HEC Paris is one of France’s elite and highly competitive Grande Écoles, offering an MBA ranked among the best in Europe in 2022, according to the Financial Times.
As one of Europe’s top MBAs, the program draws in a diverse crowd—94% of students are international. They’re drawn to the potential career impact of graduating from the program. Among the class of 2021, 93% of HEC Paris MBAs accepted job offers within three months of graduation.
So, what kind of opportunities are open to an HEC Paris MBA grad? We took a look at the class of 2021 employment report to find out.
Companies hiring HEC Paris MBAs
Top MBA employers including the Big Three consulting firms of Bain & Company, McKinsey & Company, and Boston Consulting Group (BCG), hired HEC Paris MBAs in 2021. Other big recruiters included Amazon, Deloitte, PWC, and EY. HEC Paris has a reputation for luxury, which helped students secure roles with top brands including Kearney and LVMH.
HEC Paris MBAs flocked to technology jobs in 2021. Tech was the most popular industry by some margin, with 36% of students securing roles in the sector. This follows a growing trend across the globe's business schools with technology becoming increasingly popular.
Alongside tech, finance is another top sector for MBAs, with many of the world’s largest banks hiring from top b-school cohorts. In 2021, it was the second most popular industry as 17% of students landed finance roles.
Consulting—the top industry for the last cohort of HEC Paris MBAs—was the third most popular sector with 16% of grads landing jobs with consulting firms.
HEC Paris’ focus on luxury saw 9% of students secure roles in retail and luxury, while a further 5% went into the healthcare sector. A total of 4% of students found roles in government or with nonprofits, while 3% took jobs in the manufacturing, consumer packaged goods, and energy industries, respectively.
Many of these new roles represented a career change for the class of 2021. As many as 79% of students changed sectors from their pre-MBA jobs, while 67% changed their function and 62% changed location.
The infamous triple jump—changing all three—was achieved by 40% of the class.
HEC Paris MBA class profile
Average HEC Paris MBA salaries
Salaries are a huge factor in applying to business school. The BusinessBecause 2022 Cost of MBA Report found a top MBA costs $189,00 on average; for that price you want to make sure you’ll get a good return on your investment.
At HEC Paris, MBA graduates earn mean salaries of around $128,000, with an added sign on bonus of around $18,000. The average MBA grad at HEC Paris doubled their pre-MBA salary in 2021.
Grads earned huge salaries across a range of industries. Technology grads earned mean salaries of around $136,000. Graduates in healthcare were also top earners, with salaries of approximately $135,000, while manufacturing grads earned around $130,000.
The highest earning student in the class of 2021 worked in consulting, earning a huge salary of around $384,000.
Across the remaining big three MBA industries, the mean salaries of consulting graduates were $130,000 and for finance grads salaries were around $117,000. Energy graduates earned around $118,000, while grads in consumer packaged goods earned around $101,000.
Retail and government or nonprofit graduates earned mean salaries of around $89,000 and $86,000.
Salaries also varied by region. Graduates who left France to work in the Middle East earned mean salaries of around $192,000. For those who worked in the US, salaries averaged at around $160,000.
Graduates working in Africa earned mean salaries of $114,000, and graduates who stayed in France earned mean salaries of $98,000.
HEC Paris MBA job destinations
Class of 2021 grads from the HEC Paris MBA landed jobs across the globe. Many stayed in Europe after graduation, with 23% landing jobs in France and a further 42% securing roles across the rest of Europe.
Asia and Oceania were also popular destinations, with 18% of grads landing jobs there. Graduates also landed top roles in the Middle East, the US, and Latin America.
HEC Paris MBA success story
Enrolling in the HEC Paris MBA gives you the chance to earn a huge salary at some of the world’s largest companies, it can also help you become an entrepreneur. It’s estimated that 25% of HEC Paris MBA students go on to launch their own businesses after graduation.
Hilary Matson used the HEC Paris MBA to pivot from her eight-year career with Amazon to launch Yūgen Earthside, a sustainable travel startup.
The MBA helped Hilary gather the expertise she needed as she developed her business plan during the program’s entrepreneurship track. “By the time I graduated, all the theoretical business planning and market research was done,” she says.
She also made connections she could use throughout the various stages of launching her startup. “One of my classmates designed the company logo, another classmate is a regular content contributor to our blog, and other classmates have been interns,” she says.
“I have to give a lot of credit to the MBA.”
Who is the HEC Paris MBA for?
If you’re an international candidate looking to switch locations, then HEC Paris is a great option for your MBA. In fact: if you’re looking to change any aspect of your career, whether that be location, industry, or function, the number of students who achieve this after the program shows this is a top degree for career switchers.
It’s also a program with appeal beyond the more traditional MBA industries of consulting, tech, and finance. With top earners working in healthcare and manufacturing, this is a course to consider if you want a wide array of career options.
Enrolling in this top-ranked program will introduce you to a diverse and international cohort and give you equally diverse and international career options when it comes to graduation.
I have met the most competent and diverse batch in this school. These people not only thrive on their own but also makes sure that you are doing it with them. The professors will take your had and walk you through all milestones and make sure you are not left behind. I have found their extracurriculars extremely engaging. There was always a room to have social life after academic life. The only hindrance is the location of the school, it is slightly outside city and living in city is expensive.
Sarah
Verified
18/03/2022
On Campus
Internationality and diversity of opportunities
About my programme I would say it is very international and flexible: we have the opportunity to choose exactly the courses we want. But at the same time, the frame of the campus is crucial in students' life and enable us to create friendships.
