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SageJiraiya
Joined: 14 Jan 2016
Last visit: 30 Jul 2022
Posts: 108
Given Kudos: 84
Location: India
Concentration: Marketing, General Management
Schools: Kenan-Flagler '22 (A$) Jones '22 (A$) Kelley '22 (A$) Mendoza '22 (D) Tepper '22 (WL) Marshall '22 (D) Duke '22 (WA$) Johnson '22 (WL) Darden '22 (D) Ross '22 (WA$) Wharton '23 (D)
GMAT 1: 710 Q50 V35
GMAT 2: 750 Q50 V41
WE:Marketing (Advertising and PR)
Schools: Kenan-Flagler '22 (A$) Jones '22 (A$) Kelley '22 (A$) Mendoza '22 (D) Tepper '22 (WL) Marshall '22 (D) Duke '22 (WA$) Johnson '22 (WL) Darden '22 (D) Ross '22 (WA$) Wharton '23 (D)
GMAT 2: 750 Q50 V41
Posts: 108
03 May 2020, 06:51
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Hi guys!
First of all, a big shout out to the whole GC community! I used the club extensively for my gmat prep (plan to write a gmat debrief soon), school research, consultant research (Applicant Lab is the GOAT) and now am hoping to get some help on college selection as well.
I have been supremely lucky to have been admitted to a few top b-schools (list under my username). But I have, more or less, narrowed it to 3 options.
1.) Duke Fuqua (Deposit paid)
2.) UofM Ross (Deposit due may 5th)
3.) UNC KFBS (Deposit paid)
Both Fuqua and Ross will cost me about the same. Similar scholarships (about 25% tuition) and COAs.
At UNC I have about 75% tuition so it'll be significantly cheaper.
Please first allow me to share a brief info about myself and my future goals.
I am an international (Indian) candidate. For my undergrad, I did engineering in IT (non IIT, NIT or BITS) and later went on to work for a marketing agency in Mumbai. Initially, I started out as an engineer, but transitioned to a marketing based role in a few months and found it to be much more interesting. Since I loved the kind of impact we were making, I decided to establish my own marketing agency after two years. So I moved back to my hometown, got my life-long friends on board to be my co-founders and have been doing the grind ever since.
My plans for the future involve: -
1. Taking my agency to a national (and hopefully international) level and position it more as a Marketing Consultancy. I dream of creating a platform for entrepreneurs, startups and small enterprises, where they can find any and all solutions they need to keep growing! Kind of like a startup incubator but not exactly the same.
2. Launching a few ventures of my own. I have a few ideas in my mind (especially in the education sector) that I am really passionate about and want to work on in the near future!
So that brings me to what I want from an MBA. Apart from developing a solid business foundation, getting access to a great network and building relations with smart and accomplished people, I am specifically looking for a few things: -
1. A solid Marketing program.
I am very passionate about marketing, having seen the kind of difference it can really make in the lives of people. I want to work in Marketing for all of my foreseeable career.
2. Entrepreneurship focused faculty and resources
About 70% of my clients are entrepreneurs. In the future, I wanna keep working with people from the entrepreneurship space. So a program that fosters entrepreneurs and can potentially give me access to entrepreneurship based resources would be perfect. Also having professors and students/alums with the same focus would be like a cherry on top!
3. International recognition
I don't plan to stay in the US for a very long time. I think, including my time in the b-school, I am planning to stay for about 5 yrs. 3 yrs post MBA to earn enough so that I can pay off most of my debt and can move back to India and potentially only return to North America as a business owner later down the line.
So a program that has a good presence atleast in India and hopefully across the world.
4. Tech
I work mostly with people from the tech space (and my firm itself leverages tech to provide better solutions at a lower cost to its clients) and want to continue working in this space post MBA.
The ideal post MBA job would be to work as a Marketing Manager or a PM/BM at a tech based company. A start-up or a big firm that promotes intrapreneurship.
Now let me get into the pros and cons of each of the school I am considering right now.
1. Duke Fuqua
Pros: -
1. Great marketing curriculum and resources (ranked 4th for Marketing in the USNews rankings)
2. Location - I absolutely love the Triangle area. It's ripe with startups and living there for 2 yrs will definitely give me a lot of opportunities to engage with startups.
