LBS ($$) vs. INSEAD ($$) vs. Kellogg - Which one to Choose?

Hi zahramogadasi hope this finds you well

Congratulations on securing such coveted admits!

If you have strong reasons for being in the UK, LBS could be a solid choice. The key difference between INSEAD and LBS, in my opinion, is the duration of their MBA programs. INSEAD MBA is one of the shortest and most rigorous, which could pose challenges in managing academics and networking/recruitment simultaneously, especially if you are transitioning to consulting without prior experience. On the other hand, LBS offers a longer and more flexible program length that allows you to determine the duration you need to make the most of your MBA experience.

Albeit highly competitive, I believe that consulting opportunities out of INSEAD are unparalleled. Tier 1 consulting firms actively network with students and scout for potential talent in each cohort. They even assign mentors very early on to promising candidates to prepare for the interview process. There are numerous networking events and flamboyant gatherings both on and off campus where leading consulting firms try to sell their lifestyle to students.

Regarding BB's point about the French job market, I would like to add that INSEAD feeds heavily into the UK, Europe (Amsterdam, Munich, and Berlin primarily), the Middle East, and (all of) Asia and APAC markets. Most on-campus recruitment drives happen for these geographies. INSEAD is not really a French school (hasn't been for a long time I think), with a significant part of recruitment efforts happening through the Singapore Campus. From my personal observation, I have rarely seen INSEAD students join the program with the objective of entering the French job market and without prior French work permits, so you should not worry about that aspect.

As BB rightly mentioned, if you have even a slight interest in working in the United States, choosing a US school would be a better idea. Additionally, the opportunity to have more time to prepare for an industry transition, along with the financial aspects of living in the US, can be very attractive. I also want to highlight that Kellogg and INSEAD have a popular exchange program, and during Kellogg exchange periods, I remember almost 40% of my subject courses were filled with Kellogg students. If you decide to study at Kellogg, you may want to further explore this exchange opportunity.

Best wishes

Firstly, congrats! You've gotten into 3 amazing business schools. So it's a good problem to have. Here's what I think.

1. Money
If money isn't an issue, I wouldn't use this as a criterion for your decision. Sure, it's great to have it as an extra few words on your CV. But it's not going to make or break a consulting firm's decision to hire you.
If money is an important consideration, then the European schools are clearly a more cost-effective option.

2. Programme Length
Between LBS/Kellogg and INSEAD, I agree that the 2 year programme gives you more time for internships, etc.. But even at INSEAD, if you do the Jan - Dec intake, you will have summer to do an internship. It will be more intense at INSEAD, so personally I'd pick 2 years at LBS or Kellogg.

If your main reason for doing the MBA is to just change job and you aren't too interested in the whole experience, INSEAD might be good. You'll be in and out within a year, and can carry on with your career. It's higher risk, but if you push yourself, it could be higher reward.

3. Job Market
Between Kellogg and LBS, it depends if you prefer the US or UK. Both job markets are competitive. The UK may be slightly easier given the lower number of reputable MBA programmes in the UK (LBS, Oxbridge, and a handful of others). In the US, you'll be competing with all the Ivy's + Stanford, Stern, Booth, Sloan, etc..

4. Post-MBA Visa
The UK has recently introduced something called the Graduate Visa. This means that even if you don't have a job sponsor at the end of your MBA, you can still live and work in the UK for up to 2 years (only if you studied in the UK). So this is another plus of LBS compared to INSEAD. Given you want to work in an English-speaking country, the UK is your best bet in Europe so might as well be at LBS.

I'm not familiar with the US visa system, but from what I've heard, I THINK it is similar-ish to the UK where you have 2-3 years on the H1B visa (DON'T QUOTE ME ON THIS).

5. Long-term future
I would also consider thinking about where you want to be long-term. If it's either the US or UK, then pick the school in that country. If you plan on moving elsewhere, I would start LinkedIn stalking people at the companies you hope to work at in those locations. Some MBAs/schools may be more 'recognized' in some countries. If you want to play it safe, US MBAs are generally viewed as more 'holistic'. And obviously, Kellogg is one of the best US MBAs. Also, companies really like people with US work experience. If you work for a good consulting firm in the US, you wouldn't have a problem moving anywhere else in the world.

6. Who do you vibe with
Reach out to current students / alumni on LinkedIn. See who you connect with well. When applying for jobs, you'll probably need to network with alumni. So it'll be good to gauge their personality types and if you vibe with them. Of course, each school doesn't just produce people with the same personality. But just try your luck and see how well you connect. If you connect really well with someone from McKinsey who went to Kellogg and you become best friends, it will make your job hunt much easier.

Overall, this is how I'd rank them based on your preferences:
1. Kellogg
2. LBS
3. INSEAD

There's no wrong or right choice. I think INSEAD probably isn't the best fit given your preference for working in an English-speaking country. Between Kellogg and LBS, it's down to personal preference.

Hello all

First of all, thanks for sharing your thoughts with me. It helped me to better analyize the situation.

Some numbers changed in this time (INSEAD increased its offer to 55% and LBS to 75%).

So, I finally decided to join LBS.
I decided to go with a 2-year program, since I'm not confident about the job market situation in the next year.
Between the remaining options, I liked LBS and Kellogg almost equally. So I did some calculations and found out that it takes me about 6 years to cover the 130k that I have to pay more to Kellogg, by working in US instead of UK. Considering the fact that I might not be able to stay in US after 3 years (because of the probability of not getting H1B visa), I decided to go with the safe option.
I also realized that I like working in UK/Europe more than US. Because I've been a workohilic my whole life and I hope I can change it in the future.

Thanks again for your advice, everyone. I really appreciate it 🙏

Posted from my mobile device

Congratulations on your choice! This is fantastic news about the offers! Enjoy London and LBS and keep in mind that things will NOT be perfect. Things will suck but it is OK because they suck at other places and other schools too. With that scholarship, you should be in a good place to take some bumps and not be overly disturbed with a professor who is perhaps imperfect or a bad recruiting day. Things are never perfect, so pursue multiple leads and focus on new opportunities and things will work out.

This is pretty exciting to be leaving your old life and starting a new chapter!
Congrats!

Thanks for the nudge. I really needed it.

It seems like having many good options is a curse. There would be times when you look back and say oh, what if I've chosen the other one. Honestly, I've started having these thoughts even before joining the school!
So, I guess I have to write this sentence on a paper and keep it as a reminder.




Posted from my mobile device

Thank you for taking my note of encouragement correctly. I did not imply or mean to say that things would be worse at LBS just saying that any choice you make, for any business school including Harvard, things will not be perfect.