Stern (full ride) vs reapply vs Round 3 applications/hope for waitlist
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21 Mar 2019, 11:12
I'm looking to transition to management consulting post MBA (preferably MBB). I'm currently 30 (31 this year) and have 61 months WE so am not sure if waiting is the right move. Equally though, I felt more enthused about NYU at the start of the application process, but have heard negative comments from so many people about how the ranking will affect recruiting (particularly for an international student needing sponsorship) and that as a school it simply won't look as good on the CV (that there'll always be a question of why I went to Stern) that I'm now very hesitant about accepting NYU.
The issue is, I don't have a clear plan of what I want to do next and am focusing on consulting as the best undecided option. If i end up finding something I'm more passionate about, I would of course want to pursue that instead. I've been told that where Stern really suffers vs M7 is IM/PE/Tech roles and given that I have no clue what I want to do next, I would definitely like to maximize employment chances for any roles. I was also speaking to a friend at BCG (on the West Coast) who noted that Stern isn't a national target school for them (and therefore I assume also for Bain and McKinsey).
I've been admitted with a full ride at NYU. Currently waitlisted at Booth and dinged without interview at Wharton and CBS. I'm debating doing a round 3 app for Kellogg.
In general terms, in an ideal world, I would much rather live in NYC than anywhere else (though if I felt that two years in e.g. Chicago would better set me up to land a job in NYC after graduation, would definitely rather pursue that route).
Does it make sense to do a round 3 app now for Kellogg and hope that either Kellogg or Booth come through? Alternatively, I can choose to wait a year and focus my energy on putting together strong round 1 apps (reapps for Wharton/CBS/Booth and new apps for Kellogg/MIT).
The third and easiest option is to simply accept NYU and be happy with the full ride, recognizing that since I didn't get CBS and I want to be in NYC, I should be pleased with this outcome and it should still be able to generally serve my goals. And tbh, I feel like outside of the US, Booth and Kellogg don't have particularly great brand rec either. Given that I only hope to be in the US for a few years post graduation before returning to South-East Asia, outside of H/S/W/CBS (and maybe MIT), NYU shouldn't look too much worse on the CV than e.g. Booth/Kellogg, particularly since it's with a Scholarship.
Grateful for any views/input on the above.
Thanks in advance!