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rhyme
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AbhiJ
Princeton is still highly regarded because it has not climbed up the MBA bandwagon. The closest thing it offer is Masters in Finance and the program has around 25 students every year.

Princeton is highly regarded because it's Princeton. Not climbing onto the MBA bandwagon is irrelevant. Harvard graduates 900+ MBAs a year and I think they're doing just fine.

Master of Finance is a much different degree than the MBA. Harvard has 9000+ applicants a year, Princeton's M.F. program has under 900.

https://www.princeton.edu/bcf/graduate/faq/index.xml#compareadmitted
https://www.princeton.edu/bcf/graduate/faq/index.xml#compcomparetomba
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AbhiJ
Part of the reason MBA brand is getting diluted is because of the several programs offered by 1 school. If they want to create PT MBA then they should decrease the number of FT enrollment. Imagine 2000 Booth MBAs graduating every year, won't that dilute the brand. Princeton is still highly regarded because it has not climbed up the MBA bandwagon. The closest thing it offer is Masters in Finance and the program has around 25 students every year.

The MBA as a whole is getting diluted because every two-bit former community college has one now and they accept anyone with a pulse, not because Booth graduates a lot of students. As long as the school allows only qualified students in to their program, it will remain highly regarded. Haas for example is working on an expansion to bring their full time class from 240 to around 300 students. I highly doubt they're going to drop in the ranking as a result.

As long as the students are qualified, a larger program can be an advantage since the network will be larger.
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The nut does appear elitist https://www.jaybhatti.com/
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AbhiJ
Part of the reason MBA brand is getting diluted is because of the several programs offered by 1 school. If they want to create PT MBA then they should decrease the number of FT enrollment. Imagine 2000 Booth MBAs graduating every year, won't that dilute the brand. Princeton is still highly regarded because it has not climbed up the MBA bandwagon. The closest thing it offer is Masters in Finance and the program has around 25 students every year.

The MBA as a whole is getting diluted because every two-bit former community college has one now and they accept anyone with a pulse, not because Booth graduates a lot of students. As long as the school allows only qualified students in to their program, it will remain highly regarded. Haas for example is working on an expansion to bring their full time class from 240 to around 300 students. I highly doubt they're going to drop in the ranking as a result.

As long as the students are qualified, a larger program can be an advantage since the network will be larger.
Not disputing any of your points, but do you have a source for Haas' plans to expand? I had heard Yale SOM was planning to expand, but hadn't heard the same of Haas.
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AbhiJ
Part of the reason MBA brand is getting diluted is because of the several programs offered by 1 school. If they want to create PT MBA then they should decrease the number of FT enrollment. Imagine 2000 Booth MBAs graduating every year, won't that dilute the brand. Princeton is still highly regarded because it has not climbed up the MBA bandwagon. The closest thing it offer is Masters in Finance and the program has around 25 students every year.

The MBA as a whole is getting diluted because every two-bit former community college has one now and they accept anyone with a pulse, not because Booth graduates a lot of students. As long as the school allows only qualified students in to their program, it will remain highly regarded. Haas for example is working on an expansion to bring their full time class from 240 to around 300 students. I highly doubt they're going to drop in the ranking as a result.

As long as the students are qualified, a larger program can be an advantage since the network will be larger.
Not disputing any of your points, but do you have a source for Haas' plans to expand? I had heard Yale SOM was planning to expand, but hadn't heard the same of Haas.

Here you go:

https://poetsandquants.com/2012/02/24/ha ... expansion/

They're looking at building a new $50 million building that would allow the program to expand to 300 FT students.
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UTMPA2011
I am still stuck on how this guy earned a Wharton MBA. The poor logic and reasoning skills demonstrated by this article remind me of USA Today reporting.

The content is poorly supported with unverifiable facts. There are also many inconsistencies throughout the article regarding the "value" of the MBA, which is not clearly defined. The broadness of the discussion of the value of an MBA as a whole only serves to weaken the overall argument because it undermines the statement that top 5 programs are still valuable.

