Same school as undergrad?

Question

hey guys,

long time lurker newcomer here. this sounds a little silly, but is there any downside to attending the same school for an mba as you did for college? i'm thinking specifically recruiting-wise. would like to hear any thoughts on this from you all, since most of you are much more educated on bschool than meself.

note: i am not talking about h/s unfortunately. but the bschool is in the top 5.

bostonsparky · Answer

love the old school street fighter reference.

I think one has to kind of step back from the situation when it comes to this. Don't turn down a school that's a better fit for your career plans just because you went there UG, but don't overrate it either. Ultimately I think any hiring company is going to look at where you went for your MBA much more than where you went UG. Heck I'm sure employers look at resumes of int'l students (that went to Bschool in the USA / went to ug abroad at some school very few have heard of) all the time. The only possible negative I could think of is if say you grew up, went to school undergrad, worked, and went to B school all in the same area (for example, NY), then applied for a job in say Chicago. If I'm the recruiter I'm thinking "is this person really someone who's going to join us for the long term?"

riverripper · Answer

As long as its a great school I wouldnt worry about having the same name on your resume twice. Recruiters aren't going to think twice about it. Especially since if its a top 5 school its obviously a great undergrad too. I have a handful of friends who went to Northwestern and now are at Kellogg and judging by what they got for internships it definitely didnt hurt them.

Raabend · Answer

Just to kinda play devil's advocate with this comment.........if somebody spent their whole life in NY and applied for a job in Chicago, wouldnt their long history in NY say "this guy really plants long term roots"?

On the other hand, would a person who grew up in NY, went to school in Cali, worked in Seattle, and went to b-school in Chicago look more like the "long term" type?

Im not sure what the answer would be as it is def case by case.....just highlighting that the "new yorker" could spin it in his favor when it comes to being long term.

Omne · Answer

I live in Ohio. I went to school in North Carolina for undergrad, then moved back to Ohio after graduating. I worked for a few years and then applied to all Carolina schools (and UCLA and Georgetown). I'm already in at my undergrad school again and really don't have qualms about it. I want to work in the southeast, so it makes sense for me.

bostonsparky · Answer

Agreed it could go both ways. Kind of feeds into a paradox employers often talk about, they want creative people with diverse backgrounds....but those are very often the same people who get bored of a company after a few years and start to look elsewhere. So sometimes they are better off hiring the 'sure thing' employee that may have a little less potential but would be more likely to stick around and contribute more to the company.

ehonda is there a specific industry / geographic region you want to work in post-MBA?

ehonda is there a specific industry / geographic region you want to work in post-MBA?

Raabend · Answer

The trick is, convince the company that you are a barnacle and they are a Gray Whale.

falibay · Answer

I would say that there is no downside if it is in top 5, but if I had another Top 5, I would choose the other one, just to diversify my alumni network. That's the one downside, if you add another school which is equivalent to your resume, it would be better.

ehonda · Answer

i'm interested in consulting. for what it's worth, i haven't been in the same city since college. i thought about the different alumni networks, but then again, b-school and undergrad networks are usually different at the same school anyway. would you feel particularly attached to the undergrads at your b-school? or am i just a jerk?

falibay · Answer

You may not be particularly attached to the undergrad, master or Phd at your school but you would use their connections if necessary and play the school relationship right ?? :-D

If you have two schools, you can do that for both.

unhedged · Answer

I was wondering the same thing actually. The school i had in mind is elite but pretty big out on the Left Coast. Given Top 5 for both, I'd highly doubt recruiters would have issues. On a personal level, would you want to go back to the same campus, or experience something new? That was my concern.

Atlantic · Answer

Throwing in my two cents, It could be one of those things that comes up in interview.

But if they do, you answer it, they nod, everyone moves on without a second thought.

solaris1 · Answer

Some solid advice by members here made me reconsider an MBA application to my undergraduate alma mater. Obviously the alumni access aspect varies tremendously depending on school size and overall campus culture. But whenever I have made the effort to do so, I as an undergraduate alumnus, have successfully been able to tap into my university's MBA network for informational interviewing and general career advice. Understandably however, not every MBA grad I approached was always willing to help - but that's not really remarkable in itself.

So, to me it certainly seems feasible that  to some extent at least  I would have an "in" with my alma mater's MBA alumni regardless of where I went for an MBA. And going elsewhere for an MBA would potentially give me access to that university's undergraduate and professional schools' alumni, too!

In addition, I also felt that returning for a professional education to the same school I did for undergrad would mean missing out on a lot of the experience that comes with being a student in a "new" city. Moreover, I had no intentions of settling down post-MBA in the general geographic area my alma mater was located in anyway.

Same school as undergrad?

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