Are there more than two options?

FT Haas
FT Fuqua

??

Posted from my mobile device
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I was choosing between Haas and Fuqua (full ride, keller scholarship) a year ago, so I would like to add my 2 cents.

- Haas is significantly stronger for 2/3 of your potential destinations (tech and entrepreneurship). When it comes to entrepreneurship, Haas is head and shoulders above Fuqua and I think not many will argue with that.
- Fuqua does not send as many PMs into tech as Haas does, even though their class size is bigger. They do send quite a few people in other roles, primarily around finance and marketing.
- Haas is still pretty strong when it comes to MBB and other consulting. And it is in a prime position for recruiting into SF offices - probably as popular as NYC offices nowadays. Having said that, Fuqua gives you a higher overall chance of landing MBB offer, they are known as a good consulting school and I will not try to take it away from them.
- I felt that Haas provides a lot of versatility when it comes to recruitment and I stand by this statement. I came here with an aim of switching into renewable energy (Haas is perfect for that), then decided to explore design thinking (Berkeley Innovation Group has deep connections within the industry and runs many classes at Haas), and ended up going PM Faang way in the end as I wanted to explore tech and get myself extra POVs for my post-MBA career decision. At all stages I felt well supported by our CMG and peers who helped me with networking within those industries. I cannot tell much about Fuqua in that respect.
- I was lucky enough to visit both admit days and I just clicked with my future classmates at Haas. But like bb said, schools tend to make themselves look better during admit days and you will only meet a fraction of your class there, so this is not always representative of reality.
- Don't judge business schools by their parent universities, a random person in a bar may be impressed by it, but recruiters will not. They know exactly what particular schools are strong at and how good they really are. With that in mind, both Haas and Fuqua will be prestigious in the eyes of recruiters and will get you a foot in the door.

If you have more specific questions about Haas, academics, social etc. DM me, I'll be happy to chat or connect you with my classmates.

Interesting Analysis!

-How did you feel Haas stood out from a Tech/Entrepreneurship perspective, outside of its location in SF and general student body desire to enter it? Was it actual resources on campus? Funding on campus? Collaboration? Fuqua has multiple Centers and they gave me $$$ for one of them - which honestly is what's even making me consider Fuqua at the moment. The "hype" of Fuqua's entrepreneurship might be bigger than what's going on- but would love to hear how you felt it was different?
-How was the MBB experience? I feel Haas MBB isn't accurate because not many are interested in it. With that said, Fuqua is a consulting factory- which is a interesting silver lining to have a solid career chip in play while focusing on something else. With Haas, I assume the SF offices would be the best bet- which might be the hardest move considering how competitive those offices are - with students coming from H/S/W.
-INTERESTING distinction of Tech Roles. Do you believe non PM roles effect career trajectory within Tech? I heard PM comp is comparable, so non PM roles would be interesting loop.
-Fuqua just dominates MBB+Big4 consulting in the East/South. I feel it's one of those paths where you can sit back, do what's required, show ambition and take care of what you need - and end up at the company. The downside is that it's in offices that are more lifestyle based and not as highly regarded. Not to be a snob at all, because I would take a MBB role in South Dakota - but Haas location definitely is a distinctive factor - for good and bad.
- How is your experience with the CMG Services at Haas? Fuqua is regarded as a top 5 Career services center, so wanted to know how much support and structure the staff actually provides? (just spoke to a current Haas student who echo'ed the same). I absolutely love the idea of exploring roles within industries that are exclusive to the innovation in the Bay. That a point for Haas +1
-Did not get admit weekends thanks to COVID-19.
-Interesting. My contention with Haas and most other full service B-Schools and is that their UG Programs are largely more competitive and prestigious than the MBA. Also Public Schools tend to be more difficult in getting alumni engagement than private universities (speaking from first hand experience). I think to mention UC Berkeley- Haas to anyone would prompt what degree, vs Duke Fuqua is clearly an MBA - and thus you would only be networking with other MBA level students. Berkeley is awesome at some many degree programs, you could encounter a undergraduate, PT, Executive, etc.. which would skew the true value of the network for MBA career paths. I also feel Duke is largely a more global brand and is recognized globally (thanks to Nike and Coach K) oppose to Cal-Berkeley-Haas which would be known in the US, more so West Coast + Asia.


This is clearly a comparison of the two most opposite programs on opposite coasts. Difficult Choice!

All that being said- how do you feel about your decision to date?

newbiequestions16

-How did you feel Haas stood out from a Tech/Entrepreneurship perspective, outside of its location in SF and general student body desire to enter it? Was it actual resources on campus? Funding on campus? Collaboration? Fuqua has multiple Centers and they gave me $$$ for one of them - which honestly is what's even making me consider Fuqua at the moment. The "hype" of Fuqua's entrepreneurship might be bigger than what's going on- but would love to hear how you felt it was different?
There are multiple accelerators and programs to help you develop your start up idea (Berkeley SkyDeck, STEP, Lean Launchpad just to name the few) and there is quite a bit of funding. Competitions also help secure some additional funding and Haas is doing great on that front. There is mentorship available from the faculty and there is quite a bit of support from alumni who are willing to invest, if your business idea is good of course. At least three start ups recruited UCB CS undergrads simply because they have an easy access to them, and those kids are some of the smartest I've met in my entire life.

