Darden

I'm considering pulling out of my Darden app and canceling my trip to interview.

Why?

During my visit to Cornell a conversation started with some other visitors and with some students at Cornell - specifically around work life balance. Cornellians said that while it was challenging it was manageable and that people worked around each others schedules well. One girl mentioned someone in her study group who left everyday at 5, no exceptions, and the team just set up a schedule that worked. Another guy was religious and wouldn't get together on Sundays, so the team agreed to that. In short, the students made it sound like it was demanding but normal.

It got me thinking - if Cornell is "reasonable" how is the GSB comparatively speaking?

I called some of the students I'd met there and got much of the same feedback that Cornellians gave me. There are some bad days and even some late nighters, but for hte most part, its class in the morning ,and a few hours in the afternoon, sometimes into the evening, but not often.

So, if this was "rigorous" what was Darden?

I decided to find out.

I spoke with one alumnus the other day that described the workload as "a nightmare." To quote her "They push you to the brink of breaking and just as you are about to crack, they ease off. Then they push you again to the brink." Her words, not mine.

Somewhat concerned, I called another alum.

"It's hell on earth. If you are married, I really don't recommend going. I knew some people who went married and it was a real problem for them. It's a small town already, and if you aren't home at all, it's doubly worse because your wife or husband will be sitting around all day with nothing to do. People wallowed."

I grew more concerned, so I picked up one of those books that lists a bunch of schools and all about them. In there it says "If you are not afraid of 70 to 80 hour work weeks, Darden might just be the place for you."

It goes on to quote other alum ".... comes at a great expense to your personal life... .... I often wondered whether the price was worth paying."

Then, I came across "A day at Darden":

8:00 am – 9:25 am First Class
9:25 am – 10:00 am First Coffee
10:00 am – 11:25 am Second Class
11:25 am – 11:45 am Break
11:45 am – 1:10 pm Third Class
1:10 pm – 2:40 pm School Events
Personal schedule might include co-curricular activities (speakers, club meetings, etc.), meetings with faculty, company briefings, lunch, exercise, and personal time.
3:00 pm – 7:00 pm Individual preparation of next day’s cases, leisure time, dinner
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Learning Team
(this is the typical meeting period; times vary by team)

This seemed almost draconian in it's structure. Inflexible, demanding and obtuse in it's rigidity.

I knew Darden was "bad", but I had clearly underestimated just how rough it was. But had I talked to some "bad apples?"

I called two more alumni. One said "This is a place for people who want investment banking. I came from IB, so I thought it would be a cakewalk. It was worse." I've worked in IB. It's horrible. If Darden is worse, I can't imagine.

So by now, I find myself wondering, "why in the heck am I applying here?"

In short, I think my essays, despite the work, belong in my recycle bin when it comes to Darden. Just doesn't sound like the kind of atmosphere I want.

Just goes to show you - do your research early. I treated Darden as a backup, and only chose the school because of an interest in certain aspects of the school (case, batten, location) - but failed to dig deep enough to realize it's not somewhere I'd want to be - despite it's other great qualities. It was a costly mistake - I wasted quite a few hours planning everything, but the more I read and the more I research the more I start to realize it's just not the right place for me .

Don't do what I did - dig deep on your research, not just superficial.