Help! Wharton vs Booth vs Tuck

Question

Hi GMAT club community,

I recently received great news from Wharton, Tuck (w $$) and Booth (w $$) but now I have the predicament of which program to choose.... Throughout the application process I became attached to all three schools --- Tuck has a very close community, Booth students have been amazingly responsive, and Wharton has a strong brand. I want to pursue consulting at M/B/B and it seems to me that all of them would open up opportunities, albeit it would be in different regions.

What would you recommend? All thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

EuroEng · Answer

All 3 schools offer pretty much the same opportunities at MBB, globally, and the firms try to balance the supply (of interview spots) with the demand from each school. Some people think they can get an edge by applying to less popular offices (which vary by school) but from my experience (and my classmate's), it doesn't matter much. So at the end of the day it comes down to how well you fit with the student culture, with the school culture, and what you want to get out of business school. All 3 schools have very different value propositions even though they pretty much open the same doors.

domotron · Answer

Totally agree with EuroEng. All three schools will give you the same opportunities at MBB as they are all target schools. Obviously Booth will have a big alumni presence in the Chicago offices, Tuck at the Boston offices, etc. This can be a double edged sword in that there is incredibly alumni support and they do hire people in great quantities but there are also more of your classmates targeting these cities. Overall, I think it probably makes no difference. You can recruit for Boston from Booth or Wharton and you can recruit for Chicago from Tuck or Wharton.

At the end of the day think about where you felt the most comfortable. I applied to all three schools and over the course of the process I found them to be starkly different.

adrama · Answer

Thanks for the input! As both of you are saying, there is something distinct about each one of theses schools...

gmatbugsme84 · Answer

I voted Tuck as, it is great for MBB and has also offered $.

Though I voted Tuck, Booth also might deserve a serious look as you need to think what domain you want to be consulting in at MBB. If you're inclined towards finance, Booth might be able to give you a bit more than Tuck.

Of course, you deserve to confuse yourself a bit, by "negotiating" a little $ from Wharton. It too is strong for finance and will certainly get you to MBB (if you are going to be in the domain).

PTK · Answer

Take Booth. 
Here is the logic behind my advice:
1. If any of this schools will almost equally open doors to MBB, therefore no metter what school you choose. 
2. In terms of prestige, ranking, blah, blah  Wharton>=Booth>Tuck 
3. In terms of supportive culture  Tuck>=Booth>Wharton 
4. In terms of money  Booth=Tuck>Wharton 
5. location it seems it does not metter to you. 
6. add your equation....

Hence Booth is always placed either equally 1st or worst case 2nd when compared to all other schools.

adrama · Answer

Hi everyone,

As I experienced myself, it is greatly frustrating when the OP doesn't close the loop with the final decision. So here it is.... after many thoughtful weeks I eventually decided to attend Chicago Booth. Towards the end, as much as I loved Tuck, the final choice was between Booth and Wharton.

There were many reasons why Booth was the right decision for me: exceptional career services, obvious commitment to student's success, very responsive student body, and yes -- according to the MC recruiters I spoke to, exactly the same employment opportunities. There's a reason why I'm pursuing an MBA, namely bc I believe in stuff such as ROI. The programs being equally as expensive and believing that Booth simply offers a better experience & more support, I had to seriously ask myself whether the marginal prestige Wharton offers will make a difference in my future return. And in conversations with alumni I was given a much needed wake-up call from my reverie -- students from neither one or the other get preferential treatment over each other, you need to prove you worth.

From a social perspective, I would add that I actually thought Booth students are a lot of fun (from some threads I did not expect to find a whole crowd at our welcome parties ...) and I appreciated that there was a balance between partying and social gatherings. I love partying but I also like begin able to meet people and have a decent conversation with them where we can hear each other.... If I wanted drinking & partying to be my focus, I wouldn't have to bother myself and uproot to Chicago.

I am so relieved this process is finally over and I am looking forward to vacationing with my Boothies before school starts :-D