For me I only applied to schools I would go to but ranked them on based on a bunch of factors. Honestly I applied to 3 top 5 schools in R1 since I was going to do "easier admit" schools in R2 if it didnt work out. I applied to those 3 schools because they were great schools and the honest answer is brand matters. I picked them due to preference over other schools and location concerns.
Schools I looked at and decided against:
-Tuck was out due to location and my wife's ability to find a job.
-HBS was out due to my opinion on what the culture is like...this opinion was formed long ago and is engrained...(born and raised Mass guy)
-Columbia was out since its a finance school and didnt really want NYC
-Wharton was out due to location and just didnt appeal to me
-Stanford honestly, thought my chances were slim and its just kind of struck me as a breeding ground for fields I wasnt all that interested in
==> Kellogg was my top when I applied due to the culture, very strong in GM, the community for my wife, great location with good job prospects for my wife. Has a great rep for teaching soft skills that GM companies highly value but few schools are seen as providing, I was an engineer so I definitely wanted to get away from that image of being another nerdy quant jock.
==> MIT was number 2, based basically on location and my wife's heavy influence on this one...we lived near boston, love it there and have tons of friends and family in the area.
==> Chicago was #3 of my R1 schools. Top school, good rep in basically every field, Chicago is a great city.
Things I didnt consider that I think that very fortunately ended up working out very well for me, and had I known to think about this I would definitely factor in my applications/decisions. Diversity...not of students since all schools do a good job of that but of recruiters and job placement. MIT and Kellogg both do excellent in this area. In the current job market having a school that places people in a very large variety of functions, industries, and locations is incredibly beneficial. Hiring varies greatly by area, some are doing just fine and others are shaping up to be incredibly brutal. If you are at a school where lots of students headed to careers that no longer are there, well logic dictates they are going somewhere and if you weren't going to that area, the competition for your job just increased DRASTICALLY.
Fit is amazingly important, but while I think I did put some thought into it...I dont think I really put a great deal of importance on fit for my wife. I viewed it as "will I get along with my classmates?" and not will we both enjoy our time here. However, while thats incredibly important for you...if you are moving a great distance and are married or bringing a bf/gf/fiance with you, they are going to have to find their fit too. I think we definitely lucked out in this area, not only is my wife great friends with some of my classmates but she has made amazing friends with other significant others of students. We showed up and there was an immediate network which is great since we knew no one in this city.
I think you need to really understand yourself and what you want. While some stereotypes about schools are completely off, others are pretty accurate. If you cant stand working in groups dont come to Kellogg, if you would rather do everything on your own then there are a lot of schools that will be better for you. You are going to get a rigorous education wherever you go, I think how you get that will vary incredibly between schools.
Also one thing to really look at before you go to school no matter where you go is yourself in the mirror. I think that these days the toughest thing no matter where you go is being honest with yourself. Career switching is still possible but at times like these companies want the smallest risk possible. So doing a some career switches are going to be very difficult. You want to be an IB but were a high school history teacher, well years ago maybe someone would take that risk. Now adays, chances are going to be extremely slim, I dont care what school you are at and how great their rep is in that industry. Thats not to say dont go for your dream but have some backup plan that your background plays to much stronger than the switch. The more directly related your experience the greater your chances for success.
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Kellogg Class of 2010...still active and willing to help. However, I do not do profile reviews, don't offer predictions on chances and am far to busy to review essays, so save the energy of writing me a PM seeking help for these. If I don't respond to a PM that is not one of the previously mentioned trash can destined messages, please don't take it personally I get so many messages I have a hard to responding to most. The more interesting, compelling, or humorous you message the more likely I am to respond.