Student
Verified
29/10/2021
On Campus
Great selection of people
While HEC's MBA is highly selective, I really enjoy the type of people HEC's selects to make sure everybody gets the best out of their MBA experience and networking opportunities. Not only it's an incredibly diverse pool of people (~60 nationalities) but most importantly they make sure to let in friendly empathic and curious people.
Veronique
Verified
28/10/2021
Blended
Best in France for Grande ecole
A prestigious business school. Languages are important. It is better to have a scientific baccalaureate with excellent grades in high school and good assessments.
The courses are well designed as per the latest trends and practicality of learning in stressed upon. Overall, a very good experience.
Ghadi
Verified
11/06/2022
On Campus
Diversity and quality of fellow students
Very international and interesting place to be and opens a lot of opportunities, however the administration is very french and facilities are subpar (gym, classrooms) meaning the academic affairs is pretty much useless and lastly we are graded on a curve which can create a toxic environment because of the competition. With that being said the pros outweighs the cons by far.
Student
Verified
27/03/2022
On Campus
The quality of the teachers, the campus, the clubs
The school is very international indeed, we have courses with international students and share things with them within the extra academic life (in the social clubs especially). We have great career prospects if we prepare ourselves well - however, the global curriculum is still very finance-oriented, which is a pity for other interesting domains of the company world, which does not rely on finance only. The social clubs are good practice for the management and for now, are quite independent.
Lb
Verified
26/03/2022
On Campus
HEC Paris awaits you
HEC Paris is really a nice place to do a master's in business. Many classes are useful and interesting (corporate finance, financial accounting, contract law…), some are less - but the curriculum is to be reviewed in the year to come. Regarding the student life, it is incredible, with about 130 clubs, lots of great parties with even greater people. The Jouy campus offers a lot of opportunities to do sports, and you can breathe fresh air every day. HEC also helps a great deal to find an internship or a job.
Rajarshi
Verified
28/10/2021
Blended
A dream institute
Enrolling in the HEC MBA was by far the best decision I made for myself. The people and faculty are great, with lots of opportunities to meet people and expand your horizons. Very nice campus where I have had some good running sessions.
The alumni network is superb and very helpful. It also has a good support system for entrepreneurs. Would definitely recommend it!
Student
Verified
19/10/2021
On Campus
Good choice for a career boost
The classes were extremely practical and relevant to the current challenges that businesses are facing. You have access to a wide range of professionals and good career prospects once you leave the university.
Student
Verified
7/07/2022
On Campus
Cultural experience
I have met the most competent and diverse batch in this school. These people not only thrive on their own but also makes sure that you are doing it with them. The professors will take your had and walk you through all milestones and make sure you are not left behind. I have found their extracurriculars extremely engaging. There was always a room to have social life after academic life. The only hindrance is the location of the school, it is slightly outside city and living in city is expensive.
Sarah
Verified
18/03/2022
On Campus
Internationality and diversity of opportunities
About my programme I would say it is very international and flexible: we have the opportunity to choose exactly the courses we want. But at the same time, the frame of the campus is crucial in students' life and enable us to create friendships.
Student
Verified
29/10/2021
On Campus
Great selection of people
While HEC's MBA is highly selective, I really enjoy the type of people HEC's selects to make sure everybody gets the best out of their MBA experience and networking opportunities. Not only it's an incredibly diverse pool of people (~60 nationalities) but most importantly they make sure to let in friendly empathic and curious people.
Veronique
Verified
28/10/2021
Blended
Best in France for Grande ecole
A prestigious business school. Languages are important. It is better to have a scientific baccalaureate with excellent grades in high school and good assessments.
The courses are well designed as per the latest trends and practicality of learning in stressed upon. Overall, a very good experience.
Ghadi
Verified
11/06/2022
On Campus
Diversity and quality of fellow students
Very international and interesting place to be and opens a lot of opportunities, however the administration is very french and facilities are subpar (gym, classrooms) meaning the academic affairs is pretty much useless and lastly we are graded on a curve which can create a toxic environment because of the competition. With that being said the pros outweighs the cons by far.
Student
Verified
27/03/2022
On Campus
The quality of the teachers, the campus, the clubs
The school is very international indeed, we have courses with international students and share things with them within the extra academic life (in the social clubs especially). We have great career prospects if we prepare ourselves well - however, the global curriculum is still very finance-oriented, which is a pity for other interesting domains of the company world, which does not rely on finance only. The social clubs are good practice for the management and for now, are quite independent.
Lb
Verified
26/03/2022
On Campus
HEC Paris awaits you
HEC Paris is really a nice place to do a master's in business. Many classes are useful and interesting (corporate finance, financial accounting, contract law…), some are less - but the curriculum is to be reviewed in the year to come. Regarding the student life, it is incredible, with about 130 clubs, lots of great parties with even greater people. The Jouy campus offers a lot of opportunities to do sports, and you can breathe fresh air every day. HEC also helps a great deal to find an internship or a job.
Rajarshi
Verified
28/10/2021
Blended
A dream institute
Enrolling in the HEC MBA was by far the best decision I made for myself. The people and faculty are great, with lots of opportunities to meet people and expand your horizons. Very nice campus where I have had some good running sessions.
The alumni network is superb and very helpful. It also has a good support system for entrepreneurs. Would definitely recommend it!
Student
Verified
19/10/2021
On Campus
Good choice for a career boost
The classes were extremely practical and relevant to the current challenges that businesses are facing. You have access to a wide range of professionals and good career prospects once you leave the university.