The startup focus of the article is way off in left field and is very limiting in support of his conclusion. I was also surprised to read the statement: “However, most MBA programs do a poor job of preparing students for the uncertain economic reality we live in today, which makes an MBA a poor investment.” What? There is no support for this viewpoint. I am shocked that he does not provide a concrete example with a more realistic time horizon for evaluating “value”. Laughable. The scariest part of this article is that he was part of the adcom. Yikes.

I want to include this article as support for an application to Wharton. I would include an analysis of the logical errors and a statement that I would never embarrass Wharton like this guy.

An AWA-6 quality analysis indeed. :wink:
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I don't think this article shows the multiple advantages and disadvantages of an MBA.

First, whether or not someone needs the MBA depends greatly on the situation of the person. Are they making a career change? (you can't easily change functions without an MBA); did they go to an elite university? (part of the advantage of an MBA is the network - if someone doesn't have that from undergraduate they may need it from grad school); do they want to kick off their career in a job that does require an MBA? (e.g. finance, consulting, brand management?)

Second, let's talk about startups:
--1) Many of the jobs that don't "require" MBAs do require the skills that one gains from working at a top company that requires an MBA. If you look at a lot of successful startups you will find that there are many ex consultants and bankers. Many of the jobs - particularly those at the top - respect the learnings one gets at a place like McKinsey (which requires an MBA past the analyst level). Find a job description at a startup that sounds interesting to you and look at the profile requirements.
--2) Startups don't pay much - employees make money from the equity IF it pans out (and many don't) so having a good chunk of change in the bank is often a prerequisite to working at a startup- especially if one is supporting a family
--3) An MBA can often help someone kick-start their company. Many programs have programs to enable one to start their company during school with funding and support - which often increases the chance of success
--4) Personally I have never heard of people "hiding" the fact that they have an MBA. Yes - at anyplace (startup or corporate) some people will have a chip on their shoulder but they are the ones with the issue - not a good reason to skip the MBA. Also - nobody runs around "talking" about their MBA. You talk about it in the interview and that's it. I don't recommend bragging about anything - it doesn't make for good relationship building

Third, let's talk about the network
--1) One of the biggest advantages of the MBA is the network you build (within your class and by virtue of having gone to the school). I graduated in 2006 and most of my jobs since then have been acquired by talking to an alumnus (in my year or not). Almost anyone who went to CBS (not on his list) will pick up the phone for a quick conversation about a potential job. Want to start a company? Your biggest source of help and potentially funding comes from this network.

Fourth, let's talk about rankings:
1) While I do agree that the value of an MBA declines with the rank - I think it's a bit harsh to say there is no point unless you go to a top five school (I would also question his choice of top 5; I personally turned down Kellogg for Columbia as I thought the latter was a better fit for me). In fact the schools don't even define a top five - they refer to the "top" as the M7.
2) While I do agree that for some people it is better not to go unless they get into a top school (though I usually recommend top ten) it is situation dependent. There are many reasons for getting an MBA and many companies like MBAs from different schools (want to live in Texas? I would highly recommend a McCombs MBA - the network is amazing!).

In short, I think it is a bit short-sighted to state there is no need for an MBA - and that it is only worthwhile from five specific schools. I don't think the MBA is for everyone. I often discourage potential Clients from applying to safety schools - but like most things in life it is important to discuss in context.

If you are considering an MBA and don't know if it is right for you, I offer free consultations and am happy to discuss your specific situation. pamela@jaffeadvantage.com
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At the most basic logic level, this makes no sense.

Top 30 schools get graduates placements to the very same organizations and positions in IB, Consulting, Fortune500, Tech etc (the numbers maybe different). So one blanket statement makes no sense. So a Ross grad gets the exact same career restart as a Wharton grad.

It's reasonable to think about your personal ROI of an MBA, but top 20 or top 30 programs have solid access to skills, placements and also direction through wider exposure (the last time you'll have such a blank canvas with so many ways to paint it).
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