3. Network and Student body - Have absolutely fallen in love with the community. Admitted students I know who have admits from and are involved with other schools known for their student bodies (like Kellogg and Ross) agree that the energy and enthusiasm of the current admits at Duke is at a different level. I already feel connected with a lot of the domestic and international admits.
Also the alums are very helpful and involved as well. One of the alums even raised all of our concers regarding the covid 19 to the dean and then got back to us with answers.
Though I have been in touch with the community for over 6 weeks now so probably a bit biased there.
4. Great Brand recognition (though I am not sure how it compares to UofM at a university level in and outside the US).
5. Match: I feel the mission that Duke has - leading the world with an intention to leave it a better place, is something that appeals a lot to me.
6. Higher diversity than both the other schools on my list.
Cons: -
1. In my limited communication I have had with all these schools, Fuqua feels to be the most formal. Maybe I am biased because I have been working in very informal environments, but I believe for entrepreneurship, a slightly more informal environment is a better breeding ground.
2. Even though the location is awesome and other resources for entrepreneurs are plentiful as well, I think Ross provides more resources and better access.
Honestly, I don't have very strong Cons for Duke. It has been, from the beginning, my top choice for MBA.
2. UofM Ross
Pros: -
1. Great marketing curriculum and resources (ranked 3rd for Marketing in the USNews rankings)
2. Location - I have family in Chicago (and Toronto for the starting few months of the program) so staying close to them is a definite advantage. Though the time it'd take to reach them would probably not differ a lot from what it'd take from NC (because of the time it'd take to reach Detroit from Ann Arbor).
3. Largest living and very closely knit alumni network. One of the two best interactions I had with any student ambassador throughout my college research was with a Ross student. The kind of help and encouragement I got spoke volumes about the passion these students have for the school.
4. Great brand recognition. (Again, not sure how it ranks up against Duke in this regard).
5. Great resources for entrepreneurs - Ann arbor spark, ZLI, different symposiums and case competitions, incredibly talented and responsive faculty (same can be said about Duke's faculty as well, but I've noticed that Duke's faculty is primarily focused in academic research) and amazing opportunities for collaboration with entrepreneurs both from and outside of the UofM.
Cons: -
1. Has been sliding down the rankings for the past few years. While I know that rankings should only be considered as a starting point, it's probably not the best to ignore the continuous slide in rankings.
Again, Ross is a top tier program and probably one of the only few that I could possibly choose over Fuqua!
3. UNC KFBS
Pros: -
1. Can take some of the classes at Duke, so can get access to major marketing electives. By itself, have heard a lot of praises for most of the professors.
2. Location - same as Duke.
3. Network and community - Probably the best community of all the schools I know. Alums and students alike are very responsive and helpful and will go to great lengths to help you. Really feels like a great community tbh.
4. Great resources for entrepreneurs - especially the EIRs and other different programs they have for entrepreneurs.
5. Much higher scholarship.
Cons: -
1. Brand recognition compared to the other two schools.
2. Can be a bit too laid back.
I absolutely fell in love with the community at UNC throughout my interactions with the student ambassadors.
But otherwise, the admitted student community is not remotely as active as the other two schools! To be honest, I am only considering UNC because of the interactions I have had with the students and alums.
Sorry for the very long post, but I wanted to give you guys as much clarity as possible.
Please share your thoughts. Any opinion, any insight will be greatly appreciated!
bb souvik101990 bigge2win
First of all, a big shout out to the whole GC community! I used the club extensively for my gmat prep (plan to write a gmat debrief soon), school research, consultant research (Applicant Lab is the GOAT) and now am hoping to get some help on college selection as well.
I have been supremely lucky to have been admitted to a few top b-schools (list under my username). But I have, more or less, narrowed it to 3 options.
1.) Duke Fuqua (Deposit paid)
2.) UofM Ross (Deposit due may 5th)
3.) UNC KFBS (Deposit paid)
Both Fuqua and Ross will cost me about the same. Similar scholarships (about 25% tuition) and COAs.
At UNC I have about 75% tuition so it'll be significantly cheaper.
Please first allow me to share a brief info about myself and my future goals.
I am an international (Indian) candidate. For my undergrad, I did engineering in IT (non IIT, NIT or BITS) and later went on to work for a marketing agency in Mumbai. Initially, I started out as an engineer, but transitioned to a marketing based role in a few months and found it to be much more interesting. Since I loved the kind of impact we were making, I decided to establish my own marketing agency after two years. So I moved back to my hometown, got my life-long friends on board to be my co-founders and have been doing the grind ever since.
