How our Full-time MBA lets you "live several lives" in one 15-month program

Having lived and worked in India, the USA, and now Germany, Full-time MBA student Roshni Dutta, Class of 2027, is no stranger to making an international impact. Yet, her time at ESMT Berlin is standing out, thanks in no small part to the diversity and breadth of her cohort.

In this blog, Roshni explains some of her Full-time MBA (FTMBA) highlights so far, including a campus that both blew her away and offered moments of calm, and the summer internship that has seen her move (temporarily) to Stuttgart to work for Mercedes-Benz.

She also explains how the unique dynamics of her cohort help shape her ESMT experience, and how studying in a program where the majority of students are women "makes the class such an inviting place to be because you are always heard."

Hi Roshni, please introduce yourself: why did you choose to study at ESMT and why the Full-time MBA (FTMBA) program in particular?

"I think the tipping point was when I came to visit the school...I saw one of the auditoriums and was frankly blown away. I could see myself sitting there and attending classes."

Hello! I am Roshni, currently a Full-time MBA student. I am born and brought up in Kolkata, India. I went to the US for my bachelor's, where I majored in business with a concentration in strategy. I also did a master's program there in marketing analytics. I have worked in India and the US. And now I am in Berlin!

As an international student, I didn’t really have an option to study part-time if I wanted to move to another country. So, I started my research with some of the top schools for a full-time MBA, in countries I would love to move to in the EU. That is when I found out about ESMT Berlin. 

Some of the highlights were that the Full-time MBA at ESMT was extremely diverse, had smaller cohorts, and had an amazing location. That was just the starting point. The more I spoke to the admissions team and the students, the more I liked the school. 

I think the tipping point was when I came to visit the school – unfortunately in the dead time of August – I saw one of the auditoriums and was frankly blown away. I could see myself sitting there and attending classes. After the visit, I kept a keen eye on when the applications opened, and I am pretty sure I was one of the first applications for my cohort! 

What is it like studying at ESMT? What is your favorite place on campus?

Studying at ESMT is honestly quite comparable to my experience in college in the US. Every lecture is a discussion, and no matter what your viewpoint is, you are allowed to speak up and bring it forth. I love the rich discussions we have in class, and learning about experiences that I had no idea even existed. 

My favorite place? Good question. I think my favorite place on campus is the garden. It truly gives us a lot of respite when we have back-to-back classes. Also, for me touching grass (literally) eases my anxiety, so it is a great spot to be in.

Your cohort is deliberately diverse: 91% have an international background and 54% are women. How does this shape your business school experience?

"I tell EVERY single prospective student I talk to about it. It is exactly what an MBA should be!"

Yes! This is my absolute favorite fact about our cohort. I tell EVERY single prospective student I talk to about it. It is exactly what an MBA should be! This diversity of thought and experiences teaches every single one of us so much more than textbooks ever can. 

Don’t get me started about the women majority. It makes the class such an inviting place to be because you are always heard. Moreover, the girls always stand up for each other. There is a very warm and inviting vibe about our cohort which I one-thousand per cent attribute to the gender ratio. I have been in business school with the opposite demographics, and the vibes were very different. It was quite a glaring difference!

You recently took part in an ESMT webinar about breaking the glass ceiling. What did that involve, and what did you take away from the discussion?

"We spoke about how important it is to not only stand up for yourself but also for your women peers. We need to be in this together to be able to make a big enough change."

Women in leadership/women's empowerment is very important to me. Even though it is 2026, problems in surrounding women in power still very much persist.

Two wonderful and equally outspoken classmates of mine were part of the webinar too (Beatriz Sgobi and Ieva Cerniauskaite). We each spoke about our journeys to ESMT and how being a women affected the path. We spoke about how important it is to not only stand up for yourself but also for your women peers. We need to be in this together to be able to make a big enough change. 

Especially as a woman of color in primarily white spaces, I think it is crucial to have other women also stand up for you and make sure you are not being snubbed or disregarded. I am very lucky to have such classmates on a similar journey to me.

Did you move from India to Berlin for the FTMBA? Do you have any tips for Indian students considering Europe as a study destination?

