Main takeaways from an actual MIM student

In today's article we interviewed Ilaria P., a current MIM student from Sept 16' intake. She is a Social Rep and is following the Sales & Marketing Specialization. Ilaria has a bachelor in Business Administration and Management from the University of Bocconi, she has studied one semester abroad in Korea and made two internships with Phillip Morris in Hong Kong. 

We asked her some advices on how to get through IE.

- What advice will you give when you have 3 or 4 cases of 60 pages each to read for the next day?

"Well the truth is that you hardly ever have that amount of work to do, and when I do have it, I generally prioritize the practical cases over the articles and I choose the cases that interest me the most as I never read more than two cases for each day!"

- Studying and partying, is it compatible? Can IE student party every week and keep up with their grades? 

"That all depends on your skills and your understanding of "good grades": the lowest GPA you can have is 3.0 out of 4.0 so you could actually not do much and still have fair grades but in general even the people at the top of the rankings are outgoers. There are still going to be finals weeks when you will party more in MM31 than in your house."

- How would you save money? Avoid spending around IE when having class.

"I usually try to balance the amount of money I spend as some weeks require more money than others. Some tips could be using the metro or use car sharing (taxis are quite cheap and you could end up using it more often than you should), having lunch at home instead of DoEat, and so on."

- Is it hard and/or taking a lot of time to be a social rep? Are u in other extra school activites ? 

"Being a Social Rep doesn't take too much time as it mostly a matter of promoting the school activities. Occasionally we planned some small things but really it's no big deal. I'm not in any other extra school activity."

Thank you for your time and advices Ilaria !

Banking Accounts

While living in Madrid, it will be very useful to have a bank account to control your expenses (renting a flat, receiving money from your parents etc.) as well as withdrawing money from the ATMs.

For this reason, we wanted to show you how to do it in order for you to lose as little as time as possible during the process.

IF YOU ARE A RESIDENT: you just need to go to your preferred bank and show your NIE to open an account.

IF YOU ARE NOT A RESIDENT:

• you have first to register the "empadronamiento" then make your NIE. IE will assist you with the NIE but if you want to buy time register for the empadronamiento as soon as your arrived by taking an appointment at one of the "ayuntamiento". It is useful in case you need to go to the doctor or hospital you will be cover. Then with your NIE you will be able to open a bank account.
• or you need to go to one of these police stations:

1. Calle de General Pardiñas 90
2. Calle Domenico Scarlatti 6
3. Calle de Francos Rodríguez 104

and ask for a non-resident certificate and show it to your preferred bank along with your passport to have a bank account.

• Or go directly to your preferred bank with your passport and ask them to directly process your non-resident certificate. This will cost you approximately 15 euros.

USEFUL TIPS: 

* Remember that many banks offer special offers for students, so don't hesitate to ask for potential benefits.
* IE has a partnership with Sabadell (better to go to the one close to IE they are more aware about the partnership) which allows to open a free account, for that you will need the NIE and a proof that you are from IE (student card, certificate of enrollment).

* Usually, when you withdraw money from an ATM that is not your bank's official ATM, you might be charged a small commission. 

* Credit cards are accepted in almost every store.

* If you need to change money, you will be able to do so in your bank, in money exchange places, hotels or travel agencies.

Interesting Fact About Spanish Eating Hours

Madrid has an amazing and broad culinary culture, but something that shocks many students in Spain is our meal times.

Spaniards usually eat at around 3 pm, although you will find restaurants open from 1.30 pm to 2 pm. Dinner time in Spain is also later than in other European countries. We usually eat at around 9 or 10 pm, however, most restaurants will be open from 8.30 pm to 12 am.

If you happen to be hungry before dinner, don't worry! There are plenty of open bars that will offer you great tapas, ham or croquetas at any time of the day!

Metro Madrid

Most students take the metro to move around Madrid, so here is the metro map for you to avoid getting lost!

An interesting thing is that if you are under 26 years old, you can get a metro card for only 20 euros that will allow you to travel up and down in this wonderful city!

To get it, you can either order it online or make an appointment to get it in a physical place (make sure you bring a picture with you, your ID and 4 euros to pay the card then you will have to charge it at the machine):

 https://www.tarjetatransportepublico.es/CRTM-ABONOS/entrada_ttp.aspx

Where to Live Around IE?

