Darden ($) vs Booth ($) [Solved: Booth]

I think Booth with no comparison, esp if you are interested being in Chicago long term, Booth is like a fortress. Any door in Chicago will be opened for you. Recruiting into many financial roles are very strong and some of the difference in cost of living will be recouped after just a few flights in Charlotsville and the cost of those flights.

I think a 10% difference in cost (if you take the full tuition + opportunity cost) is fairly negligible for a strong Top 5 or Top 3 program (depends who you ask) that leads the finance pack and the only difference is the cost of living really, which is a better standard of living downtown Chicago, so you are not just wasting money. You are actually getting a benefit! kmwantstogoschool - do you want to weigh in on the Booth Recruiting?

Good Luck!

Thanks for the feedback!

Would you say that Booth's Career Development Office is stronger? Hopefully I can hear about recruiting at Booth as well.
Thanks, again.

Hey OP! Could you pls share what kind of role in Financial Services exactly? It will help me be most transparent with the recruiting related info I share. Will also address your teaching methodology Q’s about Booth in that same post. Do not know about Darden so cannot compare but happy to provide whatever details about Booth you require!

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Hi KM, thanks for writing. I actually come from specialty-retail background, but would like to leverage an MBA for a career change. I'm good with numbers and had limited experience as a Financial Analyst, so am interested in the financial services industry, sell- or buy-side doesn't matter. I also have a tech background, since I have a BS in Computer Science, so I was also thinking something in Analytics or applied technology. Would also be interested in VC or hedge funds, but being realistic, I don't think I fit the profile for recruiters.

As for methodology, I'm sure Booth does some Case-Method, just not sure what proportion. My perception is that Booth is known for being analytical and relatively quant-heavy, but how much? Is it only for finance-related courses? Also, considering that the whole Coronavirus situation may extend into the fall, would virtual learning be a handicap or not, do you think? Thanks.

Hey OP! From a recruiting stand point I think Booth is a solid bet for you. Banking and Corp Fin recruiting is super structured and successful. Hedge Fund and VC is less structured but the Booth network, professors and student run clubs can open almost all doors in Chicago in those fields. Career switching into these fields is not that hard, it’s easiest for banking and Corp Fin but with the right support, which booth does offer, VC and Hedge Funds will work out too. Only caveat is if you’re an international and need work autorisation to work in the US, then VC and Hedge Fund can be challenging, not so with banking. Academically, the case method is used extensively, I’d say around 75% of class work including finance classes use cases; we just do more excel modelling and data stuff as part of the case method. Only some very basic starter classes and a few advanced asset pricing classes eschew the case method in favour of a “let’s do sums based on what we have learned” approach. So you’ll be exposed to more cases than you need, I’m sure. Also, doing data stuff is more fun when it’s in service of solving an actual case.
The corona stuff, I want to stay away from commenting about; too many moving pieces. We are doing remote classes on Zoom for spring, and I can circle back with a review once they kick off; it’s super premature to say right now. Also it will definitely impact recruiting and student clubs if it extends into the fall. It’s a black swan event, and I have no data, so wouldn’t want to speculate.

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Thanks a bunch! Very helpful feedback!

I would guess that if you have to do online learning at Booth, you would have to do online learning at Darden as well so it’s probably not a consideration in this choice. (Though I agree, would be helpful to set expectations). Also looking at the overall health of the airline and travel industry, if we have to do online learning in the fall, I’m not sure that there will be any pilots left for airlines in business to fly. i don’t want to be doom and gloom, My point is that we will have a lot bigger issues to worry about than online learning

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