Tepper vs Johnson

Question

I have offers from CMU-Tepper and from Cornell-Johnson.

Background:
Engineering

Short term goals:
Operations management (oil and gas)

Long term goals:
Entrepreneurship (oil and gas, construction)

I believe Tepper offers better quality education, especially in operations.
Johnson on the other hand has a very good network and name.

What do you think ?

method · Answer

I'd pick Tepper based on the strength and reputation of their operations concentration.

TRISTLW · Answer

I think it's important that you think about your long term goals again. If you choose Cornell you will receive that general management experience needed for entrepreneurship and long term network. However, if you choose Tepper then you will have the same quant type engineering education.

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OldFritz · Answer

Tepper is a stronger brand IMO, but not by much.

cheetarah1980 · Answer

Is there scholarship money on the table? That would tip the scales for me in this case. Overall I think Johnson is the more highly regarded program, but not by leaps and bounds. If I remember correctly when I was researching Johnson I thought I saw an operations concentration. I really don't know much about Tepper, but I know it's a really good program. I think Johnson offers a bit more cache longterm and may have a broader network especially at higher levels of an org (this is just a guess). Where do you feel a better fit? If it's equal between the schools, then I'd likely go to Johnson. I might could be biased though since I am a CU alum. GO BIG RED!!

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method · Answer

I agree with the sentiments that Johnson is more highly regarded for business in general, however, I think it's important to stress the goal of operations management.

Operations, especially in oil & gas, has a strong pairing affinity with engineering and information systems. Carnegie Mellon is one of the top engineering and computer science universities in the world, and Tepper is one of the top operations schools in the country often sharing the best reputation with MIT Sloan. A lot of operations is pure analytics, and if you know much about corporate analytics, then you know it lives or dies by the strength and quality of information systems. Tepper is one of the rare schools in the country that has an extremely strong information systems concentration available as part of its MBA program.

The biggest operations case competition in the country is hosted at Tepper. Tepper is one of just five North American schools that participates in AT Kearney's Global Prize Competition (3 of the 5 are M7), and there's also a consulting course that works on a real project with AT Kearney.

This is one of those scenarios in which career fit truly trumps an edge card in overall brand.

cheetarah1980 · Answer

I agree that Tepper is probably the better school for immediate career fit. However, do you think that Johnson might be the better school in the long term? Is this a choice between the school that will prepare you for your post MBA job vs. the school that will prepare you to lead a division or organization 10 years from now? I am not too familiar with Tepper from a general management/leadership curriculum perspective. I know that Johnson has a really robust GM curriculum and is really big on leadership initiatives. Yo no se. I think it's a toss up.

method · Answer

I don't because I believe the foundation for long-term success is laid in the short-term. If I'm hiring for operations, and I take both a Johnson graduate and a Tepper graduate, and it turns out that the Tepper one possesses and displays superior operations management skills, then shouldn't I be more inclined to promote the Tepper graduate over the long-term?

If I was hiring for something highly technical like data-driven marketing, I'd want someone from Booth over HBS. Yes, HBS has the golden reputation, but the person from Booth, assuming they tailored their curriculum to it, would probably run circles around an HBS candidate in short-term job performance. Then when a promotion becomes available, guess who looks better?

The brand card is just not enough. It's not enough in the short-term or the long-term when dealing with specific, technical fields in my opinion.

cheetarah1980 · Answer

Oh I totally feel you, but I'm not sure that's always the way things work. I've seen people who are technical wizards get passed by the folks who are proficient yet exude "executive presence" and "leadership potential." Personally, I think those things while important are also kind of nebulous and can be developed over time. But catering to how things often go (not how they should) there's def a reason why those HBS grads have climbed many a ladder on case method alone.* I think this tends to rear its head the most when moving from middle to senior management or executive levels.

*Not saying I agree with it, but IJS

*Not saying I agree with it, but IJS

method · Answer

Excellent points for consideration for sure.

MBAEntrepreneurship · Answer

Thank you all for your replies.

I have an additional question: Do you feel that Cornell students have more of a managerial character than those at Carnegie Mellon ?

pitpit · Answer

I don't know if I can answer your question, but as a future Johnson student, I do want to acknowledge that there is a specialized "Semester in Strategic Operations" immersion that ironically I plan on taking. In my opinion it is very robust, but what do I know.

I don't think you can go wrong with either school, but would obviously love to have another Ops guy at Johnson!

asimov · Answer

Are either programs strong in oil and gas recruiting? Are any Texas schools on the table for you as well?

IMO, if your long term goal is to start your company in oil and gas/construction, you probably don't need an MBA. You can get business through the oil and gas network. You can get the network either by working in the field, or if go to a school with strong oil & gas connections.

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