Chicago Booth $$ vs Yale SOM $ vs CBS (if admitted) for IB

Question

Hi guys!

Just wanted to share my story to see whether you could help me making my decision.

I have been lucky enough to be admitted to Chicago Booth (w/ good scholarship money, approx. 40% of full tuition) and to Yale SOM (w/ little scholarship money, approx. 15% of full tuition). I am currently hoping to be invited for interviews at Columbia Business School as well, so including this school is an exercise of wishful thinking.

My immediate post-MBA goal is Investment Banking, specifically M&A, in a BB IB in NYC.

I visited the three schools and I liked all of them for different reasons:

-  Yale SOM : I found really nice and welcoming people, amazing facilities (it's like the NASA) and great faculty (went to a class visit of a LEGEND professor and it was outstanding). Not so sure about the Integrated Curriculum because it's a new perspective but won't make a decision upon that.
-  Chicago Booth : Very nice and professional people, very welcoming as well and top-notch facilities (although not as amazing as those of Yale). Amazing faculty, and a relaxed but professional vibe from the student body I really liked. The flexible curriculum is amazing and Booth reputation for finance is great.
-  Columbia Business School : I liked the professional vibes and the NYC advantage they point out every time they can. I think the latter has a significant weight for me given my post-MBA goal. Facilities are not impressive at all, it's an old building, but I've read they're building new facilities. The class I attended was really good and students had very smart questions. I didn't feel the students to be as competitive among them as some forums say.

What I don't like:

-  Yale SOM : I did not like the scholarship money they gave me, I thought they would give me more than Booth (got Booth call first). I am not so sure I want to spend two years in New Haven. I like to study, don't get me wrong, but MBA should be a fun experience. I am not convinced Yale SOM has a vast alumni network in BB banks and although not many students will be recruiting for IB, I think it's more up to you and how you work with the Finance Club to achieve your job offer.
-  Chicago Booth : I think I like everything about Booth. The only thing I am not so sure about is Chicago (when I make my comparison with NYC), given that my girlfriend is currently living in NYC.
-  Columbia Business School : They probably ding me without an interview, but let's assume I am incredibly lucky and it is a real option. Life is very expensive in NYC but I would be sharing living expenses with my girlfriend, so that should not be a deciding factor. I guess that what I do not like about CBS is that they don't give much scholarship money, and turning down Booth's good offer might make me regret that decision in the future.

So you see, my mind is leaning towards Chicago Booth over Yale SOM, but still hopeful for CBS because of networking opportunities for IB and my girlfriend. I have not discarded Yale SOM yet, so any advice you can give me here is highly appreciated.

stoiczoan · Answer

Go for Booth! Booth has very strong recruiting in IB and places well in New York offices as well. Even if you get Columbia, I'd still say choose Booth. Its a great school... without a doubt in the top 5.. and only Wharton is stronger than Booth in Finance disciplines.
Staying away from girlfriend is a downside, but I think worth it in the long run.

madgabriel · Answer

Thanks  stoiczoan ! Very good points.

Mo2men · Answer

Congrats for those schools.

I would support the choice for Booth. It is one of the best and gave you higher scholarship than other Yale. Also, it is in big city and give you quick access to firms and organization or even travel to NY. It could give you other opportunity for other financial jobs (backup plans). Unless you got very attractive from CBS, then it would be easy to stick to Booth.

Good luck

bb · Answer

One more vote for Booth. Chicago is not cheap. Since it is a GF and not fiancé or spouse, I think OK to make the decision on your own. But if you have been together for 5 years and have no plans to split then you want to decide together.

Booth does look like an easy answer to your question. I like Chicago more than Manhattan and feel it is an improved but colder version of NYC. Booth does have some weaknesses such as location of the campus but nothing to be really concerned with.

Congrats on your great job and luck!

