Please Help me to choose!

Question

Hi,

I'm a 30 year old Chartered Accountant from India. I have over 7 years of work experience, 3 years in Ernst & Young India, 4 years in a Multinational Oil & Gas Company in Dubai. Now my dilemma, I got admits to three colleges, not sure which one to choose-

1) Simon Rochester, USA (1 year program) - Reputed school in USA, strong in finance, but seems to have poor recruitments due to no big recruiter in the region. Some say the location is a let-down, very cold climate.

2) IE, Spain - Highly ranked, but hear lot of online horror stories of most of the alumni being unemployed. Many say the school is overrated. Does the school have the reputation among recruiters or is the ranking just a marketing gimmick.

3) Cranfield, UK - Low profile, but seems to have good alumni and a strong program. But UK is in bad shape.

Post MBA I'm thinking of staying in USA or Europe for a few years before coming back to Middle East for work. I'm also in the process of earning my US CPA certification. Any advise would be helpful in getting me out of this confusion!!

Regards,
Confused mind

ManhattanReview · Answer

This is a very tough call, but given that you want to work in either the United States of Europe post-graduation, I would say go to Simon. I just read an article (believe in the Wall Street Journal) that the overwhelming majority of companies that recruit on campus (in the USA) plan to increase their hiring of MBAs this year. From what I hear about from candidates I worked with who attended European programs, the recruiting process is a bit more challenging.

jphilip123 · Answer

Thanks, but if you go purely by reputation which one would you suggest? I intend to work in corporate finance post my mba.

Regards,
Confused mind

MarketingProf · Answer

I would also choose Simon based on reputation in finance. I answered you in more detail in another thread (and pm'ed you).

MarvelAdmissions · Answer

Hi,

I would personally choose IE for the international exposure & location. Madrid would be a great city to live in. On campus recruiting is just one way to get a job post-MBA. If you are clear about your post-MBA career goal, you can network and reach the hiring managers on your own. I've coached people to successfully land their "dream jobs" even without support from career services center of business schools.

Good luck!

Christine Lin
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Admissionado · Answer

Hmmm. I'm not sure I can tell you which to go to without knowing you better than a quick post in a forum!

I know the choice is tough. but the programs are very very different and in very very different places. So you gotta think about where you might want to work first of all (cause you'll probably end up there for a while). Second, to make such a tough choice I would suggest visiting, to get a real on the ground feel for the schools and the people and how good their career centers are (check out specifically who hires who in your specific industry). If not all three, then at least the two European schools. I mean whats a few hundred euros spent when this might change your life, right??

Please Help me to choose!

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