-How was the MBB experience? I feel Haas MBB isn't accurate because not many are interested in it. With that said, Fuqua is a consulting factory- which is a interesting silver lining to have a solid career chip in play while focusing on something else. With Haas, I assume the SF offices would be the best bet- which might be the hardest move considering how competitive those offices are - with students coming from H/S/W.
I did not recruit into consulting myself, but speaking only because I saw so many of my friends go that route. I think to get more details you can reach out to out consulting club leadership and they will share all the details with you. Let me know in DM and I can intro you.

-INTERESTING distinction of Tech Roles. Do you believe non PM roles effect career trajectory within Tech? I heard PM comp is comparable, so non PM roles would be interesting loop.
There is a pretty significant difference between PM and non-PM compensations, and this I can say with certainty. I do not want to say that career projections for someone a finance associate at Microsoft are bleak, but you are not their core personnel so to speak. If you want to be core doing finance, you should go into the finance industry. In tech, Devs are the most important and (in some companies) the most respected people. BUT without PMs it is hard for big techs develop competitive products, because PMs take the customer side and push their needs through, while Devs are pushing for what they think is best (which doesn't always align with the customer needs). So as a non-PM or technical person in tech, you are unlikely to have a significant impact on products.

-Fuqua just dominates MBB+Big4 consulting in the East/South. I feel it's one of those paths where you can sit back, do what's required, show ambition and take care of what you need - and end up at the company. The downside is that it's in offices that are more lifestyle based and not as highly regarded. Not to be a snob at all, because I would take a MBB role in South Dakota - but Haas location definitely is a distinctive factor - for good and bad.
Just a general note, you cannot sit back when working in consulting or you will be out before you know it OR you will have zero career progression. If MBB was that laid back, while guaranteeing success, then everyone would be gunning for it. If you want to move into tech, then working in SF consulting offices will get you some relevant experience (project wise) that you can then use to transfer into Google, Amazon or start ups. I don't think the nature of MBB projects in Texas will help you as much in doing the same transition.

- How is your experience with the CMG Services at Haas? Fuqua is regarded as a top 5 Career services center, so wanted to know how much support and structure the staff actually provides? (just spoke to a current Haas student who echo'ed the same). I absolutely love the idea of exploring roles within industries that are exclusive to the innovation in the Bay. That a point for Haas +1
At the end of the day, no matter how good CMG is it will not get you a job easily. I found them good at understanding what opportunities are out there, getting some structure in my initial resume and cover letter prep, doing some initial "soul searching" and getting contacts within companies. In my opinion, the most helpful resource are you peer advisors, i.e. fellow 2nd years who helped me A LOT. They will help you craft your resume specifically for an industry or a company, will do mock interviews, mock cases, etc.

-Did not get admit weekends thanks to COVID-19.
Trust me, we were really bummed about it too because we love those admit weekends (they are 100% student organized).

-Interesting. My contention with Haas and most other full service B-Schools and is that their UG Programs are largely more competitive and prestigious than the MBA. Also Public Schools tend to be more difficult in getting alumni engagement than private universities (speaking from first hand experience). I think to mention UC Berkeley- Haas to anyone would prompt what degree, vs Duke Fuqua is clearly an MBA - and thus you would only be networking with other MBA level students. Berkeley is awesome at some many degree programs, you could encounter a undergraduate, PT, Executive, etc.. which would skew the true value of the network for MBA career paths. I also feel Duke is largely a more global brand and is recognized globally (thanks to Nike and Coach K) oppose to Cal-Berkeley-Haas which would be known in the US, more so West Coast + Asia.
I think you are overestimating popularity of college basketball across the globe, as an international I have no idea who coach K is for example My boss asked "Duke of what?" because he is English, asked whether I am applying to a breakfast company (Kellogg) and whether I am a hippie (Berkeley). Again, check what your priorities are; are you trying to impress people or managers (but I would question whether this is a good manager) by saying a flashy name e.g. Harvard ... Extension School? Or do you want to impress recruiters and majority of managers who know exactly what your degree and school name are worth? I would go with the latter any day.

Also, you are not competing with undergrads, they are recruiting for completely different roles and levels. If MBAs were competing with Berkeley or Duke undergrads, we would've been unemployed.

All that being said- how do you feel about your decision to date?
Never looked back on my decision! Amazing people and culture, great school and professors, lovely weather, perfect location (lockdown made me appreciate this location even more), and it got me opportunities I could only dream off before MBA.

One last thing to note, IMO Fuqua building is old in a bad way. Duke campus is beautiful, but Fuqua building is mediocre at best.

solid feed back. Will DM You! Still 50/50 on my decision but let's chat off line.

Hah! UC Berkeley is consistently ranked as the #1 public university in the world and was only behind Harvard, MIT, and Stanford overall. Duke was 23rd. I live in Asia where the Berkeley name is widely recognized, much more so than Duke, and I have friends who work in Europe and have told me that UC Berkeley is very well regarded there.

It's totally fine if you're more inclined to join Fuqua (I hope you did), but honestly, it looks a bit pointless to try and "dispel the allure of Haas" and certainly comes across as trying too hard.
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