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ENGRTOMBA2018 · Answer

Booth wins another vote here. My own experience of recruiting for IB has shown me that BB offices in Chicago have a lot more to offer than NYC. This is something people dont take into account. Even if you are focused on NYC, Booth will provide you tremendous opportunities, coming from a person who goes to Kellogg and recruited for IB in NYC. Booth's finance faculty is definitely top 3, something Yale or even CBS wont come close to matching. Yes, it will be on you to network with BB banks in NYC but that is a very small commitment compared to the benefits you will reap once you get that coveted IB internship. BBs do take into account that you will be networking with NY bankers even while staying in Chicago. Finally, Booth is known to be very stingy with its scholarships and thus getting 40% tuition should definitely sway your decision towards Booth.

Good luck and let us know what you choose in the end.

Wilch · Answer

I know you're learning towards Booth, but I'd recommend that you reach out to Yale SOM's admission's office about Booth's scholarship offer. They may be able to match or up their scholarship offer. It never hurts to ask for more - the worst thing you can get is a "Wall Street no", which is no response. I've never heard of an offer being rescinded in the case of an admitted student asking (politely) for more scholarship money.

anamika4 · Answer

How you got lucky? Can you share your application strategy ?

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madgabriel · Answer

Thanks to all of you who have answered. Your input is very valuable to me.

With regards to  bb , I have almost 8 years with the girl, and she is soon to be my fiancé, so... it should be a decision we make together. Having that said, she is a doctor and she is doing a graduate program as well, so it is not like we are going to hang out a lot even if we live in the same city. I have talked about this with her, and she would support any decision I make. Thanks a lot for your comments.

Thanks a lot to you too, guys ( Mo2men ,  ENGRTOMBA2018  and  Wilch ). I have crunched my numbers and even with less scholarship, the New Haven experience is slightly cheaper. Therefore, I know I could do what  Wilch  suggests but I do not think it would change my mind about going to Booth. Right now I feel I am almost decided to go to Booth, but also waiting for Columbia. Somehow I feel recruiting for IB in NYC should be more natural living in NYC, but I might be wrong. The way I see the MBA is as an educational vehicle that will put me in the road to success at my career goals. Once I get the job, it is more up to me than the school I graduated from. At least, that's the way I see it.

anamika4 , pretty straightforward question. It is nice to meet you, too. I will share my story when I decide where to go.

jessepinkman · Answer

Booth > CBS without money so given the money this is a no brainer even if you end up getting into CBS. All of my friends who wanted NYC IB ended up at top BBs or EBs.

Wilch · Answer

I think if you're dead set on IB, you should do a bit of due diligence and ask alumni or current students about rate of offer and travel. Rates: I feel like if you're extremely well prepped, a top 10 school can get you into pretty much any firm you'd like, GS, MS, or great boutiques like Evercore, Moelis, PWP. With that said, I almost feel like there's some level of nepotism in IB hiring & people do care about brand (more so than other industries), especially when people interviewing you are mostly from business schools. BB banks should be littered with Boothies and CBSers, but do talk to people to get a feel for how much their brand name helps. Anyone who's truthful about their experience will look to share the downsides rather than giving you a rosy picture, you should keep that in mind when talking to these people. Travel: I have friends from various schools who recruited for IB - you'll need to head over to NYC (unless you're looking elsewhere) frequently regardless of where you are. Frankly speaking, IB recruitment is just a painful process, even for an onlooker such as myself. Friends at Yale who recruited for IB are in NYC a good 4 days a week; that's 16 hours a week just on metro north, not including the round trip between Grand Central and whichever banks they choose to visit for the day. Taking a 1/2/3 train downtown vs. flying out of ORD is a big difference. I think you pay all travel costs out of your pocket, so keep that in mind. For the record, I love Booth and would go there over CBS for several personal reasons, but I think it's important to consider your situation & what your values are before you make a decision. Ideally, CBS offers you more scholarship and you take it back to Booth and ask for more. In fact, you can ask Booth for more just because you have other offers. The one thing I regret is not asking for more before accepting my offer (rectified that issue during my full time job search

).

