Negotiate Scholarship between a top-10 and a top-15 B School

Question

Hi All,

I have two offers from a top-10 and a top-15 B School in the US. I received 0 scholarships from both the schools because I have a very traditional pathway (Male, Indian, Engineer, Consultant). I have already deposited $7k in another b-school (non-US school but good global ranking). I am tempted to go to the top-10 B-school because it is much more aligned with my career. However, the cost of attendance is slightly high to my capacity.

My reasons for scholarship are as follows:
1. My deposit of $7k in another school.
2. I am planning to go into social impact consulting which is not a paying job and extremely difficult for international students - so I have to put in a lot of effort to pursue it rather than go for traditional consulting or tech roles.
3. I have no relative in US - so higher interest rates as well. (no guarantor)

I would humbly request you all to help me out on this issue and share your thoughts on the reasons I have mentioned above. Do you think this will suffice? If not, what else could I do?  Admissionado   Squareoneprep   ARINGO   mbaMission   ApplicantLab   AvantiPrep   PersonalMBACoach   TheMBAExchange   StratusPrep  MBAandBeyond   ExpertsGlobal

Thank you,

Admissionado · Answer

Hi  ArajDalal :

What exactly is your question? The thread subject line is about negotiations. Is that what you're aiming to do or are you trying to figure out if it's worth foregoing the $7K and all the difficulties to go a top 10/15 school in the US?

You also ask: "Do you think this will suffice? If not, what else could I do?" What is the context?

Please clarify so we can offer our professional opinions.

-Admissionado

AmenJ · Answer

Thank you, Admissionado for the prompt response. I really appreciate it. I apologize if my text was confusing. I hope this clarification will bring more clarity.

Q: Is that what you're aiming to do or are you trying to figure out if it's worth foregoing the $7K and all the difficulties to go a top 10/15 school in the US?
A: I am trying to figure out how to negotiate or ask for a scholarship from the US schools. I am thinking of citing the deposit as one of the reasons to get some scholarship

Q: "Do you think this will suffice? If not, what else could I do?" What is the context?
A: I am not sure the reasons I have mentioned above would be convincing enough for the admission committee to give me any scholarship. So based on your experience, do you think the reasons I have mentioned are good enough to get anything? If not, what else could I do

Thank you once again and I hope this helps!

Admissionado · Answer

ArajDalal :

Our pleasure.

It is extremely unlikely that these schools will care much about your security deposit elsewhere. They will say that is the sunk cost you incurred by reserving your spot at another program, if they even acknowledge it.

The only thing you can do is ask if they will reconsider your scholarship decision and to reiterate your interest in accepting an offer from their program. You presumably already stated your career goals in social impact consulting so they are aware of the lower-than-average starting pay, though bear in mind, they can't stop you from pursuing a more lucrative career.

Unfortunately, this is a more detailed way of saying you don't have too many options without any serious leverage. In our experience, the best way to get scholarship money is to apply (and be accepted) to lower ranked programs. Sometimes, a higher-ranked school will match scholarship money from a peer institution.

ExpertsGlobal · Answer

Hello ArajDalal , Congratulations on the admits!

Talking about the deposit will not help. You could simply write to them in a a humble manner discussing: -any profile improvements -Suggest need for scholarship - limited family funding, reliance on loans, etc -without naming the schools, mentioning that you have some top 10/top 15 admits but the school in question is your first choice (and the scholarship will help reduce the burden and perform better) All the best!

Negotiate Scholarship between a top-10 and a top-15 B School

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