Information to ask for AFTER you're admitted....

In the event an applicant has more than one school to choose from, what kind of information do think you should ask the schools for to help with making the decision?

I'll be asking for a list of internship and full-time job placements for the past two years (company and position) for my specific industry. I'll also be asking for a complete list of all the companies in my industry who have recruited in the last two years.

Can anyone think of anything else?

RF

I was just debating whether or not it was a good idea to send an email requesting this information. I wanted to know all the companies that recruited on campus for my industry, with number of hires, plus some other recruiting details. Do you plan to send an email like that to career services? Or do you plan to get that info a different way? Is it possibly a bad idea to bug career services for a ton of detailed information?

Will you ask Cornell on my behalf just in case they shoot the messenger?

The schools wouldn't have admitted you to a competitive program unless they wanted you!

I plan to contact the career offices of the schools I'm admitted to and very nicely ask for assistance in getting the information I'm looking for. As long as you don't ask for obscure information (how many students, between the ages of 25-27, got full-time offers from tech companies located in CA, FL and AK?) I'm sure it's not a big deal for them to put it together.

My contact with the admissions office at Duke has been great so far. They seem very eager to answer all my questions so that I'll make the best decision.

RF

I would ask how the economic crisis is affecting them. Are they cutting back on career services, not hiring new professors, not adding new courses...eliminating courses? Some schools are making cuts, you are paying a ton of money you dont want to be at a place that says yes we eliminated a few career councilors. I mean Kellogg just hired two more...since people are doing more off campus these days you dont want to have that resource too limited.

You can ask about recruiting info. Schools should have last years stuff compiled by now. I know Kellogg just released their 2008 report (not the pdf version with names, locations, and titles but all the data.

Riverripper,

Good point about cutbacks!

Who would you ask to get that info? The Dean?

RF

Be that guy to do it at admitted students weekend haha

I just called the Texas career office to get a list of IBs that recruited on campus this year. There were others that had resume drops, but the firms below were actively on campus.

Bank of America
Barclays Capital
Citi
Credit Suisse
Deutsche Bank
FTI
JPMorgan - Houston
JPMorgan – NYC
Lazard
Merrill Lynch
Morgan Stanley
Simmons
Tudor Pickering
UBS

Thought this might help for any other students considering IB out of Texas.

Wait until the Dean is halfway through his speech, then interrupt him by waving my arms and yelling "hey!!", then ask?

RF

Ooo, I dare you to interrupt Kellogg's dean's speech!

But anyway, here are some things you can ask:

Career:
- Ask to be put in contact with alums at target companies. Then CALL those alums for an informational interview to ask them about hiring, the economy, and even picking schools. they are surprisingly honest with admits if they don't think School X is a good fit for them, even if they're an alum from that school.

- Ask about all the questions River and others already mentioned

- Ask to talk to students (or more students if you've already done this before your admit) in the career industry clubs that you're interested in (finance club, consulting club, tech club, etc...). Ask them how their internships and full time job searches are going. That's the BEST way to feel the pulse of the school, since the career center might put out numbers that make them look good.

- Ask questions about "How easy is it to get in contact with recruiters from target companies?" "How often do they come here?" "what activities do they sponsor or do on campus?" "What are typical ways for students to get jobs from those companies?"

- I like river's question about professors and career services. Haas has hired a LOT of part-time advisors to help with advising and interviews, on top of the full time staff they retained (no reductions). The Dean is also very committed to hiring the same amount of professors as we planned on doing last year (I think 10 is the number in the next 2 years). These are the type of schools that you want to seriously consider.

Fit:
- Ask if there are any alumni events happening nearby. See if you can get invited to them. I went to a few alumni events for Haas last year and got to see how enthusiastic the Haas alums are.

- Go sit in on more classes (if you're local), hang out there for a day. People will definitely treat you different if you say you're an admitted student (versus prospective). They're also more willing to chat with you.

- Go to non-West Coast schools in the dead of winter (like, now). If you're not used to that weather, either get used to it or think twice.


Making the decision between 2 or more great schools is TOUGH. But in the end, if you do all that research, you will have a gut feeling of which school is best for you. Good luck!

Wow! I might have start this thread, but does that stop me from nominating it to go into the vault?

Awesome stuff Kryzak! You listed stuff I never even thought about!

Thanks!!!

RF

brilliant list kryzak... and thanks refurb for asking this question... reminded me that i should be thinking about these questions too

ZZeuSS

Thanks refurb. I've already added it to the vault, under "School choices, rankings, fit..."

Now kudos me, people! (j/k)