Best School For Management

Well, I still have a few years to decide what I want to do... But, my aspirations lie in management, and as you seem to say, IMD seems to place middle managers whereas Harvard would be better for TOP careers and head management positions in the long-run, especially with the networking opportunities of a larger class and 2 years.

About the J.D. and Ph.D thing. I have considered going to Law School part-time so that I can build work experience for B-school but also get my law degree, which I think would be something that could benefit a person interested in management, such as me. So, what are people's advice regarding this? Should I do it? The only downfall is that for the most part, no TOP schools offer part-time law programs.... Georgetown (14), George Washington (22), and a few other schools that are Ranked in the 25-60 range.

As you said too, most European schools are recruited by Europe and Asia companies. I really don't think I want to end up there, although I wouldn't mind a few years abroad (have actually looked into international law school) and would like to be involved with a multinational corporation.

Thank you for your responses!

I'm going to totally overgeneralize here. If you want to work in the US, the best international schools are comparable to the elite schools in the US. If you want to work internationally, then the top international schools are more like the schools in the ultra-elite cluster. But generally speaking, Harvard is in a class of its own, both domestically and internationally.

A part-time law degree will not help you get into any of the top business schools. In fact, my sense is that the top schools would view it negatively, as diluting their brand by bringing in someone with a lesser grad degree. By lesser, I mean both part-time and lower ranked school. There's a real stigma in the legal community about part-time law degrees (at least at the big firms I'm familiar with).

A JD from a top school may help with admissions. It will depend on the school. Some schools seemed to value it a lot, while others seemed to treat it as a non-factor (I have a JD from Michigan). In all cases, the 5 years of my life (3 getting the JD, 2 practicing law) could have been much better spent on other things if business school is the ultimate goal. So my advice to you is if your ultimate goal is to get into a top business school, focus your efforts on other stuff rather than getting a JD or PhD. A top grad degree may or may not help, but it's certainly not worth the time and expense if the key benefit you seek is a little something for your business school application.

I can't yet say whether a JD will will in the business school job search. I've interacted with a lot of business school people this past year and my sense is that in certain professions, the JD will help. I believe that some banks and consulting firms may give credit for the JD (school reputation matters a lot here) and possibly for some of the time spent practicing law. I practiced in capital markets at top law firms, so that translates directly to many investment banking functions; and most top consulting firms are well acquainted with hiring burned out JDs. If I'm lucky, I hope to get credit for a year or two of associate service. I think that potentially, some specialty employers, like certain private equity companies or hedge funds, might value the legal experience and expertise. So, a JD could help you in your job search, but 3 years working at a top consulting firm or bank would probably be more beneficial; again these are better options if your goal is to get into a top business school and pursue a career from there.

and, well... on another note I guess. What does one think of a lesser undergrad school and its effect on admission to somewhere like an HBS or IMD? I mean I went to a good state school, but not an Ivy (it was University of Iowa actually). But, will this hurt me at all?

When did you go to U of I?? I went to Cornell College in Mount Vernon, graduating in 01. Then I lived in CR for a year.

Anyway, I think a fancy undergrad degree adds cache to your application, but if you are strong in other areas (particularly GMAT, but also essays, extras, and work experience), I don't think it's going to be that big of a deal.

What about a dual jd/mba degree? Those seem common enough.

Very recently finished up... '05 winter grad (1 semester early). Regarding the JD/MBA... well, I have looked at that, but just don't really think its for me. I would rather focus on one. And, the fact that admissions vary so much can make it difficult to get into a good program for both.

But, my final question.... I have a Possession of Alcohol and Unlawful Use of Driver's License on my record. How big of a dent will these make on my applications to those TOP schools? (HBS, IMD, INSEAD, Wharton). Its a big concern for me, even if it will be about 8-9 years before I apply. Will it keep me out of any of them or just hurt me? And if so, how much will it hurt me?