If you are going to study at the IE Business School, you might as well live close to it. We've all encountered the situation of moving into a new city and staying the first days in a hotel or Airbnb to get to know the surroundings before making a decision on where to live.

In this post you will find the best neighbourhoods to live right next to your school, because time is precious!

1. Barrio de Salamanca

It is one of the most beautiful neighbourhoods of Madrid and it is close to metro Line 9

2. Barrio de Prosperidad

It is a pretty affordable neighbourhood that is at walking distance from IE with many stores and places to eat and drink. The closest metro line is Line 4. 

3. Barrio de Chamberí

Also close to Line 4, it is one of the best neighbourhoods for students. You will be very close to the Madrid nightlife and your school! great combination!

If you want to leave in another neighbor for whatever reason, madrid is pretty well connected so as long as you are near a metro station you will be fine (or you can also take the bus). 

The MIMs are usually located in the building MM4 (Calla Maria de Molina 4) thus the closest metro station is Gregorio Marañon which has line 7 (orange) and 10 (dark blue). 

If you are an MBA student you will be located in MM31 and the nearest metro would be Av. De America which contain line 4 (brown), 6 (grey), 7 and 9 (purple).

Tierra Burrito

Yes that's right, most of us will probably go there if we feel like eating a burrito during our time at school or even when we need to eat something fast. I would say that Tierra Burrito is in the top 5 of where to eat near to IE but did you know that Tierra is doing happy hour between 4pm-7:30pm?

You could have a big "jarra" of Margarita to choose between "fresa" (strawberry) or "limon" (lemon) for 9.95 Euros or even better:  Margarita + Nacho (very big plate, don't underestimate it) for 14.95 Euros. Good news if you prefer having your Margarita later, Tierra is also doing happy hour from 11:30pm til closing time!

If you still want to enjoy a Margarita during happy hour outside school here the different addresses:

• Serrano ,93 (Closest Metro: Gregorio Marañon)
• Espoz y Mina, 9 (Closest Metro: Sol)
• General Yagüe, 12 (Closest Metro: Cuzco)
• Calle Sagasta, 30 (Closest Metro: Alonso Martinez)
• Guzman el Bueno, 52 (Closest Metro: Islas Filipinas)
• Bravo Murillo, 107 (Closest Metro: Cuatro Camino)

NB: Not all the Tierra stores have the happy hour between 4pm-7:30pm.
Check your location for more info.

Food & Drinks

IE students have lots of discounts when it comes to places to eat and drink, so take advantage of it! In this post we will show you where you can find the best places and pay less than everyone else just because you are at IE, so don't forget to bring with you your student card!

1. LOTS coffee house: Up to 25% discount 

Location: Calle del Gral Oraá 40 (only 1 block away from MM31)

2. Indian Restaurants: 25% discount

DIWALI, location: Calle Lope de Rueda 19
CURRY MASALA, location: Calle Silva 16
ARPIT, location: Calle Maria Tubau 19

2. SUSHICATESSEN (Sushi): 10% discount in take away and delivery

Location: http://www.sushicatessen.es/ to look up for your closest store

3. COMIDA&COMIDA: 10% discount

This is a platform developed by a former IE student that had saw the need of getting healthy food when he was studying but couldn't, so what he did is create this platform that offers ready-to-serve meals for those who don't have the time or the skills to cook. Your dishes will be sent within 48-72h and you can have them in your fridge up to 30 days because they come in baccum packed portions.

Location: order here www.comidacomida.com

4. BESTIA KITCHEN & BAR: 

Offers:
Nachos or Quesadilla + 4 beers for 10 Euros everyday from 20h00
Pizza + 4 beers for 15 Euros everyday from 20h00
Happy hour 2x1 + 10% discount in dinners

Location: Calle López de Hoyos, 9

5. BRUNCH AT MACADAMIA: 

Location: Calle Maria de Molina 50

6. GINOS RISTORANTE: Menu for 12,95 Euros

Location: Calle Velázquez 136

7. DEVOUR SPAIN MEDIA KIT: 10% discount off listed price

Location: Calle Gran Via 5, 3D

8. CERVECERIA SIBILA: 10% discounts on cash payments, 8% discount on card payments

Location: Calle Velázquez 120

We hope this is useful!!!