LastChanceMBA wrote:
I'm thus going to stay in my current job and apply to top U.S. MBA programs, which will give me access to more top firms, better name brand and prestige, and a much higher caliber of students.
Best of luck to everyone.
Hi LastChanceMBA,
despite I can understand some of your points (especially the point taking a UK B-School program as a US-based student who wants to get back to the US), your very last statement is kind of immature and shows imho a lack of objectivity and experience regarding Top-Schools.
Let's go through your points:
1) Which will give me access to more top firms
First of all, I am not aware what your professionals goals are. Hence, this statement might be fair enough. However, when it comes up to investment banking, consulting and PE, LBS is highly frequented by all top notch investment banks (GS, MS, JPM, DB, smaller elite-boutiques such as Lazard, Rothschild, Houlihan Lokey etc...) and top consulters (McK, BCG, Bain etc...). Maybe you can give me an insight what companies are actually in the league beyond Goldman & McKinsey? At least for the mentioned job sectors, I can't agree with your statement.
2) And a much higher caliber of students
Yes, that's actually the point where some people might feel offended
Let me simply put a honest question: How do you know? Have you interviewed 200 LBS and 200 Harvard guys to get a representative survey on the skills of the average student? Honestly, such a statement is somehow ridiculous as it lacks any objective judgment.
Especially in the MIF programme which includes some very senior guys - would you approach someone who is a partner or an MD and tell him in person he is a "low-caliber" student? Probably because he is MD with a smaller company and not with Goldman? Would you tell an associate from MS he is a low-caliber student? I could basically go on infinetely with those examples both for the MIF and the MBA, however, I am aware that picking single examples does not make sense because simply as your statement, it lacks objectivity and representativity. However, one thing is sure and here I fully agree with rwkTX: You can't throw all the different people in a single box and label them "low" or "high"-caliber students. At LBS, just as it would happend at every other top-school, I met some people to whom I would not even entrust a pencil and a calculator (and you never now how they got in) and on the other side you have some totally freaky guys with incredible skills and a blue-chip CV that makes you feel like a dwarf. And of course you will have a lot of people in the middle. Given the requirements to enter a top-school, there is only thing sure about the student body: Most of these people are very smart in a specific area and given their experience and their career to date, they are extremely diverse with very different skill sets and personalities. Hence, it is utterly useless to put them all in a box and try to compare with them with the students from other schools.
3) better name brand and prestige
I kept this point for the end because it is a nice one that indicates that would might end up finding yourself in some trouble when starting your job search. Obviously you are suffering from the severe misconception that a Top B-School will get you a job by its stellar brand name. May I assume that you expect you just need to break into Harvard and once you arrived, all the headhunters are going to call you? Sorry dude, it won't work like this, neither in UK nore in the US. I know some people who started with such an idea and they all had at some point a quite painful awakening.
MBAs are actually a mass product, even on top-level. There is no need for the big global players to hunt the people from Harvard or Wharton as the market is flooded with MBAs and there are even plenty of top-notch people companies can still chose of. A top B-School is a top school simply for the reason that it provides you with a huge network (hence, your point with LBS alumni in the US might be very valid point) and the resources to make your own job search succesful. At LBS just as in case of Harvard, Wharton or Stanford you will get all the resources (contacts, information, recruiting events etc...) from the career centre you will need. However, it is completely up on you how you will manage and use these resources. Believe me, there is no one waiting outside for you just because you have a nice brand-name in your CV. It's not working that way.