Yes, I did move from India to Berlin for the MBA. Since I have previous experience of moving countries and continents from my family, it wasn’t such a big deal to me thankfully.

If it is someone’s first time moving to a new country, I would suggest they do their research. Do not come in blind and hope that everything will work out. It might be a bit hard at the beginning but don’t worry, school will keep you busy enough that you won’t have time to be homesick much. And yes, that is a very good thing! Another important tip would be to realize just how slow the German bureaucracy actually is. If you need a visa, think about applying as early as you can!

Prior to ESMT, you spent time studying and working in the USA. Are you noticing any big differences between Indian, American, and German work culture?

I think about this topic all the time. The differences are stark. Like for one example, I did not know Gleitag was a thing. Gleitag is all the overtime I have worked past my contract hours – I can take that many hours off the next day/week/month.

It shows how work-life balance is genuinely important here. Compared to India, where you just worked, worked, worked, and could be reached anywhere anytime – there are very strict boundaries here and that is very important for everyone’s mental health.

However, like everything there are cons too. The process of doing anything is quite long and requires many levels of checks and approvals. That said, I absolutely love the fact that August is basically called a summer break since most people are on holiday. It is built into the system so that everyone gets rest and rejuvenation! The American workplace is known for barely giving time off or the holidays and that is quite true, while in Germany 20 days are the minimum for a full-time contract.

You are experiencing German work culture firsthand during your internship with Mercedes Benz AG. How did you find out about the internship and what was the application process like?

"My interview was literally the best interview I have ever had."

I found out about the internship from ESMT's Career Development Center (CDC). They had sent out an email talking about the Mercedes-Benz exclusive internship way back in early February.

The process of applying was sending my resume and a brief cover letter/email. And then, my interview was literally the best interview I have ever had. My current manager interviewed me, and he was so nice. He said you can learn/be taught any tasks and processes, but your personality has to be good and match the team. I think we had about a 45-minute conversation about many different topics. I found out I got the internship a couple days later!

How does it feel to have an internship at one of ESMT’s founding companies? Is this something you think will help with career momentum?

I feel incredibly lucky and grateful that I got a chance to intern at such a great company. I think it will help my career a lot. I am not only getting first-hand experience with German work culture, I am meeting so many people.

I have reached out to many people in teams or topics I am interested in and they have been so nice to immediately say yes to a coffee or lunch chat. I hope this helps me navigate my future in Germany.

Speaking generally, are you able to leverage any FTMBA learnings during your internship? Are any particular classes or workshops sticking with you?

" I think I am finally comfortable enough to network well. I love learning about people’s journeys and everyone at Mercedes-Benz has had very interesting journeys to their current roles."

I feel I am able to channel learnings from almost all classes. While my internship does not directly relate to my classes, I can see why people take different decisions. One thing that I can see all the time is how Management Accounting can make or break anything! The budget limits for cost centers is quite strict in some cases, and I always think about our Management Accounting class with Hami during those conversations (Hami Amiraslani, Assistant Professor of Accounting at ESMT).

I think I am finally comfortable enough to network well. I love learning about people’s journeys and everyone at Mercedes-Benz has had very interesting journeys to their current roles. This helps me reach out to several people and learn more about the company and their job roles.

What is your best overall memory from the FTMBA so far?

" I got to spend time in Paris with people I love and explore one of my favorite cities in the world. How can you beat that?"

This is such a difficult question! I feel I have lived several lives since I started in January.

This is going to be a cliché answer but if I had to pick one thing, it would be the MBA Tournament (MBAT). Not the tournament specifically, but everything around it. I got to spend time in Paris with people I love and explore one of my favorite cities in the world. How can you beat that? Forever grateful for the experience! 

Do your research. As a Full-time MBA student ambassador, I have seen people not do much research before applying. Learn as much as you can before you say yes to attending any school in a different country. 

And have an open mind! Things might not always go your way but just be open to new experiences and new ways of learning. 

Thank you, Roshni!

If you would like to follow along with more of Roshni's adventures at ESMT Berlin, Mercedes-Benz, and beyond, you can connect with her on LinkedIn