MBA School Selection

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MBA School Selection

by Jana_Blanchette » Fri Aug 08, 2008 5:59 pm
I have gotten a ton of questions recently from clients who are struggling with their MBA school selection. While there is no easy answer to this question, I thought it might be helpful to post a few factors to consider as you start narrowing down your list of schools:

- Consider the schools student demographics. Look at the average GMAT, average age, undergraduate majors, average GPA, % international, gender distribution, etc. Get a sense of the incoming class and assess how you fit with their profile.

- Consider the schools career placement. The career office will typically publish stats such as % of grads with a job offer, post-MBA salaries, job placement by industry, job placement by region, and top companies that recruit at the school. Assess whether these statistics are in-line with your post MBA career aspirations.

- Consider the program offerings at each of your schools - do your research. For instance, if you are passionate about Health Care - make sure the school has a strong Health Care curriculum, faculty, club offerings, etc.

- Consider your personal preferences. Do you prefer a certain region? What teaching style do you prefer? Do you want to focus on learning the core curriculum or would you rather have flexibility with more electives? What type of student culture are you looking for? These types of questions will help you to narrow your list of schools even further.

- Consider your competitiveness at schools. This one is tough, because it requires an honest assessment of your profile relative to your peers. Be realistic.

There is rarely a school that meets all the criteria and fits your profile exactly - so look for those programs that provide the best overall fit!

Good Luck!
Jana Blanchette
President
Inside MBA Admissions
[email protected]
www.insidembaadmissions.com
Source: — The Application Process |

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by wilderness » Sun Aug 10, 2008 3:21 am
Thanks. I have been looking for something like this since the last few weeks.

Can you recommend some resources (website, books etc) that provide this comparison ? The problem with using the official website of universities is that they present a perfect picture (after all who can market themselves better than the school that educate people how to do this ! ).

I am looking for some resource that would provide a critical analysis. The official website are never critical of their own short-comings.

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by VP_MBA_Guru » Mon Aug 11, 2008 12:07 pm
W -

I am a big fan of the MBA Admissions books - they give you a great overview of the admissions process and informative snapshot of top MBA programs.

My favorites are: How to Get Into Top MBA Programs by Richard Montauk; and Your MBA Game Plan by Omari Bouknight (full disclosure - I work with Veritas Prep, which is affilated with the book)

Good luck!

NP
Nikhil P. | Admissions Consultant | Veritas Prep