UNC KFBS ($$$$) vs. NYU Stern

Question

Would love to get your thoughts on a couple B-school options that I’m privileged to be fretting over. I’ve seen others use this forum to deliberate decisions, so I’m hoping that this fabulous community can be similarly helpful to me!

Here are my options, goals for an MBA and my profile:

Schools… 
 UNC Kenan-Flagler:  Admitted with a full tuition fellowship.
 NYU Stern:  Admitted without fellowship.

MBA Goal… 
Ideally, break into a business development or general management role with a luxury goods firm. Or, fulfill a similar role at a financial services firm. Also considering MC as a career path.

About Me… 
Currently in IT Consulting, but previously worked in a strategy role for a F500 financial services firm. Running a small business on the side; $$ is a consideration for me because of the investments I’ve made into my business and my interest in getting into a luxury goods firm post-MBA, which historically pay less relative to other MBA employers. Earning my degree at NYU would be a great fit for my industry goals (fashion or financial services), but the cost of living and competition for the roles I’m interested in will be fierce. I’ve lived in a big U.S. city for many years now, so UNC would be somewhat of a welcomed change of pace. However, I know that I would have to all but kiss my fashion-related employment goals goodbye (at least in the short-term). Charlotte has a thriving financial services scene, though, and I’ve heard great things about it.

I would be the first person in my family with an advanced degree, so I’m just thankful for being accepted into respectable MBA programs. What do you guys recommend? Appreciate all of your input, guys!

UTWrestler · Answer

I would go to Stern without hesitation because of how well respected in business circles. You will make up the difference in cost within 10 years of graduation from Stern.

MBA1517 · Answer

Thanks for your input, UTWrestler! Congrats on your admits to some great program!

Seeing a few more votes - thanks so much for weighing in, peeps. Would love to hear your guys' thoughts, as well. Those picking UNC, why are you making that selection?

dontquixote · Answer

Congrats on getting accepted!

Two hard choices to make. First, I recommend watching a TED video by Ruth Chang "How to make hard Choices" It will give you a new perspective on how to decide. (Didn't link, not sure if it's against the forum rules)

I casted my vote to UNC. The reasoning is because of the full scholarship. 120K debt + the extra cost of living in NY vs NC is going to be huge. You know, people say 'you will make it up within 10 years.. etc etc.' but no you won't you dont' know how it is going to turn out. This is not a logical way of thinking. You cannot make this argument. They are both solid choices. I will explain to you why going with the full scholarship is the better choice.

Would have been great if you got in both with no scholarships to make the choice easier, but a full scholarship is a crazy good deal. The amount of interest on debt from NYU is going to be crazy. It seems like you might be leaning towards NYU and if I was in your position, I would too. But a full scholarship is going to make all the difference. Graduating with no debt will make your life so much easier. You will have the freedom do anything you want, while if you graduate from NYU with debt, your choices on how you want to live your life will be limited because of the mounting debt on your mind.

For example, lets say you graduated you have no debt. Oh you want take a break and travel world? You can. You want to go full time in your own business, although it doesn't make money? you can. You have 2 choices of jobs one that you love, but dont pay well and one that pays well but is going to leave you stressed? You can make the choice of going with the less paying job.

When you graduate with 120K+ debt. The answer to every single question above is. 'Hmm.. I don't think so.'

NYU is a fantastic school and of course if you do decide to go there, you are going to have a great time, you will have a great job and you will not regret the debt for choosing NYU over UNC. However, you should understand that if you make this choice, your decisions on life choices are going to be limited, because of your debt.

'traveling the world right after your MBA' is not a good idea either way, but at least with UNC you have the freedom to do so if you really really really wanted to. (bad idea though, but still). You have your own business and you will have the freedom to decide to keep doing that if you want. OR you might be inspired to do another startup while at school, and you can do that if you want. If you have 120k debt you have to pay a minimum of 1k a month...

With NYU, you will be limited to taking the traditional path.

Freedom vs. Tradition is choice you need to make. If you choose NYU really really do the math and understand what you are getting yourself into.

PS: interesting perspective is do you want a piece of paper that say MBA? or do you want a piece of paper that says MBA and a fully paid for Benz S class AMG?

Is the upgrade from UNC to NYU worth a fully paid for Benz S class?

Either case good luck. I know I said go to UNC, but both are solid choices. You wont regret either way. 
Let us know where you end up going.

/Kudos!

Shakandbake · Answer

I voted for UNC. Stern is a great school, however, UNC Is no slouch either, plus full ride scholarship definitely trips the scale.

As pointed by other posters, graduating debt free truly frees you to pursue what your heart desires and not pursue a role because you are staring over $150K student debt. One thing to do in order to settle on your choice perhaps would be to truly understand what criteria are important to you and then assign them a numeric value, then compare the two schools in terms of these criteria and accumulate the result.

MBA1517 · Answer

@Dontquixote 
You've mentioned some very salient points; thanks a lot for taking the time to share them with me and other readers. You bring up a very good point about the (very likely) role of student loan debt in graduates' post-MBA lives and I appreciate your point about forgoing career opportunities that better align with one's interests to pay off that debt. Even more relevant to me, though, is your point about using my savings from a UNC MBA to pursue life-enriching opportunities (travel, building my business). I agree that NYU is a fantastic school. Is it worth the full cost of the program (incl. living expenses)? That, I'm not sure about, especially in light of the recent literature claiming that the ROI of an MBA is dropping. If my choice were between UNC w/ a full ride and a "Top 5" program, it would probably be a different conversation - or none at all.

