How studying an MBA in Barcelona accelerated my career

Living abroad is nothing new for Matthieu Jarrett. Speaking five languages, he has lived in Jamaica, the US and France, before deciding to pursue an MBA in Barcelona, at Esade Business School.

So what led him to Spain?

Right after completing his Bachelor’s in Finance at Indiana University, Matthieu landed a job in Los Angeles at the prestigious Bank of America. “A very cool job to get right out of undergrad,” he says.

He worked there for more than three years, progressing to become a global transaction services associate. In this role, Matthieu helped mid-size businesses manage their cash, and worked directly with CFOs (chief financial officers) to help them invest company funds to maximize returns.

Matthieu says he loved directly interacting with business leaders, and working with teams around the world. He developed a strong understanding of core business operations, how to run a business, lending, and what it takes to work at a major bank.

As his role evolved, it naturally became more strategic. Soon he was helping business leaders think about their future capital allocation. This aspect of finance that excited him and led him to decide that an MBA focused on business strategy and corporate finance would help him to further advance his career.

Choosing the right business school 

Choosing his best-fit business school was Matthieu’s first step towards his MBA. With his international background, he liked the idea of studying abroad—but still needed to decide where. “I was a little biased, coming from Los Angeles which is very sunny, warm, and cosmopolitan, with good blend of cultures and industries,” he says. 

Matthieu narrowed his decision down to Spain or France, after being accepted to several highly ranked programs. “I felt Barcelona had a similar blend [to LA]. There's media, finance, and so many events going on. It’s a fun place to be,” he explains.

There were several schools to choose from in Barcelona, but he says Esade’s excellent ranking (seventh globally according to the most recent Financial Times Global MBA rankings), combined with the school’s welcoming, supportive approach, and the program’s flexibility and value for money, made it the perfect choice for him.

Matthieu describes Esade as a “school of innovation”, with a strong reputation in entrepreneurship and technology.

Despite his confidence in his choice, he was still apprehensive before joining the program. “It's a big deal to pack up your bags, cross the Atlantic and leave your good job to do an MBA,” he says. Matthieu wondered how an education in Spain would compare with the United States and was anxious about the language barrier, rating his Spanish as “6.5 out of 10 on a good day”.

Once Matthieu arrived and started meeting people, his concerns quickly faded. “I found that the Spaniards are so warm. Barcelona is such a friendly city. And as an expat too, they're putting in so many good measures for work and incentives, so I was very happy,” he says.

Day-to-day life at Esade

Esade certainly lived up to Matthieu’s expectations. During his program, Matthieu greatly valued the cohort size of around 180 students, which is significantly smaller than some other schools. “I knew by name every single person in my cohort,” he says. The cohort was split into groups of 60, which were rotated over the terms of the program.

The school’s professors come from all around the world: Spain, of course, but also Eastern Europe, Latin America, and North America. The students were similarly diverse, with varied careers and backgrounds. “You've got someone that was working in sovereign wealth fund in the Middle East, someone who was an engineer in Brazil during economic crises, and then someone from India, who was working in the IT sector,” he explains.

“The blend was really cool, and the classroom was a way for people just to vocalize their lived experience,” he adds.

During the program, Matthieu completed several capstone projects, where student teams ‘match’ with companies. “It’s a blind bid, so you don't know the name of the company, but you are given a brief description,” he says.

In one project, Matthieu worked with an insurance company, helping it to develop a cyber security strategy for a new insurance product. Twenty students were split into groups of four, with each team coming up with its own solution and pitch deck. In the end, all of the teams came together, synthesized the best insights, and then presented in front of the company’s management team. “It was a riveting journey,” says Matthieu.

When Matthieu wasn’t studying, he loved joining meetups, experiencing Barcelona’s different music events, and attending sustainability conferences. He was never short on things to do—with opportunities to go hiking in the mountains when he wanted a break from city life.

Leveraging Esade’s careers support

While there were plenty of opportunities to have fun and explore personal interests, the Esade program was still highly career-focused. At the beginning of the program, the careers team assess students’ interests and what they’d like to learn more about. Then there are more formal Career Acceleration Programs (CAPs), which offer students the chance to speak directly with industry experts, explore sectors, and ask for tips on how to break in.

“I found those mainly helpful for my network,” he says. “Just getting in front of those professionals, you build those connections. Later in the program, when the busyness has died down a bit, you have someone that you can reach out to.”

Matthieu’s program finished in October, a level of flexibility he says was a huge advantage compared with more rigid two‑year MBAs. Since then, he has been co-authoring a business case with Esade professor Dimo Ringov, who teaches International Business Strategy. The case focuses on TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company), looking at the semiconductor value chain, as well as internationalization, geopolitics, and the role of semiconductors in enabling AI.

In the longer term, he hopes to combine his previous banking experience knowledge with his MBA in a role that combines business strategy and finance, and then further down the road really lean into a more international career path. “That's kind of my specialty,” he says.

Matthieu’s advice to anyone considering an MBA abroad is simple: be open‑minded and willing to take the risk of studying somewhere new, even if it means moving far from home. “Esade really does a good job of being warm and welcoming. It is a school of innovation,” he says, adding: “They’re really pushing you to grow – and they want people who are hungry to learn.”