adamtn wrote:
ultra-elite does play a HUGE factor.
I would say for Harvard, Stanford, & Wharton....go even at a higher cost. For others such as Kellogg, Booth, Columbia, MIT, Yale, maybe you can make an argument, but hopefully they give you at least a 25-50% scholarship. Anything lower than that, probably better to just take a full scholarship at a top 30 school than pay full price at a top 10-15.
Just my two cents.
I've seen several people take the money at school 20-30 in lieu of higher tuition at school 10-15 and come out of school with no debt, but also without an MBA level job (or a job in the industry they desire).
I really think it depends on what the OP wants to do post MBA. Evigirl's situation is also complicated by the fact that she's an international student so no debt is safer in case she cannot work in the US after graduation. But in terms of immediate post MBA opportunities, I would say that there are more opportunities in the top 15 than there are below it. I am not saying that the opportunities are different. There will be marketing, consulting, finance, etc. jobs coming out of each tier. There are just MORE of these jobs (and also more blue chip companies) at top tier schools.
It's two very different gambles and both are risky. Some people bet on the school's pedigree, others bet on the "no debt" freedom. I just caution people to understand that while you may gain the freedom of less debt you might lose the freedom of more career options. Tough call.