difference in the world.”
Surviving Extraordinary Hardships to Reach the MBA
HEC is thus the third European business school to join the program. LBS and Saïd credit their partnerships with helping them to reach milestones in gender parity. “They are recruiting thanks to their alumni identifying strong candidates, running information sessions, promoting the program on social media and partnering with women’s organizations,” explains Kempe. “Approaches I know HEC is using.” As a result, the women have eclectic backgrounds with strong leadership qualities, often forged in terrible social and political conditions. “Some have overcome the most extraordinary hardships to make it to the program.” Kempe singles out Naveen Kler as an example of success: “She is a strong woman from the British Asian community who overcame innumerable social and cultural challenges just to be in a position to receive a Laidlaw Scholarship at LBS. Naveen is now at McKinsey and, I am delighted to say, a Trustee of the Laidlaw Foundation. She mentors and runs workshops for current scholars, already paying her scholarship forward in so many ways.”
According to Kempe, around 60% of the Laidlaw-backed scholars are the first generation in their family to go to university at all: “We have many scholars who are refugees, or have been in care as children, or from families which have faced bankruptcy. All of them are going on to reach great professional positions and are achieving wonderful things.”
HEC Foundation Also Backing the Scholarship
Equally involved in the support and promotion of the MBA scholarship with Laidlaw is the school’s foundation. “We are delighted to open this opportunity to outstanding women who possess the drive, resilience and determination to overcome obstacles and achieve their goals,” says the foundation president, Olivier Sevillia. “As an alumni of the MBA program myself, I understand the transformative impact of this program, making this initiative particularly meaningful to me.”
The inaugural Laidlaw Scholars Program will see six chosen candidates arrive in the September MBA intake, followed by a further four in January 2025. “But they all graduate at the same time despite having different courses,” says Sara Vanos, Executive Director of Marketing & Admissions for the MBA Programs at HEC Paris. “The first step for those interested in applying is to connect with us and tell us about your background. There’s no one-size fits so, please, reach out for advice, be curious, this could be a life-changer for women leaders that HEC and, more generally, the world needs!”
This joint HEC Foundation-Laidlaw Foundation-HEC scholarship comes just a couple years after the business school launched its ambitious Imagine program. The latter is designed for Master students and aims to shape an ecosystem for business and peace on the campus and beyond. An ambition which fits hand in glove with the objectives of the Laidlaw Scholars Program.