Fuqua ($) vs Ross vs Anderson (with $$$) for Healthcare/Consulting+WestCoastI am an Indian in healthcare sector in India and wish to get into healthcare or consulting post MBA. Also, I will prioritize finding a job in SFO/Bay Area followed by NY/NJ if that does not work out. In the long term, I wish to come back to India/SouthEast Asia in the healthcare/pharma space and so a strong alum network in those geographies and that industry become important. At the same time, the $$$$ fellowship seems very difficult to ignore. It would mean that I could come back in half the time?
I have 3 admits and here are my pros/cons for each.
1) DukePros:
Very strong health sector management (second only to Wharton)
Strong top 10 ranking (give and take 1 or 2)
World renowned Duke and Fuqua brands
Known alumni network in Healthcare space and also in Asia (also partly due to Cross Continent MBA)
Focus on Leadership and Ethics
Durham may be a nice place to study, cheap!
Small scholarship amount
Cons:
Far from SFO (My wife may relocate to SFO as she works with a tech giant) and it will be tough for us to meet often - 8 hr flights to Durham?
Small scholarship - have to fund almost my entire MBA and would mean a 5-8 year payback period
Culture seems a bit formal compared to Ross/Anderson
Nothing else seems to fit in the cons for Fuqua!
Ross:Pros:
Ann Arbor! Amazing place to be!
Highly ranked top 10 MBA program
World renowned Michigan and Ross brands, with perhaps the largest living alumni network
Very strong alumni network across the world, including India
Amazing current batch of students - most exciting set of people I've talked to during my MBA research
Improving Healthcare Management focus in recent years
Cons:
Far from SFO (My wife may relocate to SFO as she works with a tech giant) and it will be tough for us to meet often - long flights to Detroit?
No scholarship - have to fund my entire MBA and would mean a 5-8 year payback period
Alum network in India and in healthcare industry is not as strong as Fuqua, clearly
Anderson:Pros:
Scholarship $$$$! This was unexpected and has made me re-think my priorities. Ability to come back to India in fewer years and possibly with savings!
Location, Location! Near SFO, can meet wife more often that I want
Very strong regional school for West Coast recruitment.
UCLA is a very well known brand!
Hope to see a more diverse crowd in terms of industries - Tech, Media etc + Los Angeles (:D)
Cons:
Not a preferred recruitment schools for top consulting firms (MBB, etc)
Fewer alums in Healthcare sector
Feweralums in India/Asia that I know of
Weaker healthcare concentration compared to Fuqua/Ross
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Had UCLA given lesser $ the decision would have been easier, I would have gone for Ross/Fuqua. Conversely, had Ross/Fuqua given me higher $, I would have gone for one of those. People I've spoken to have mixed opinions. Clearly, Fuqua and Ross are the prominent choices from a long term career perspective for me, and people say $$$$ is easy to make up for in a career. I am confused as the pros and cons for Anderson are all very strong!
What do you guys think?