Job Dilemma : Credit Suisse versus Oracle Retail

[reetendrachauhan]

Hi,

I am a final year engineering student from India. I will be embarking on my professional career soon, and really needed advice on choosing from the jobs that I have in hand right now. I plan to work for 3 to 5 years and then apply for an MBA in the USA / Europe.

1) Credit Suisse:

I will be starting as a Risk Analyst. I have interned here, so have a fair idea of the place. The big pro with Credit Suisse is the brand value.

But the work is slightly back office, learning opportunities are slightly less as well, and there is very less opportunity to grow (in terms of increased responsibility, promotions etc). The back office where I am joining doesn't really support candidates leaving them for MBAs.

2) Oracle Retail:

The profile is related to Consulting / Analytics, and not software development. I will be advising retail clients on their inventory, discount, pricing strategy.

The pro is that there is scope for client interaction (limited, but still yes) if I stick around with the company for 3 years or so. The learning curve too is steep, and growth seems to be slightly better then that at Credit Suisse (although its too early to comment on this now). The team in Oracle supports candidates going for MBAs.

The con is that the brand value is not as high as Credit Suisse. There might be a chance that inspite of being in Retail Consulting, AdComs might stereotype me as an Indian IT professional (please correct me if I am wrong here), which forms a very large pool of applications. Will the description of my work in my essays / CV help me get categorized under the 'Consulting Applicants' umbrella in the first screening step itself, or will I be slotted under the 'Indian IT Professionals' Tag till the last stage ?

I plan to go neither to finance nor to consulting post MBA, my aim is something like Brand Management / Marketing Strategy etc. Fortunately, the other aspects of my profile (GMAT, Undergraduate University Ranking, Undergraduate GPA, Extra Curriculars etc.) are really good I feel. I would really appreciate any advice on what I should choose.

[mbaMissionJenK]

Hi,

First of all, CONGRATULATIONS on your excellent job offers! You should feel good about the position you are in, both in terms of great job opportunities, and also in terms of longer-term planning with thinking ahead to the MBA degree.

That being said, while it is important to look down the road and consider the MBA if that is in your 3-5 year plan, you also want to make career choices based on 1) what you are most interested in, passionate about, and what you see as the best potential for growth yourself, and 2) what career choices make the most sense when you consider your long term (post-MBA) goals.

So my advice would be to ask yourself where you see your career even later, say 10-15 years down the road (perhaps more in Marketing like you mentioned?), and then think about what job now, and what steps along your career path in the early years, will help you reach the longer term goals. This will not only be most ideal for you personally, it will also have the secondary effect of sounding like a cohesive career plan to any admissions committee. They'd love to see, in an applicant of any background/profile/industry, that their past experiences plus the MBA lead naturally to their future career goals. It should all make sense.

Both positions sound promising and both are extremely reputable companies and brands. You will want to showcase the specific role and skills and achievements at either company in order to express to the admissions committee what your background profile/role is, through your resume, essays, and application questions (so for example you can focus on being a 'Consultant' or whatever specific role and responsibilities you end up taking on). And overall, even if you are in a certain 'group' such as Indian IT professionals (though I understand you are saying your position will not be putting you in that group), consultants, bankers, etc.... if you have strong/exceptional traits, stories, experiences, goals, scores, or combination of the above, you can still stand out and express how you are different and what you will bring to a given program that is unique.

Good luck to you as you launch your career.

[reetendrachauhan]

Thanks a lot ! This was really insightful.