ENGRTOMBA2018 · Answer

I dont agree with the level of facetime you are expected to show when you in Booth/Kellogg. It is not the same as when you would have been at CBS/NYU or any other East Coast school. Yes, if you go to a school on the East coast you are supposed to literally meet bankers atleast 2-3 days a week but that is not the case with Chicago schools, especially when you are recruiting out of NYC offices. A good point that you bring up is not exactly nepotism but more towards an inclination towards brand name and Booth wins hands down in this regard. Bankers themselves told us that they need to see certain levels of commitment, say attending the annual 'treks' that Booth conducts to NYC offices of various Investment Banks (BBs/MMs/Boutiques) as well as doing informational calls with bankers on various product/industry teams. Doing anything more is definitely on you but is not needed.

Wilch · Answer

Thanks for chiming in! It's great to hear you guys aren't tortured by the constant travels. I'll keep that in mind for future references.

ENGRTOMBA2018 · Answer

Hah! That’s exactly what my friends at CBS and NYU have experienced. We just need to be careful with generalizing experiences of certain schools to others. Different regions of MBA schools have different expectations.

Posted from my mobile device

Posted from my mobile device

madgabriel · Answer

Hey, thanks a lot Wilch and ENGRTOMBA2018! I remember during my Booth interview I asked my interviewer how much traveling to NYC were I be expected to do while recruiting for IB and he told me that, strictly speaking, none. And he worked in IB. But in the end, as ENGRTOMBA2018 points out, I think what makes a difference here is the little extra things you are willing to do to get a job. Being in NYC could be a blessing... or a curse (if you're not the kind of person who haves no problem with being a "flatterer" or with licking bankers' sitting body parts), as you are expected to make more one-on-one interviews and coffee chats than those you would if you studied in a distant city.

Btw, thanks for your input jessepinkman! Just out of curiosity, why do you think Booth over CBS is a no-brainer?

Btw, thanks for your input  jessepinkman ! Just out of curiosity, why do you think Booth over CBS is a no-brainer?

jessepinkman · Answer

biases aside, if we are to assume booth and cbs are more or less equal for IB, booth gave you a 40% scholarship. unless you get into CBS with at least as good of a scholarship, booth is a no brainer. if the money is equal, there are pluses and minuses for both schools which will largely come down to personal preferences.

goaltop30mba · Answer

How much did you score on the gmat?

Posted from my mobile device

bb · Answer

720. Login on the computer and you will see it.

kardonirish24 · Answer

It's definitely between Booth and CBS here...I wouldn't consider Yale at this point. Booth and CBS have pretty distinct student bodies, so if/when you get into Columbia, I would definitely go to both admit weekends and see who you click with more. I got into both last year and found that I felt a better fit with CBS than Booth. Also regarding the constant coffee chats that are pretty much required at CBS, I do agree with that, but if you're someone who's good at talking with people and networking, I see this as an advantage for you to get to know a lot more people at the firms and actually get to know the firms. Like business schools, a lot of the firms have different cultures and personalities, and meeting actual people from each firm in person definitely gives you a better feel for the firms than a phone call or the show put on during a banking Trek to NYC, so that is something I would take into consideration when thinking about where you want to be and how you want to network. My friends recruiting for banking spent a lot of time downtown meeting with bankers, but by the time applications were due, they had a really good idea of what banks they really liked and which banks they would be completely fine not getting an offer from. It is definitely a tough decision, but you can't really go wrong, just pick which school is the best fit for you. I picked Columbia for my reasons, and you may make the same decision as well, but just definitely visit, ignore the building (yes, Uris is ugly), and think about WHY you're going to b-school. In terms of job opportunities, there really isn't much of a difference if any between Booth and CBS. If you don't get into CBS though, then Booth over SOM for sure.

Mapshooter10 · Answer

100% Booth here. They do exceptionally well on Wall Street and you aren't required to make a ton of trips to banks in NYC, I think just once or twice total. Their career center protects students from banks being "overly predatory."

At CBS, you'd have networking events every day/night and be required to show up. Fairly exhausting process if you ask me, and much more competition at CBS since it's a well-known IB feeder.

Chicago Booth $$ vs Yale SOM $ vs CBS (if admitted) for IB

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