California State Universities CSU

Question

I'm thinking of applying to CSUs for MBA. Any suggestions?

Some CSUs have low admission requirements, GPA can be as low as 2.5 and 400-550 for GMAT. Tuition for non-residents are around 10 thousand a year. But are those schools any good?

Hjort · Answer

Some of them have better reputations than others, especially in a local or regional context. Would a local or regional school be consistent with your goals?

faifai0714 · Answer

I live in Los Angeles, so I would love to apply to schools closer to Los Angeles. Another reason is that I am a film production major and I would like to intern at Hollywood film studios. I discovered that schools that are closer to metropolitan cities have higher requirements, whereas schools that are in rural areas have less demanding requirements. That's my thought about CSUs. Just curious, Hjort, do you know which CSUs have better MBA reputation?

Hjort · Answer

There are a lot of CSUs to choose from in the LA metroplex; take a closer look at CSUN and CSULB.

similan · Answer

I had a 3.7 undergrad GPA, a 640 GMAT on my first attempt, and attended CSUN's MBA program. I graduated with a 3.5 GPA (wasn't really concerned with maintaining a high GPA, just wanted to finish) and have been struggling to even get interviews with firms. I might also add that most people would consider me to be highly articulate, perceptive, and reasonably intelligent as well. 
 
 I personally don't believe that a strategic or market analysis prepared by a graduate from a "lesser" school with say a 3.5 or higher GPA, versus a Wharton graduate would have dramatic differences; however, I can now clearly see the issues associated with finding jobs for graduates coming from such academic backgrounds.

Needless to say, I am now in the process of doing damage control, studying to score a 720-730 on the GMAT and also taking the upcoming CFA Level 1 in June. USC's post MBA 25 unit program is a serious consideration as well.

The moral of this story is to attend the best program you can afford, and to be realistic about the value of an MBA from a lower-tier school.

Anonymous · Answer

One of the schools I am looking at is Cal Poly SLO. Does anyone have any feelings on this program?

loom · Answer

Been looking through the U.S. News 2008 Rankings book and most of the Cal State Programs have bare minimum requirements for GMAT scores (i.e. 500+) and other admissions criteria. I think one can expect to have to work a lot harder to network and create his / her own opportunities post-MBA. 

When compared to the likes of Anderson, Haas, UC Davis, UC Irvine, USC, Pepperdine, and a host of other private universities, it may be tough to compete with a Cal State MBA. just my 2 cents.

deeeee · Answer

i agree with loom

shanraj · Answer

So , If I am working and Doing a part-time MBA in cal state CSUN or CLB it is not worth for money/time?
I am in just process to know how good the cal state MBA before my admision?

ozky · Answer

How solid are the CSU schools about their minumum 2.5 GPA requirement? If one has a GPA near 2.00 border but has a GMAT score greater than 700, does he have a chance to be admitted?

feellikequitting · Answer

I don't know, why would you try to retake the GMAT once again, when you had 1) a great gpa for a top 5-10 school, 2) why would you take an additional 25 units when you're done with your MBA, 3) again, why retake the gmat. CSULA, CSULB, CSUF, can be great schools, but the reality is that you're average income for MBA's compared to those with MBA's from top 20 schools will be far less than those graduates from state schools. Personally, I would wait and apply to top schools when I had that ideal GMAT score.

California State Universities CSU

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