@Shakandbake 
Thank you for reinforcing what @ Dontquixote  was saying. In terms of developing a prioritization schema, as a budding entrepreneur I want to eventually achieve a state of financial independence. Avoiding B-school debt in the short-term will help me achieve that. In the long term, I can use my "excess" savings (you can never have such a thing as too much savings, IMO) to fund revenue-generating activities (investing, etc., etc.).

One thing that I've appreciated about UNC is the transparency of their career stats. They even allow interested parties to download a spreadsheet that denotes all of its recruiters, what functions they recruit for and how many grads are getting placed into those opportunities. Unfortunately, NYU is lagging behind in the transparency of their career stats. If I'm making a financial investment, I want to know intimately well what I'm getting myself into.

NYU voters, what's the basis for voting the way you have? Do you really feel that strongly about the prestige of NYU vis-a-vis UNC? Or is there something more substantial besides the ranking that you see? NYU votes continue arriving in strong numbers!

Shakandbake · Answer

MBA1517 ...... i just want to point out one more thing that you mentioned in your last post, 'the prestige' factor. I personally feel that the 'prestige' factor is an overblown thing and is perpetuated by candidates more than admissions people. MBA is a tool to eventually get to your goal, whatever that might be. A company will never say to you that we won't interview you or give you a job because you went to UNC and not NYU. Most schools in the top 20 will give you access to similar recruiters and career numbers differ due to self selection by students. I would strongly advise that you don't lose focus of the tangible dollar value that you can save through your scholarshp. Unless you have a strong preference for living in an urban environment, there is no reason to forgo UNC +$$$$. Just my two cents

MissC · Answer

I didn't vote but I wanted to give my perspective since we have a number of similarities. I am interested in the same spectrum of post MBA career options, I will be the first to attend graduate school in my family, and I applied to and visited both of those schools.

First, congratulations! This is a great accomplishment and one you should be proud of. Both are excellent schools. I would caution you to think about what is ideal for you in terms of level of access. These schools are in the same tier, but in New York you will have a different level of access to your industries of interest.

KF emphasizes travel to various conferences, which will be at your own expense. You can probably visit Duke and UVA for MC and financial services recruiting if you really want to, but you will likely do some traveling outside the triangle to recruit for luxury goods (people do). KF students that I spoke seem to have a high opinion of their career management office, even if they are mostly recruiting off campus, so that's a huge plus. And 120,000 is a big sum of money. As a fellow first-gen, I know it would be hard for me to turn that down. Even if you spend 20-30,000 on travel throughout your two years (and use loans to do so), that still leaves you way ahead. But you may be frustrated by that process and feeling a bit shut out of the mix.

Regarding Stern, I strongly believe the NYC location helps out a lot. It's crazy expensive, but there are so many conferences that come to the city and the nearby states that your travel expenses will be considerably lower for off campus recruiting. Plus you will have a lot more of a support system for your area of interest, the opportunity to specialize in luxury goods if you want to, or otherwise integrate that experience into your studies. It's a huge advantage, but not an insurmountable one. If you still want to do luxury in 2 years, you can move to New York and do it. But it may be a bit more difficult.

I say go with your gut. Which school will help you achieve your goals, socially, financially, and otherwise? How dedicated are you to one path or another? These are the most important questions. I would try to negotiate with Stern to see what they can do and even the playing field a bit. I firmly believe you can do whatever you want to do from wherever you are, but one is a twistier path than the other. Good luck OP!

jz4analytics · Answer

I also voted UNC. Will you make up the difference in 10 years if you went to NYU? That seems unlikely. UNC would put you in position to get a similar job. The average starting salary for consultants from NYU is $125K, and for UNC it is $120K. For financial services, NYU is $102K and UNC is $100K. (Not sure what your industry would be). We also don't know if the school itself causes that extra $2k or $5K; it could be the people who graduate. In other words, you going to UNC may be worth the same as you going to NYU. The opportunity cost of going to NYU over UNC would be around $150K... that would be very hard to make up with those small differences in salary.

Graduates from UNC get jobs, I think the very particular rankings people stress over are overrated.

Graduates from UNC get jobs, I think the very particular rankings people stress over are overrated.

angelfire213 · Answer

let me know also add that a good number of people that went to UNC that I know - ended up in NY. For your career goals, I don't think you NEED to be in ny...especially since it's not fashion or bust.

The one thing I know about UNC is that their career management is ACTIVE and amazing. You will not NOT find a great job because you went there. Personally, I would go to UNC in this situation even though stern is my personal #1 choice....the lack of debt for a maybe-entrepreneur is priceless...

also, keep in mind, all the you will make it back in 10 years is usually most applicable to the finance-y people... and not only will you have all that debt after Stern, but then you also will most likely CONTINUE to live in NY with the high costs...and I can imagine wanting to upgrade your student lifestyle a little after ur mba.

UNC KFBS ($$$$) vs. NYU Stern

UNC KFBS ($$$$) or NYU Stern

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