Women of the IMD EMBA
Different voices. Better Leadership.
At IMD, we believe a class is only as strong as the range of people and perspectives inside it, and that diversity of thought, experience, and leadership style benefits everyone. Supporting women leaders is part of that conviction.
Dean of Degree Programs and Hilti Professor of Leadership
In their own voices, alumnae talk about their EMBA experience and the impact it has had on their lives both professionally and personally. For some, it started with perspective: working alongside a genuinely global cohort, facing the same business problems from entirely different angles. For others, it was connecting the dots between disciplines to have the bigger picture. Or the leadership stream that went much deeper than expected. And for all of them, the impact showed up immediately, applied directly into their jobs, their teams, and the way they chose to lead. Watch their stories here:
A network of women navigating the same leadership tensions, with peers who’ve lived it and faculty researching it.
Scholarships built for women, and merit-based funding open to all.
Faculty studying the real barriers women face, work that shapes how we teach.
The Women in Business Group, part of the Inclusive Leadership alumni community, aims to foster a vibrant, action-oriented platform for IMD alumni to champion women’s advancement across industries, geographies, and career stages.
Scholarships for women in the IMD EMBA
We know that financing an Executive MBA can be a real barrier — and for many women, that barrier is compounded by career breaks or unequal pay history. IMD is committed to making sure exceptional women don’t opt out of this program for financial reasons by offering a number of partial scholarships based on both merit and financial need.
Awarded to female leaders who have demonstrated professional achievements and an excellent track record in driving gender and viewpoint diversity within their professional organizations and society at large.
Awarded to exceptional candidates in order to increase professional and cultural heterogeneity in the program.
Awarded to exceptional candidates who have demonstrated leadership and professional achievements.
If cost is a concern, we encourage you to apply. Many women who may have assumed an EMBA wasn’t in reach have been positively surprised. To apply, please complete the scholarship application in the Program section of your EMBA application form. Please contact [email protected] for any questions about scholarships.
Alumna Sharon Anderes (EMBA 2024) Global Communications Manager @ Nepresso, talks about how the IMD EMBA Women Leaders Scholarship helped silence her own imposter syndrome, and how today she pays that forward as co-lead of IMD’s Women in Business alumni group.
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EMBA alumnae speak candidly about what the program meant for their careers, their confidence, and the way they lead today.
Every EMBA journey is unique, from the motivations for joining, the challenges along the way, to the aspirations afterward. What’s common is the transformative experience that each alumnae describes. Here’s what a few of them have to say:
The IMD EMBA is intense, fast-paced, and thought-provoking. But what makes it truly transformational is the exceptional cohort – a constant source of challenge, perspective, and support.
Many people assume that an EMBA is simply not feasible when you already have a demanding job and family life. For context, I started the EMBA when my daughter was 4 months old, with 2 other children and a full-time job. I won’t deny it’s intense, but when you’re truly motivated you discover resources you didn’t know you had.
The EMBA’s structure allowed me to continue working 100% while still stepping back from the day-to-day operations to gain a broader and more strategic perspective.”
Every assignment was an opportunity to bring a real challenge from my company into the classroom and take a sharper answer back. That continuous loop of learning and application is what made the difference.
I came to IMD to learn more in business, strategy, and innovation, while adding in the complex perspectives of geo-political scenarios and cultural differences.
It was a transformative experience – one that challenged my thinking, stretched my limits, and reshaped the way I see leadership, strategy, and impact.
Working in the pharmaceutical industry felt like being in a bubble; IMD helped me to break that bubble and get some input from the outside.
I have an engineering , so I joined the IMD EMBA to gain business skills that I hadn’t been exposed to before. It was the small class size and international approach that really resonated with me.
The IMD EMBA gave me a holistic view of the business, so I could not only bring my perspective but understand that of others and contribute to the strategic discussion.
The modules and learning were highly actionable; frameworks and tools that I could apply real-time in my firm. I’ve transformed from being an operational kind of leader to a strategic leader.
The IMD EMBA connected me to other people who also have this growth mindset, which is a huge asset. I used the network, I got the jobs I was hoping for, so it all paid off. I had a really great ROI.
The EMBA was transformative. It gave me the business insight and self-confidence to rise as an Asian woman in a competitive, global arena.