Research MBA Programs

I'm probably about a year out from applying to business schools because I just started working in June 2011 and wanted to pile on as much work experience as I possibly can, but I'm conflicted as to where I should apply when I do.

My biggest question concerns whether it is best to go to a top program or apply to a "pretty good" program at a state school to avoid the debt that some of the best schools would entail. If I would apply to Carlson and get a partial scholarship, would it be worth turning down a place like Harvard? I'm just thinking from a financial standpoint because I most certainly won't have the ability to pay for my MBA out of pocket.

Really the first thing, if you haven't done it yet, is take the GMAT. Then start matching your stats against schools in the top 100 and see where you place. Remember that it's just a general rule though, your intangibles will play a role as well.

Money should NOT be your first concern. An MBA from H/S/W, while expensive, will come with a high salary post-graduation that will enable you to pay back school debt efficiently.

I would wager that no one on this forum would tell you to turn down Harvard for partial money at ANY school, save perhaps Stanford. There's just too much upside to having the HBS stamp on your resume. Once you get out of the top 5 or so programs, there's more flexibility, i.e., full ride from Duke vs. an admission at Chicago. At that point you may get differing opinions.

Either way, a full ride at UMinn/Carlson would certainly be worth passing up for an admission to HBS. No question at all.

Consider one website's take on this:
Median base salary post HBS: $120,000, w/ a signing bonus of $20,000
Median base salary post Minnesota/Carlson: $90,000, w/ a signing bonus of $15,000

https://poetsandquants.com/2010/12/14/mi ... anagement/
https://poetsandquants.com/2010/12/09/ha ... -school/3/

That was my initial thought, that it would be nearly impossible for me to turn down an ivy regardless of the situation, unless there were external factors (family, relationship, etc.) which don't really seem to be the case right now. I hesitate to look at the statistics for salaries and signing bonuses mainly because I feel as though many of the applicants to major MBA programs already have a pretty high base salary. I'm most likely going to be on the younger end of candidates, and I'm currently only about a year into my career post-graduation. To me, it seems like the salary numbers are skewed by the fact that most applicants are between 25 and 28, they're established in their industries, and they have the experience to make them assets with or without an MBA.

As far as the GMAT is concerned, I took it last month. I received a 710 (44 Q, 42 V, 6.0 AWA). Because I only have 10 months of work experience currently, I'm still debating whether to apply for Fall 2013.