Kirti Sharma

I’m joining INSEAD’s MBA class of December 2027 as a Forté Fellow, so the essays, the alumni interviews and the scholarship applications are all fresh for me, not something I did a decade ago. I got in from one of the most crowded applicant pools there is: an Indian woman in Big 4 consulting. On paper my profile looked like thousands of others. It worked because I found the parts of my story that were mine alone and built the application around them: a science degree from Miranda House, a move to France at 23 for ESSEC’s Grande École, a sustainability practice I helped build from scratch at PwC Luxembourg, and a watercolour practice that funds five children’s schooling in my hometown. That is what I do for my clients. I help you find the two or three threads that make your story yours, cut everything that doesn’t serve them, and say it plainly. I’m direct with feedback and I always explain the reasoning, so the next draft is better and still sounds like you. I’ve also been on the other side of the table for years. At PwC I went from trainee to Manager in under four years and coached more than seven interns and associates through their first client work. I coach jobseekers on their CVs with Dress for Success, and I give career talks at universities in India, France, Luxembourg and the US. I’m a particularly good fit if you’re applying to INSEAD or other European schools, if you come from India, consulting or a non-business degree, or if you want a scholarship and don’t know where to start.