Poll: [SOLVED] Cambridge Judge ($) vs. MIT Sloan

Hey everybody,

I got super lucky recently and got admits to both Cambridge Judge as well as MIT Sloan.
Now I have to choose between two schools I would really like to attend and I hope that this community can help me make the right decision.

General Info
I am a 26 year old male from Germany and I currently do not have any children nor a significant other to factor into my decision.
My background is transportation & analytics and I would like to transition into MBB consulting.

Pros/Cons Cambridge Judge:

+ Amazing experience during interview day, really positive impression of potential classmates and staff
+ Super diverse student body (+90% international)
+ Much more affordable (1y duration + 10k Scholarship in addition to student housing that is subsidized by the colleges)
+ Stronger network in Europe due to proximity to London
+ Part of one of the worlds oldest and most respected universities

- Placement statistics are not as strong as other places such as LBS or INSEAD
- 1y program might offer less opportunity to network
- No summer internship to get "foot in the door"

Pros/Cons MIT Sloan:

+ My dream school since I started laying my eyes on doing an MBA
+ Hands on business school in the worlds education capital
+ Potential to choose additional classes from MIT or Harvard
+ Well respected brand around the globe
+ 2y duration offers chances for internship and more school participation
+ Strong placements in consulting and tech

- Among the most expensive b-schools in the world
- Expensive housing in Boston/Cambridge
- Potential visa issues pre studies (I currently only hold a B1/B2 visa)
- Potential visa issues post studies (The whole H1B conundrum)

I did not share my current thoughts beyond those opinions mentioned above as I did not want subject you guys to any bias.
Please help me out.

Best regards,
Chris
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Still MIT triumphs ✌️

Posted from my mobile device
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Congratulations Arro44! Great to see a post from you

I am just going to say it, I would regret not going to the school of my dreams. That just seems like selling a dream if the main driver is financial, like I dont want to buy the house I am dreaming of, so I will get this cottage instead and just paint it brighter colors to cheer me up.

If you want to be in the US, then really it is only Sloan. It is an M7 School with amazing reputation and name that transcends to any region. Carbridge is yes, also well known, but Judge does not share that reputation yet and as you mentioned trails behind LBS, INSEAD in Europe and a few other worldwide MBA programs. But then if you intend to be in Europe long term, I can see an argument of not leaving the area and focusing there... I could perhaps understand, though perhaps not support

MBB is very strong at Sloan and I feel would give you a much stronger shot at it. I would also like to emphasize the summer internship since you are pivoting your role and may need some umph with recruiting. I feel the internship is going to be a huge element in the transition.

If you are bored, it would be interesting and help to get a bit of an idea of what cost and salary differentials you are looking at (e.g. Sloan is $200K total vs. Judge $50K) and then $190K Sloan Comp package vs ??? at Judge? (Also makes sense to look at tax rates/take home/quality of life to make the numbers more real)

I would not be concerned about a visa PRE-MBA. I have not heard any horror stories about that and feel that's a very low risk, unless there is something you are not telling us

Congratulations man! Here is my biased opinion

PS. What about LBS in R2? Neh?
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Thank you for the input and I have to agree with all points made tbh.

Concerning the visa topic I am a little scared as I was to only one out of a group of 4 applicants from my company who got his visa when I applied for a B1/B2 business visa.
The H1B hurdle also scares me in the sense that I might not be able to fully utilize my network gained during the MBA.

However, business is also about taking calculated risk, therefore I am strongly leaning towards Sloan.

I should have applied to LBS, however, the question would likely be somewhat similar in terms of high risk/high rewards vs. the "reasonable" choice.
Therefore, my current state of mind would be to matriculate at Sloan.

Best regards,
Chris
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MIT Sloan has STEM OPT visa extension now. That is 3 Years after graduation of not worrying about a visa in the US (during those years your company can apply to H1B or Green Card).
Go with MIT, it is your dream school make it work. The name will help you for the rest of your career.

just as bb stated, the following opinion is also a bit 'home-biased'

As I am from the DACH region as well I would strongly vote for Cambridge as the fabulous 'Oxbridge' arguably still is the best brand in Europe and will be sufficient for every MBB to get into.

MIT does, IMHO, only make sense if you are able to stay at least 5-10 years afterwards and profit from the high post MBA salary you need to pay off your student debt. Going for a ~100K + MBA in the states 'just' to get into a MBB, which mostly employs people who only hold Masters/Bachelors from good european targets (HSG, WHU, Bocconi, LSE... etc.), is overkill. MIT for tech! But not for MBB in europe!

If you move back to Europe nobody cares if you hold your MBA from MIT or Cambridge as both are top notch schools, I would even tend to assert that Cambridge trumps MIT in Europe (especially for Business studies and not tech).

So for me Cambridge would be a no-brainer! Congrats on both offers!
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MIT is the better business school and the better overall global brand imo (I've lived in many countries in different continents). Although Cambridge is good in both those departments.

Update: I ended up choosing MIT Sloan.
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Arro44 What made you to choose MIT Sloan ? Can you brief?
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Brief run-down of the respective factors;

- 2 year option allowing me to do a summer internship for an easier career transition
- Chance to evaluate both Tech & Consulting as future career paths due to longer duration
- Ability to stay/work in the US after graduation
- Even stronger B-school brand
- Ability to take up to 3 classes at the wider M.I.T. or at Harvard

Kind regards,
Chris
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