Darden($) vs Cornell vs Ross vs Duke

Question

I am seeking some help from my fellow GMAT clubbers - I know I am probably in a situation most people would love to have, but I got accepted into Darden (with $), Cornell (with very less scholarship), Ross and Duke ($ unknown). My post MBA goal is to go into MC in the top-3 firms be it Asia/US.I am looking at an MBA that would open doors for me should I decide to move back to Asia.

While I have heard that Ross places a lot of students into MC, I am not sure how much I can learn from an MBA.

Meanwhile, I am highly attracted to the case study method at Darden as I feel I can really go to the next level (but three cons, one is the brand name, second, not sure about placements in MC and three, I see alot of posts by students 3-4 years ago on how UVA case study method and recruiting is not too great). I am not sure about the validity of the posts however.

I have also checked the employment reports, and besides Johnson it looks like Darden/Duke/Ross all place quite a significant bit into consulting.

Would love to seek your inputs as well. Which of these 4 are the most well-reputed and any advice you might have is always appreciated

Thanks for the help!

pike · Answer

All could take you to your consulting goal, so I think you need to go to the admit weekends and decide based on that. All are good names with different pro / cons.

There were some good thoughts on Darden v Cornell in this thread: darden-vs-cornell-94811.html?fl=similar

CobraKai · Answer

Concur. I would take a look at each school's employment reports to see how many students they send to consulting. In my view, Ross/darden/Johnson/fuqua are equals, so. Would focus on fit (Ross and fuqua a bit larger than Johnson and Darden) and teaching method (darden case method, Johnson Immersion).

Congrats on your admits. These are all great schools and will open doors for you.

Congrats on your admits. These are all great schools and will open doors for you.

ss87 · Answer

Thanks! What worries me is that unlike Darden(which doesnt have the exact # of students going into each company), Duke has a really good breakdown.

Is there anyway to find out the exact numbers? Right now, there is only a percentage shown for students going into each industry and a list of all employers where more than 2 grads are hired.

kingfalcon · Answer

This may not be exactly what you are looking for, but at least it's more information. On the Darden Internships page (https://www.darden.virginia.edu/web/MBA/ ... ternships/), it has an exact breakdown of the top internship hires, including all the consulting firms you are probably interested in.

ManhattanReview · Answer

I need to know a bit more about the nature of your scholarship, but if I were in your situation I would be leaning towards Darden. If you were speaking about Darden and HBS and wanted to go into MC, the choice would be a lot easier. However, you are choosing between schools with similarly strong reputations and I believe that the scholarship would give you a leg up in the recruiting process at Darden. Also, while you may think you want to do MC right now, you may decide to change your mind during school and if you wanted to do something not so high paying (either right away or fairly soon after graduation), then the benefits of the scholarship might provide the ability to make such a move.

Good luck making your decision.

Kimberly Plaga
Senior Admissions Consultant
Manhattan Review

Good luck making your decision.

Kimberly Plaga
Senior Admissions Consultant
Manhattan Review

ss87 · Answer

Bump up

jumsumtak · Answer

Please go through this if you haven't already. Should help: (school comparisons) the-everything-business-school-app-thread-99471.html and of course, I've told you what I'd do!

good luck.

CurrentDardenStudent · Answer

Hi there,
I am a 2nd year student at Darden and can speak to our program a bit.

In terms of the case method, it is a great experience and I encourage you to visit a class to check it out. It is definitely the most engaging classroom experience I have ever had - and challenges you to be a better communicator and also highly analytical about the case material. My favorite course in the first year core curriculum was Accounting, which I never would have predicted. But it was very interesting, strategic, and even philosophical at times - again, things I never thought I would say about accounting but it was all about the format and style of the course. So, I have gotten a great deal out of the case method and think overall it has lived up to the hype.

On the recruiting front, management consulting is a very popular track at Darden and I have been very impressed with the caliber and depth of firms recruiting on campus. Certainly, the Big 3 are represented and recruit heavily, as do others such as Deloitte, Booz, AT Kearney, and smaller boutique shops. I consider consulting one of Darden's strong suits, although I didn't personally pursue this path.

Hope this helps!

RossMBA2014 · Answer

Awesome place to be in! Last year, I was deciding between all those schools listed (as well as Columbia and Haas). I actually decided on Ross for a few reasons

1) I really liked their Action Based Learning approach and MAP program, it also provided me an opportunity to make a transition from an entrepreneurial and education background to consulting

2) Most schools tout the collaborative culture, but I felt a more sincere fit here at Ross. All the schools you mentioned have very close knit student bodies, but I felt most comfortable with Ross students. This week, for example, we have all the major consulting firms coming on campus. It is incredible how everyone who is interviewing for the same place is willing to help their classmates out do a mock behavioral/consulting case, even though we all know that about only half the people who apply for top MC firms will actually earn an internship offer

3) I loved the option to take classes outside of Ross. I actually took a class in the School of Public health my fist seamster because I was able to waive out of core accounting.

If I was in your place and wanted to peruse MC full time, I would decide between Darden/Duke and Ross. On a side note, I LOVED the people at Cornell, however, I think that landing top their MC from Johnson is slightly more difficult there. BCG, for example, still does not actively recruit on campus. Ross is also reducing our class size from 500 to 460, perhaps making the competition for MC slightly easier next year (by competition, I mean competition for face time, MC hire qualified people no matter which top program they attend)

Anyway, Ross was the best choice for me and I am happy I made the decision. Either way, you cannot go wrong and Congrats!!!!

infinitie · Answer

Agree. every school talks about how collaborative they are, but i feel that most from the Ross students and alumni. I am not sure about the resources on MC which school offer you the most, but if you want to come to Asia after graduation, the Ross alumni network is much stronger than the other two.

Darden($) vs Cornell vs Ross vs Duke

Which school for MC?

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