Jean Davin '23 Recruiting Profile

When I was 12 years old, long before my desire to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Business had emerged, I faced an important crossroads: I had just won my first significant national French tennis tournament and found myself competing at a level where virtually everyone had their sights set on professional tennis careers. Even though I harbored similar ambitions, I did not want to risk compromising my academic education and I decided to remain at Ecole Jeannine Manuel in Paris, a bilingual school in Paris, where I graduated. One thing I particularly loved about my school is the emphasis it places on foreign languages and cultures (I studied Spanish for the past five years and Mandarin for six years). Did my decision to remain at Ecole Jeannine Manuel prevent me from eventually winning Roland-Garros? Maybe. But I’m convinced it’s the best decision I ever made. The reasons I feel this way, however, are less obvious.I was born and partially raised in Japan to French parents. Although my Japanese conversational skills have largely been supplanted by my mastery of English and French, I have countless memories of Tokyo and feel fortunate to have had a multi-cultural upbringing. It’s one of the main factors that I think accounts for my intellectual curiosityvand drive towards perfection. Shortly after my move to Paris at age 8, I picked up a tennis racket for the first time. While natural athletic ability certainly played a role, my quick mastery of the game was first and foremost the result of hard work, determination, and resilience. The more I practiced, the better I became. In turn, the better I became, the more Icpracticed. However, my decision to remain equally committed to my academic studies disrupted this positivecfeedback loop. In fact, it forced me to completely adapt my approach. With less time to devote to the sport, I had to have a better game plan and be mentally stronger than my competitors. I had to be strategic and resourceful. Simply put, I had to make do with less. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was gaining firsthand experience in what every startup company and every person with a vision must cope with. Ultimately, working under these constrained conditions helped me achieve a ranking as one the top 25 tennis players for my age in France. Moreover, it sharpened my academic mindset, particularly in the streamlined and direct way that I approach all sorts of analytical and creative assignments. One such assignment came in June of 2020, when, as an intern at “ASMAE – Soeur Emmanuelle” (a French ONG that specializes in children’s education), I was tasked with developing projects to help ensure long-term relationships with donors. I was quite excited by this open-ended project because it represented an opportunity for me to combine my analytical skills with outside-of-the-box thinking. I thoroughly educated myself on the structural components of NGO’s and analyzed ASMAE’s fundraising practices already in place. After much research, I ended up proposing a series of free virtual events and conferences, which ASMAE graciously accepted. The first event took place in early 2021. Seeing my project through to fruition was an immensely rewarding experience that helped ignite my interest in social entrepreneurship. After this internship, I continued looking for opportunities to engage in community and environmentally oriented projects. Last year, I joined my school’s Eco-Committee to promote internally sustainable (and green initiatives) and to raise awareness on issues such as global warning (and other environmental crises.) Thanks to my work with this committee, I could liaise with the green tech start-up Mobilite.eco. The company sought to better understand the mindset of adolescents with respect to climate change and how this influences their choice of transportation. I decided to spearhead an extensive survey at several Parisian schools and presented the findings to the company. The close-knit relationship I was able to forge with Mobilite.eco during this project further awakened my strong interest in all key business and management practices. My desire to study the fundamentals of management with international horizons, and to learn about creating and implementing innovative solutions, and develop long-term strategies are some of the principal reasons I want to apply to your Business program. Currently ranked among the top 2,500 seated players in France, I still walk onto the tennis court today with immense passion and determination. I hope to bring this same attitude to my university studies by completely investing myself in a multidisciplinary Business Management curriculum. Ultimately, I believe that my strong resilience and competitive spirit combined with my awareness of social and environmental challenges will enable me not only to flourish at your school but also to make a meaningful contribution to the student body and beyond.