Desautels (McGill U) 2013 - Calling All MBA Applicants

Echelon,

It's because your profile says Location: United States (maybe you hadn't realized that until now?

GPA will also be sort of an issue for me, but I have contacted admissions people from Schulich and Rotman and both schools encouraged me to apply.

As for schools: I'm finding it kind of hard to decide among Canadian schools. It's not like in the US where some schools (HBS, Wharton, Stanford) are obviously better than others. The rankings differ a lot, and personally I'm more inclined to Rotman, then Schulich, then McGill. They are all great schools, but the location to me will be very important, since I don't speak French either. If I were to sum up the pros and cons, they would be:

Rotman - pros: location, international reputation, good rankings; cons: tuition.
McGill - pros: international reputation, job placement rate, smaller program (I have the impression this could mean it's easier to get a job); cons: location, small network (the "other side" of a small program)
Schulich - pros: good rankings, location (not as good as Rotman, but still Toronto) and tuition; cons: York doesn't have great overall reputation.

If you plan to go to finance, I'd say Rotman would be the best choice. Yes, you're going to be just one more of half of the class, but then again the best opportunities might be there after all. That's just my opinion, though. I'll probably have a more informed one after I visit the schools. And just like you, scholarships will play an important role in my decision. All things equaled I'd go to Rotman, but I'd need a generous scholarship from them for that condition to be true (and no scholarships from the others).

Now, even more important than which school, what do you think it's gonna be like in the Canadian job market for foreigners like us? I contacted a girl from Rotman and she said it's actually hard to get a good job. A guy from Schulich was more optimistic and said that it's totally possible to get a good job on par with Canadian-born MBAs.

Had my interview today but less than 30 minutes.Is this a good or bad sign?