Calling all Darden Fall 2011 Applicants!

I think Ross is a great school. I was super impressed with their facilities and students. Also, they are well-respected in pretty much every area from finance to marketing to GM. I found Darden to be a way better fit for me. My career track is Management Consulting for a couple years (preferably with MBB) and then long term in GM. I have come to conclude that with the possible exception of HBS, Darden is the best school out there to prepare someone for a career in GM. Additional reasons why I pick Darden over Ross, Fuqua, etc...

1. Case Method-based teaching - I loathe the lecture format. It seems so condescending to me. The professor is up there pontificating his points, and it is just too easy to zone out and miss what is going on. I realized that the lecture format was useless for me while I was still an undergrad. During my last 2 years of college I stopped going to lecture altogether. The case method makes so much sense to me because I can learn the material on my own first through reading and struggling through problems and issues, then I get to meet with the team and brainstorm on what we have all learned. Then, when we finally meet as a class we actually have something to talk about. For me, the case method is the most thorough way to commit the learning to long-term memory. Interestingly, while I was visiting campus, most of the students said that the learning is so intense 24/7 and you go over it so often that when it comes time for the final exam most students don't need to cram, because that info is already seared into their brain! I realize that other schools employ the case method, but from my interaction with students at Ross and Duke for example, it is to the tune of about 20-30%. Darden is 100% Case based in the first year
2. Community/Culture - The smaller class size appealed to me. I like Charlottesville better than Ann Arbor, not to mention the weather is far more bearable. Darden students just seemed more down to earth to me. Also, (for what it's worth) Darden ranked #1 for student satisfaction in BW rankings. The sense I get in speaking with alumni is that the Darden school revolves around putting the student first and giving them what they seek.
3. Career Opportunities/Career Center - Career Center is consistantly rated as one of the top in the nation. Having personally visited the career centers of 6 top schools this year, I will say that Darden just had it together better than anyone else. Also, they extend the career center services to all alumni indefinitely. The same cannot be said of most other schools. Darden does not have as many MBB recruits as Michigan but that is due to size (500 vs. 300). Proportionally, MBB hires more from Darden than Ross. Consulting hiring is up at all top schools, but Darden in particular. I was speaking with a second year last week who told me that Darden just announced that McKinsey alone had extended offers to 10% of the entire Darden Class this year-That proportion is comparable to HBS or Wharton.

...and last but not least, there is the X factor, that gut feeling that you just can't explain. I feel it with Darden.