Tetyana Nikitina
Summer Student Story
If you are looking for the best two weeks of your life with a deep dive into topics you are passionate about and an intense international social life - then HEC Summer School is for you!
I decided to participate in the M&A summer program while I was working in an international M&A boutique in order to deepen my understanding and topic knowledge and improve my technical skills. I was also hoping to extend my network with more like-minded people. These two weeks at Summer School exceeded all my expectations.
First of all, the course was taught by three professors, all working in the industry, so every topic was backed by a real-life case or example. And what I truly found amazing is that each professor was really focused on ensuring that you understand. The goal was not to cover a topic and quickly move on; it was explained in a way for participants to really 'get it', not just learning formulas by heart but actually understanding what each number means, where it comes from, what it is used for and what it tells us about the business of the company. Coming from the M&A industry as a junior analyst, due to the time pressure you often don't get enough time to go beyond the technical stuff, to actually think and understand everything. This program gives you the ability to think and analyze in depth 'what' you are doing and most importantly 'why'.
In addition, this is the place to find like-minded people who share the same passion as you do; since the program is not mandatory, only people who are actually interested in the topic choose to participate. This makes it a great environment to study. This summer we had more than 70 nationalities, which made it so interesting to meet new people and make new friends. I honestly have never seen in my life such a high saturation of interesting people, each very unique with a different story. And since you all share the same interests and are approximately the same age, in 2 weeks you become one big international family! There are also a wide range of activities on campus such as the Wine & Cheese tasting, international picnics or beach volleyball, with a weekend trip to Paris and an afternoon trip to Versailles - you get a colorful 2 weeks!
I am really glad that I had the opportunity to participate in this summer school program. As one of my friends from the M&A program said: "The best decision I made this summer was to participate in this M&A summer school!". I second that!