Yale vs Cornell

Question

Hello!
Could you please provide me with your expert advises(or any thoughts) on which school would be better for me?

Yale vs Cornell

I will pursue finance career (asset management) after graduating from an MBA. I eventually want to move back to Asia (in Korea) to continue my career after accumulating about 5 years of work experience in US. I know Yale and Cornell are both strong in finance but what would be better in my case?

I see below concerns/edges for each school.

Yale

Concern: Small class size and young MBA history -> weaker networking. Also, I heard that Yale SOM have had very little Korean students which would again affect my Korean networking opportunities when I pursue my career back home. 
Edges: Yale brand name (could this actually help the networking on the other hand? ), Great potential to move up(although I know they dropped in their US News ranking just recently). Proximity to NYC.

Cornell

Concern: Weaker brand name(less of a bragging right – may sound superficial but Asians value this greatly). Seems like Cornell has been always been weaker in their ‘status’(lower US News rank, lower yield, higher acceptance rate etc) than Yale. 
Edges: Cornell’s great network(they are pretty strong in Korea as well).

Please feel free to throw any thoughts that would help me in choosing my school!

Thank you.

aerien · Answer

Have you been admitted or are you researching schools for a future application?

finetime · Answer

I think the schools will give you equal prep and experience but agree that bragging rights are very important. The Yale name is more prestigious so I would go with Yale.

CobraKai · Answer

These are two very similiar schools as they're the youngest Ivies and also have small class sizes. The business schools are basically peers (i.e. US News ranks Yale higher, Business week favors Cornell...it's a wash in my book).

You're right that Yale as an institution carries more brand weight than Cornell outside of MBA circles.

Have you had a chance to visit? I really think both will open career opportunities here in the US and Korea, so why not figure out which school you'll be the HAPPIEST at during your two years there? They're nearly identical on paper, so I'd start talking to students/alumni to find out which place is more your type.

dhn0906 · Answer

I have been admitted to Cornell and I have pretty good feeling about tomorrow's result on Yale's decision for R2. =P

dhn0906 · Answer

Thanks finetime.

I had the chance to visit Yale (not Cornell) for my interview. If it were not the networking concern (i thought Yale SOM is weaker than Cornell Johnson in this respect in US and Korea but you are saying career opportunities are about the same? How come? If there are less Yale SOM alumni(in general and Korean alumni) wouldn't that be considered as weaker networking(somewhat)) , I am leaning towards Yale (mainly because of the name brand)?

CobraKai · Answer

I'm saying both schools fall in the 10-16 tier and on campus recruiting (for US jobs) is good for both. Don't overthink the networking part. Both schools have alumni you can reach out to during school if that company doesn't come to campus, and at both schools you can do career treks to visit companies that don't come to campus. If you wanted to go back to Korea right after school, then that's a different story.

There isn't a right answer here - good luck!

There isn't a right answer here - good luck!

thebschoollife · Answer

I think its important to note that for asset management neither of these schools place very well. IB is a different story with Yale placing 15% and Cornell placing 13%.

Ignoring placement for AM aside, I think as mentioned both these are very comparable schools with similar employment statistics - and you really can't go wrong with either. The choice boils down to personal choices. I was admitted to Yale and to Cornell with $$ - and I chose to enroll at Yale. I can share my own thought process for choosing Yale, but I realize that this will be different for everyone.

I think one key difference is location. @ Yale you are an hour train ride away from NYC - whereas in Cornell you are in the middle of nowhere. This maybe somewhat of a difference to you if you are trying to place in NYC, making recruiting trips a bit easier. Secondly, whereas I think at the present these two are peer schools, my personal opinion is that Yale has more of an upside in the long run.

One key change is the new campus - and while many may say that its simply a new building, I think it will certainly have an impact on rankings, given that some key rankings are based on student feedback. Secondly, I think Snyder is making some much need changes at Yale - doubling scholarship funding by 2015 to $6.5M from $3M, etc. The enrollment in the MBA program is also set to increase from 450 to 600 students, and I think this gives it the necessary critical mass to attract more recruiters. All in all, I think there are numerous changes ongoing at SOM, and I think its an exciting time to be a part of it. I certainly felt this buzz from the students when I visited.

Either way, congrats on the admits! These are both fine schools, you can't go wrong either way.

machichi · Answer

You should definitely attend student events if you can, either in Asia (mainland China and Japan will likely have things) or in the US. The cultural fit is super important at these places, but it sounds like prestige/network is more important for you. Why don't you talk to Koreans in your industry area and see what they say?

Hopefully you're not counting your chickens before they hatch...good luck tomorrow!

Hopefully you're not counting your chickens before they hatch...good luck tomorrow!

dhn0906 · Answer

Thank you all! I just got the call!! Now the real decision time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yale vs Cornell

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