Marius Stitz
Summer Student Story
The program was hands-on and fast-paced, exploring how real marketers make decisions and handle trade-offs. The centerpiece was building a complete marketing strategy for an actual start-up and pitching it to the founders.
As a psychology student, I understand human decision-making but what I lacked was the business context - how companies and markets work. I want to help organizations make choices that are better for people, the planet, and performance. I found the missing piece of the puzzle in HEC Paris’s Strategic Marketing & Branding Summer Program. On top of that, it enabled me to determine if the HEC Paris Master in Management (MiM) is the right next step for me.
This two-week Summer Program became my perfect tryout - could I thrive in a business school without a business background? It let me deepen my skills in a real business context and get an authentic feel for the campus, pedagogy, and community before applying to the MiM.
From day one, the program was hands-on and fast-paced. Professor Gachoucha Kretz brought in a different practitioner each day, many of them HEC alumni now in senior marketing roles. Rather than stopping at frameworks, we learned how real marketers make decisions and handle trade-offs, drawing on their lived experience. The centerpiece was building a complete marketing strategy for an HEC startup and pitching it to the founders. By constantly putting ourselves in the founders’ shoes, we applied each day’s learning directly to our case. The experience contrasted with the theory-first style I know from Germany - still rigorous but grounded in practice.
The highlight came when the founders and Prof. Kretz awarded first prize to our team’s pitch. It was both motivating and validating, strengthening my academic plan and showcasing the value my psychology background brings.
The academic dimension was rich, but the people defined the experience. One moment stands out: at a barbecue, three classmates and I fell into a casual conversation and realized we came from four different continents. On paper, we could not have looked more different; in conversation, we laughed at the same jokes, chased the same ambition to make an impact, and even shared similar worries. I realized that far more unites us than divides us.
I recommend this summer school to anyone who wants to try out a world-leading business school or excel in one focused topic at a high level. In my case, I deepened strategic marketing with Professor Gachoucha Kretz, academic director of HEC’s top-ranked Master in Marketing, while working on a live startup case. The program also served well as my tryout: after two weeks on campus, I left confident that the HEC Master in Management is my next step. If you come from a non-business background, all the more reason to apply. Bring your expertise - HEC Paris values diverse paths, and your perspective will enrich every team.