How I landed an MBA internship at L'Oréal

Harivansh Gahlot is one of the youngest candidates in his cohort at HEC Paris, starting his MBA at just 24 years old.

Yet his age is by no means a reflection of his business experience. With four years of strategy consulting under his belt, including running his own edtech start-up, Harivansh was well-equipped to take on the demands of an MBA at one of France’s top business schools.

Harivansh has recently faced a new challenge, taking on a prestigious internship at L’Oréal, where he now works in sustainability strategy.

Securing an internship at L’Oréal is notoriously competitive, but Harivansh believes his HEC Paris MBA gave him an “unfair advantage”—due to the school’s reputation, extensive network, and access to high-caliber professionals.

“The ex-CEO of L’Oréal, John Paul Agon, attended HEC Paris and even came to the campus to talk about the company’s strategy,” says Harivansh. “Now that I’m working at L’Oréal, I can actually see this happening.”

The HEC Paris experience

Harivansh (pictured right) was previously working in consulting in Delhi, India, but knew he wanted to attempt a ‘triple jump’—changing role, location and industry. For this, an MBA felt like the natural best step to make this transition in his career.

“I wanted to do an MBA by the time I turned 25,” he says. “I believe it’s important to have a strong foundation while you’re still pretty fresh in the workforce, so that you can have the knowledge you’ll need to implement in business.”

Before business school, much of Harivansh’s experience was focused on creating strategies for clients. Through an MBA, he hoped to move into a role where he could execute these strategies. He also liked the idea of working in Europe, learning French as a third language while growing up in India.

HEC had an excellent global reputation, and Harivansh believed it would increase his credibility as he progressed in his career.

“They call HEC the Harvard of France,” he says. “If you study there, it opens avenues to you.”

The teaching style was another factor that stood out to him. Harivansh was drawn to HEC Paris’ focus on soft skills and business simulations, allowing him to learn technical skills before applying them to a practical situation.

Harivansh was impressed with the serious nature of the MBA program, explaining that while the program can be demanding, it can help you achieve great things. In his case, a competitive L’Oréal internship, followed by a six-month exchange program at Yale University in the US.

“Not a lot of people get both of these opportunities, and I’m so happy I’m able to make what I want of my MBA,” he says.

Applying for an MBA internship at L’Oréal

HEC Paris’ new tagline is ‘Dare the Impossible’—a mindset that Harivansh found empowering when going after his dream internship.

“Daring is really important, because when you're in a foreign country, you will feel intimidated, you will feel overwhelmed,” he says, “but it’s part of the process.”

Harivansh highlights three things that helped him land his internship at L’Oréal: accepting uncertainty, having confidence in his abilities, and prioritization.

“It’s not like I applied for one internship and got it,” he says, recalling the comprehensive application process which included an exam, interview and CV round. “My priorities were finding a job, integrating into French society, and learning the language and culture.”

Having decided on his priorities early on, Harivansh was able to plan ahead of internship deadlines. L’Oréal, for example, had opened its internship applications before the MBA program started. By the time the company then visited the HEC campus, Harivansh had applied for the position.

“It’s really important that you are very clear about what you want to make of your MBA, before you even get to campus,” he advises.

Having previously worked with beauty clients during his consulting experience, Harivansh was interested in gaining experience within the industry itself.

To help him prepare, HEC Talents, the school’s career center, offered him personalized career advice, helping with his resume, interview preparation, and general strategy. These careers sessions are a compulsory part of the curriculum, so every student will benefit from individualized mentorship to help them achieve their post-MBA career goals.

“Not everyone has these types of advantages”, he says, “but if they do, they should leverage them.”

Staying in France after an MBA

During his internship at L’Oréal, Harivansh is helping to build an AI tool and shape the company’s sustainability strategy.

“If it works out, we’re going to scale it for the whole company, which is a huge thing for a young intern to be entrusted with,” he says.

One of the biggest surprises during his MBA was realizing how much he enjoys AI as a creative business tool.

“I don’t have a tech background, but they taught us AI so well and now I’m applying it every day in my job, which has been revolutionary,” he says. “At HEC, they taught us that you can be creative and still like AI”.

Harivansh says the MBA experience helped broaden his horizons, introducing him to new companies and career paths he was unaware of.

Looking ahead, he hopes to stay in France after completing his MBA and an upcoming exchange at Yale, pursuing a strategy-led role that weaves together AI, innovation and sustainability. He would like this to be in a leading European company like L’Oréal. Then, his triple jump will be complete.