Stern vs Georgetown (full ride)

Question

Hi there,

Background: Native in Beijing, China; finance lawyer with 4 yrs experiences from top UK law firms in Beijing; JD from Tulane and LLB from a Chinese university; Qualified to practice in both New York State and PRC; under great financial stress; pure legal background; international student.

My career goal after MBA would be either corporate management to combine both my legal and business backgrounds or joining international organizations such as World Bank/IFC to take advantage of my banking/finance experiences. Probably I can do from both business and legal perspectives.

In one respect, due to my financial concerns and Gtown's location for international organizations, Gtown would be a decent choice but in another respect as a NY qualified finance lawyer, NY is definitely the epicenter for the finance world. My plan would be working in U.S. for at least a few years so employment matters a lot. For international organizations their work visa is separate from H1B so no lottery risks, but NYC means more opportunities for international students.

Appreciate if you may share your comments.

Thanks~

kiran120680 · Answer

Both are good in brand and Rankings, coming to opportunities better to check with alumni of the respective schools.

everysky · Answer

Thanks

lingx073 · Answer

are you saying that you are under great financial stress? If so i would not pile on more debt. Full ride at Gtown sounds like the better idea to me.

WaterFlowsUp · Answer

Everysky ,

Firstly Congratulations!! you have got some pretty big names on you now!!

NYC (Pros) Great location/Great networking opportunities/ Fantastic place to go to school/ solid program/All you dream jobs are around you

NYC (Cons) - Huge attendance cost/very expensive accommodation/not a great city to live in ( i drive 110 miles North spend a day and get back)

DC (pros) G'town still a great brand/known for finance too so still a solid program/expensive city but you can stay a little far and take a bus or drive. / strong brand/great alumni/not so far from NYC.

DC (Cons) not so much but i dont see a lot of finance companies in DC area

everysky · Answer

Thank you for your detailed reply. Since my career goal would be joining international organizations to take advantage of my legal background after MBA, DC might be my final choice. And... save money!

everysky · Answer

Thanks! My money can only afford G and I really don't wanna rely on school debt or parents to sponsor my MBA life...

everysky · Answer

any other comments? Thanks.

mradamsmith · Answer

Congrats on your great problem! Both are terrific programs. Given your goal of international or possibly policy related work, a full-ride at G-town seems tough to pass up. If your goal was IB/Investment management in NYC, then this would be a close call, however Georgetown punches above its weight in IB to begin with. I think you will stand out as a full-ride candidate and be able to find what you are looking for through Georgetown's deep network in DC!

Good luck!

Good luck!

everysky · Answer

Thank you! From my understanding for finance Stern would be a better choice and the full-ride shall be probably offset by the increase on incomes. But for my family reason and visa concerns, as well as my career goal to joining international organizations, GTU would be a perfect choice.

GTU actually ranks the first on placing most graduates in Wall Street but I doubt most of them are from GTU's Walsh School of Foreign Services instead of McDonough B school. Unfortunately I am not able to prove that.

Stern vs Georgetown (full ride)

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