Applicants who have clear career aspirations are better able to choose the schools that will position them to succeed in the future. In this post, we share a series of questions developed by MBA Prep School to aid our clients with school selection. By answering them on your own, you will be one step closer to choosing business schools that are the best fit with your specific career goals.
The first question is: Which schools have the most resources specifically targeted to your career goals? Business schools can’t be all things to all students so they tend to specialize in certain areas – entrepreneurship, marketing, finance, and so on.
Once you have a sense of which field you want to work in, ask yourself the following:
• Which schools offer the most courses that appear tailor-made for your career?
• Where do the thought-leaders in your future field teach?
• Which programs have dedicated student clubs, research centers, conferences, and field study opportunities specifically targeting your career goals?
The next big-picture question is: Which schools have the strongest reputation in your field? You need to talk to as many people in your future field as you can and find out what they perceive to be the schools with the strongest MBA brands.
Proximity to the industry hub of your field of interest is another determining factor in where you should apply. Going to school close to one of the industry hubs in your future field means it will be easier to build professional connections during school, participate in field studies and master classes with leading firms, and have the CEO of the “800 pound gorilla” in your field swing by campus for a keynote address.
Another excellent way to determine a school’s match with your career goals is to find out which schools have the most extensive alumni presence in your field. A strong alumni showing is a signal that the degree is valued and that the skills and knowledge acquired by graduates correlates to long-term success. Moreover, alumni strength will open doors that will lead to job opportunities at graduation and career success longer-term.
Speaking of generating job offers, an important consideration is which schools will offer you the best career placement support. A proactive placement office that offers career planning resources and that has cultivated relationships with recruiters in your field is invaluable. Talk to recent graduates and ask them how satisfied they were with the quality of their career placements office. On a related note, try to find out which schools have the best placement results in your field. None of the others factors we’ve discussed matter much if you can’t get a job when you graduate.
Answering the questions we’ve posed in this article will require extensive research, but once you have answered them, you will have confidence that the MBA schools that you are applying to will position you for future success.
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As part of our complete program of video tutorials, application building tools, and eBooks, MBA Prep School provides a suite of powerful resources that will help you to craft your absolute best business school applications. You can learn more and sign-up for a free trial by visiting https://mbaprepschool.com.
