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I'm not sure I entirely understand your question - how are you using the word "competitive" as you use it in both questions? Also, it'd be helpful to understand WHY you're asking this. Most of these schools are quite great and have the professors, alumni, and endowments to back up their prestige. So rather than split hairs, what might be helpful would be to think about these schools in tiers. From the list below, tier 1 schools would include HBS, Kellogg, CBS, Tuck, Darden, and Ross. Tier 2 would include Cornell, McCombs, and Goizueta. Competitiveness (difficulty in getting in) can be judged through acceptance rates which are publicly available - this poets and quants article provides a nice summary. Difficulty of the program and rigor is hard to judge as all MBA programs demand a lot out of their students, but you can imagine that tier 1 schools have a bit of an edge there. Finally, in judging the competitive environment of the school, look for schools that have grade nondisclosure to be less competitive than those that don't. Hope this helps, and best of luck.

Ah, I see! It's a bit difficult to definitely say which tier 1 program is more rigorous than another. Now, don't get me wrong, some are more so than others but it also depends on what YOU make out of the program. Like I said before, it can sometimes be like splitting hairs. It's not like you're comparing HBS to Boston College, you're wanting to know if HBS has more of a workload or demands more out of their students from its fellow Ivy League competitor. While prestige might vary from school to school, workload and what is expected across tier 1 programs is, for the most part, rather consistent. What might make it SEEM different is the nature and approach the students take towards those demands. As I mentioned before, schools that have grade nondisclosure make things a bit less competitive thus changing the culture and attitude of the school. That doesn't mean folks don't care about their grades but it gives some breathing room for those who have different priorities. Comparing a school with grade nondisclosure to another may seem as though it's a bit more "relaxed" at first glance, but it's likely not due to the difference in rigor or expectation, but simply the difference in the culture of the school and their approach to learning.

Schools like GSB, Booth, CBS, Haas, and SOM are known to have GND. Whereas, HBS, Tuck, Kellogg, and Sloan do not. Then again, some schools, such as Darden, are known to be bootcamps! The easiest way to figure this out is to chat with students - ask them - they'll tell you!

Hope this helps! If you're looking for additional information on how you might fit with some of the top schools, take a look at our school profiles.