First-Generation Graduate from Martinique Becomes Mason Fellow with the Harvard Kennedy School Mid-Career MC/MPA Program
Our client Emmanuel came to The Art of Applying® with a unique goal: to apply and get into one graduate program: Harvard Kennedy School’s Mid-Career Master in Public Administration (MC/MPA) Program. After a Breakthrough Call with Kaneisha herself, he decided to go all in!
Emmanuel grew up in French-Caribbean Martinique, moving away to become the first college graduate in his family. After pivoting from a Bachelor’s in physics to a graduate degree in business, he joined a private equity fund for infrastructure in Chile and Europe. There, he developed his desire to work in public policy and ended up relocating to Africa through his company to do work on urban resilience.
Reading about this impressive journey, you might be feeling the exact same thing Emmanuel did when he first started looking into the Harvard Kennedy School: imposter syndrome. He explains, “I basically approached this entire journey with what I think a lot of people would call imposter syndrome…you see all those great profiles, those great people with so many accomplishments, and you’re like ‘Oh wow, how would I even compare to those’.” What’s more, last year the Harvard Kennedy School received a record number of applications, making the process all the more intimidating.
In spite of this, Emmanuel knew what he wanted and was ready to commit to his plan. He connected with one of those amazing Harvard Kennedy School alumni to find out that, when faced with a similar struggle, they turned to The Art of Applying® to get the extra support they needed.
After listening to Emmanuel’s story, those HKS grads told him this about working with The Art of Applying®: “I know that you think that you might be able to do it on your own, but everybody needs a little help. So don’t hesitate, and just go for it! Save yourself time…and just go for it!”
When Emmanuel was ready to make the investment in Hourly Coaching, his wife was understandably a little hesitant about spending money for help with his application. Here’s what Emmanuel said to convince her of it after his Breakthrough Call, “It basically allows you to get the necessary bandwidth to deliver on all that you have to deliver. This application is pretty demanding, you have to dig into all the corners of your life, take that out, and expose it to the admission committee in a way that would be…appealing to them. So it takes time, it takes a lot of thinking, a lot of posing and iteration with your consultant to make sure you get to that point where you’re satisfied with what you’ve produced.”
He’ll never forget how good it felt to submit his application: “I was like, You know what? If the road ends here, that’s fine. I’m good. Because, what I’ve been able to accomplish just by preparing that application was already something great. And then, you know, the rest is history.”
And after all of his hard work over six months, it all paid off handsomely with an acceptance to the Harvard Kennedy School Mid-Career Master in Public Administration (MC/MPA) Program as a Mason Fellow. Congratulations, Emmanuel!
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Start Date: July 2020 | End Date: December 2020
Applicant Information
- Age: 36
- Work experience: Private equity fund for infrastructure in Chile, Europe, and Africa
- Undergraduate major: Physics
- Masters: Business School
Acceptances:
- Harvard Kennedy School Mid-Career Master in Public Administration (MC/MPA)
Notable Quotes
How a 90-minute Breakthrough Call with Kaneisha led Emmanuel to take the leap with The Art of Applying®:
“During the Breakthrough Call, I didn’t have any specific expectation.. but then the result of that was pretty mind-blowing, in the sense that I think I saw and I understood that there was a way to actually frame my story in order to make it more powerful. And I think the alignment I had after the Breakthrough Call was this: Kaneisha basically took all the bits and pieces that I was throwing at her and then rearranged everything into something that’s consistent.”
Emmanuel on his decision to invest in Hourly Coaching instead of the Application Accelerator®:
“There’s the pressure, because you’re not sure what the outcome’s going to be. But I think to cope with that, and to mitigate that, the feeling I had after the Breakthrough Call basically told me ‘No, there’s definitely something important to explore and develop there.’ I decided that I would…go with hourly coaching because I knew already that I had valuable experiences that could be interesting for the school. I needed some help in basically putting them into motion, in something that would be coherent…and powerful.
Emmanuel’s words to someone who might be wondering if they can take the leap, overcome the challenges, and get into their dream school:
“You’ll never regret betting on yourself. You are special. Just find what makes you special and try to get it out there. That’s the basis for everything, and the rest takes care of itself. If it’s money, then perhaps allow yourself some time to be more prepared. As a foreign student, you have to be aware that if you’re not a green-card holder then you have to go through that financial certification process. So on the budget standpoint, make sure you’re covered. Find the right support system to tell your story and put it out there.”
Are you ready to put your story out there?If you feel the same way Emmanuel did, like you need someone to help you frame your own unique journey in a coherent and compelling way, we’re here to help. Book a Quick Call with our team today to see if we can help!
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