Reaching the Best and Brightest

Scholarships have the power to inspire and influence far beyond the recipient. Our scholars rewrite the story – and not just their own but within LBS, their communities, and the world of business. Scholarships create change for generations.

Sloan scholar story: Henrique Drumond SLN2022

Selected to receive the LBS Sloan MSc Excellence in Leadership Award, Henrique Drumond is driven and determined to have a far-reaching impact and change lives through his career.

Henrique Drumond

“Being awarded the LBS Sloan MSc Excellence in Leadership Award gave me additional encouragement. I felt like the School had seen that I had something to contribute; it felt like a validation that I was making the right decision, I was in the right place, and I was the right person for that place.”

Prior to studying at LBS, Henrique ran Isolar, a social enterprise that empowered the residents of low-income communities to improve – and ultimately transform – their lives. When the 2020 pandemic hit, Insolar’s operations had to be put on hold, and this gave Henrique the time to reflect on his career. His experience made him realise the best way to take his impact-driven mission to the next level was to invest in his leadership skills.

“Embrace the opportunity as a transformative experience for your life rather than just an academic experience.”

With its focus on empowering people with diverse experiences to become global leaders, applying for the Sloan programme was a natural choice. “I appreciate alumni supporting scholarships at London Business School and am forever grateful for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. My advice to people considering the Sloan programme… embrace the opportunity as a transformative experience for your life rather than just an academic experience.”

Sarah Qian

Scholar story: Sarah Qian, MBA2023

Sarah is committed to exploring solutions in healthtech and sustainable investment and chose LBS for her MBA due to its commitment to diversity, excellence and rigorous thought leadership.

Forever Forward Logo

Scholar Story: Nasi Rwigema, MBA2020

Nasi Rwigema

After a career that began in aeronautical engineering, and then moved on to private equity, Nasi Rwigema decided that an MBA would help to improve his understanding of the commercial world. Receiving the Mo Ibrahim Foundation Scholarship made this desire a reality. “I was beyond grateful to be awarded the Scholarship – it made my entrepreneurial ambitions post-LBS more pursuable. Beyond the financial support, I’ve enjoyed working with the charitable foundation and spending time with Dr Ibrahim. He is a role model for me.”

At LBS, Nasi developed and tested his idea for a start-up: a ‘LinkedIn’ for low-skilled Africans. The idea for this online professional network was born out of Nasi’s experience building power plants across Africa. There, he saw how difficult it was for blue-collar workers to position themselves in the marketplace.

“LBS has been the best place to stress-test my start-up idea. You’re given free expert advice all the time. My classmates’ feedback was critical, helping me to articulate what I want my business to do.”

It was at LBS Entrepreneurship Summer School that Nasi’s idea began to blossom into a start-up. “LBS has been the best place to stress-test my start-up idea. You’re given free expert advice all the time. My classmates’ feedback was critical, helping me to articulate what I want my business to do. My MBA ambition was to turn myself into a high-output, high-functioning thinker. I had two years of sword-sharpening with some of the brightest minds,” says Nasi. “You get to dream much bigger at LBS.”

Michael Vardi

Scholar Story: Michael Vardi, MBA2017

Founder of traffic management company Valerann, Michael Vardi’s impact since graduating has been significant. Valerann uses data to help save lives, reduce congestion, and decrease costs for organisations that manage our motorways and city roads. Today, Valerann has raised over £20 million, employs 25 people, has served roads in the UK, US, Spain, and Israel and increases the safety of over one million drivers every day.

Forever Forward Logo