Stern (full ride) vs. MIT Sloan

I would base the decision on where you intend to work immediately after graduation. If you want to work in the US then I think you can make enough money post MBA to pay back the additional loans you will need to take to attend Sloan. If you want to then move to a role in LatAm then you also have the Sloan brand behind you.

If you want to work in LatAm immediately after graduation you should look at what salaries are like. Many firms pay less in emerging markets. That's fine if you were just worried about cost of living, but factoring in a large loan payment may be too much of a stretch. In that case coming out of school with less debt would likely make it more economically feasible to work in LatAm immediately post MBA. The Stern brand is no slouch and the school has many international students from LatAm so your network should be pretty extensive. You will likely find the same traditional MBA opportunities (marketing, finance, consulting) at Stern as you will at MIT so I don't think you will be losing anything significant from a career standpoint.

However, I do have a close friend who turned down a full ride to Darden to attend MIT because it's her dream school. If MIT is where you want to be, then $$ should not be the deciding factor. If you'd be equally happy at either school then don't feel bad about turning down a great brand for another that's still pretty strong overall.

The slavish adherence to magazine rankings and "ultra elite subclusters" completely misses the point. The entire notion that business schools can be force ranked on an overall basis is misguided. It's like trying to force rank cars- would you pay full price for a Ferrari if someone offered you a free Maserati because US News ranked it slightly higher? Would you choose a Mercedes over a Ford truck if you lived on a farm?

You are looking at two schools that will provide an excellent education. There's very little differentiation there. If you're looking for jobs outside of the US, you're going to get there through alumni networking. Which school provides a better opportunity there? I can't speak for MIT, but NYU has possibly the largest alumni network of any top business school, and the Latin American Business Association should be a major factor in making connections with alumni in the region. If you end up choosing to work within the US, there is virtually no differentiation between the two schools in job placement for marketing and consulting.

The next factor is which school you will enjoy the most, but I think the importance of this is overstated as well. You will have a great experience and be equally happy wherever you go.

The real question is, what substantial advantage does MIT offer you in marketing or consulting? And is it worth $100,000? Which school offers you a better ROI? This should be an easy decision.

An excellent post!
You don't have to chose between Stern and a University of Potato and Management, your choice is from two roughly equal schools.
But while attending Stern would offer you a smooth career start, attending MIT would leave a sizeable loan

Thank you for all your comments!! Some of your points made me consider more variables to my decision - this is getting tougher.

Considering that I only have 2-3 years of WE in a very small international company, will the brand name of the business school take more weight in the eyes of US or Latam recruiters? MIT has a much stronger brand than NYU in Latam. My opinion is based on my interactions with CEO's, COO's, etc. of mid-size to lagre marketing & distribution companies and some of our suppliers in Asia.

Thank you again.

Would definitely biforcate the decision making process into two different analysis perspectives. On the financial side, you need to look at the likelihood that the job you will get after the MBA is going to be significantly different if you choose Sloan over Stern. If the cost benefit analysis comes out materially different from one school to the next, that is one decision point you can assess. The second side is your preference for the culture, location, and environment of the school. Where do you see yourself enjoying the whole MBA experience the most?

Those two perspectives should make the decision making process a bit more tangible.

I'm surprised that no one has brought up the point of what you want to be associated with for the rest of your life. The brand, network, the pride you feel when you tell people where you went to school, those are things you'll never be able to change. There might be no difference for some of the points, but these are things that I kept thinking back to during my decision process. These are also points that alums from both schools brought up on a number of occasions.

The job you get post-MBA, that's on you, and if you're good enough you should get it from either school.

On the contrary, I think it would be sad to derive your self-worth from the "brand" or "prestige" of your school. Especially when the rankings are indistinguishable to people who don't obsess over them every day.

Prestige definitely should not be a determining factor, but could play in to the equation. There's a great article somewhere about how accomplishments are what define you, not your affiliations, and as I hinted at previously, you will be the master of your own destiny and can get to where you want to be through either program. That being said, a school with an alumni base that is more in line one's interest could be beneficial in the long-run. I would think that if someone wants to get in to finance, it would be hard to find a better way to spend two years than going to Stern.

I think the article is about how accomplishments SHOULD define you, but unfortunately, in this world, it's your affiliations. It's written by some dude on the HBR blog. then again, I think the difference between Stern and MIT is much closer than the other thread where someone was deciding between Tepper and MIT.

if you want to start up your own boutique in latam after a few years of experience, then MIT.

When you approach new clients to sell your services, they all care about credentials (have you done this before?) and the team's CVs. MIT has a Wow factor few other schools have outside the US.

This may be completely dense of me, but aren't there some regional salary and currency issues here? How long does it take to pay back US $150k while working in LatAm? Surely, the salaries are lower, ya?

salaries for recent MBA grads in Latam (Brazil and Chile) are higher (considering taxes, etc). Not to mention cost of living.
However, in the long run salaries in the states are higher. (after 5 years)

Hmm, good to know, I would not have expected that!

The currency mismatch issue is an interesting point. If your salary is unchanged in local units and the currency depreciates relative to the dollar, the burden of USD-denominated debt increases. It also works in your favor if the currency appreciates, but the downside is more significant because a) humans are loss averse, b) wages adjust to inflation slower than currencies do, c) a currency crisis is positively correlated with economic events that could cause unemployment and d) bankruptcy makes the extreme downside consequences much more severe. But I guess that risk is pretty marginal compared to taking out $100,000 of unnecessary debt.

Don't think MIT is worth a full ride at NYU. They are both top 10 schools, and both will open up similar doors for you. If you come from a rich family and financial issue isn't a concern, then goto MIT. Otherwise, NYU all the way!

Workman,
have you reached a decision?

Thank you for your comments!

I'm still evaluating