My plans for the future involve: -
1. Taking my agency to a national (and hopefully international) level and position it more as a Marketing Consultancy. I dream of creating a platform for entrepreneurs, startups and small enterprises, where they can find any and all solutions they need to keep growing! Kind of like a startup incubator but not exactly the same.
2. Launching a few ventures of my own. I have a few ideas in my mind (especially in the education sector) that I am really passionate about and want to work on in the near future!
So that brings me to what I want from an MBA. Apart from developing a solid business foundation, getting access to a great network and building relations with smart and accomplished people, I am specifically looking for a few things: -
1. A solid Marketing program.
I am very passionate about marketing, having seen the kind of difference it can really make in the lives of people. I want to work in Marketing for all of my foreseeable career.
2. Entrepreneurship focused faculty and resources
About 70% of my clients are entrepreneurs. In the future, I wanna keep working with people from the entrepreneurship space. So a program that fosters entrepreneurs and can potentially give me access to entrepreneurship based resources would be perfect. Also having professors and students/alums with the same focus would be like a cherry on top!
3. International recognition
I don't plan to stay in the US for a very long time. I think, including my time in the b-school, I am planning to stay for about 5 yrs. 3 yrs post MBA to earn enough so that I can pay off most of my debt and can move back to India and potentially only return to North America as a business owner later down the line.
So a program that has a good presence atleast in India and hopefully across the world.
4. Tech
I work mostly with people from the tech space (and my firm itself leverages tech to provide better solutions at a lower cost to its clients) and want to continue working in this space post MBA.
The ideal post MBA job would be to work as a Marketing Manager or a PM/BM at a tech based company. A start-up or a big firm that promotes intrapreneurship.
Now let me get into the pros and cons of each of the school I am considering right now.
1. Duke Fuqua
Pros: -
1. Great marketing curriculum and resources (ranked 4th for Marketing in the USNews rankings)
2. Location - I absolutely love the Triangle area. It's ripe with startups and living there for 2 yrs will definitely give me a lot of opportunities to engage with startups.
3. Network and Student body - Have absolutely fallen in love with the community. Admitted students I know who have admits from and are involved with other schools known for their student bodies (like Kellogg and Ross) agree that the energy and enthusiasm of the current admits at Duke is at a different level. I already feel connected with a lot of the domestic and international admits.
Also the alums are very helpful and involved as well. One of the alums even raised all of our concers regarding the covid 19 to the dean and then got back to us with answers.
Though I have been in touch with the community for over 6 weeks now so probably a bit biased there.
4. Great Brand recognition (though I am not sure how it compares to UofM at a university level in and outside the US).
5. Match: I feel the mission that Duke has - leading the world with an intention to leave it a better place, is something that appeals a lot to me.
6. Higher diversity than both the other schools on my list.
Cons: -
1. In my limited communication I have had with all these schools, Fuqua feels to be the most formal. Maybe I am biased because I have been working in very informal environments, but I believe for entrepreneurship, a slightly more informal environment is a better breeding ground.
2. Even though the location is awesome and other resources for entrepreneurs are plentiful as well, I think Ross provides more resources and better access.
Honestly, I don't have very strong Cons for Duke. It has been, from the beginning, my top choice for MBA.
2. UofM Ross
Pros: -
1. Great marketing curriculum and resources (ranked 3rd for Marketing in the USNews rankings)
2. Location - I have family in Chicago (and Toronto for the starting few months of the program) so staying close to them is a definite advantage. Though the time it'd take to reach them would probably not differ a lot from what it'd take from NC (because of the time it'd take to reach Detroit from Ann Arbor).
3. Largest living and very closely knit alumni network. One of the two best interactions I had with any student ambassador throughout my college research was with a Ross student. The kind of help and encouragement I got spoke volumes about the passion these students have for the school.
4. Great brand recognition. (Again, not sure how it ranks up against Duke in this regard).
5. Great resources for entrepreneurs - Ann arbor spark, ZLI, different symposiums and case competitions, incredibly talented and responsive faculty (same can be said about Duke's faculty as well, but I've noticed that Duke's faculty is primarily focused in academic research) and amazing opportunities for collaboration with entrepreneurs both from and outside of the UofM.
Cons: -
1. Has been sliding down the rankings for the past few years. While I know that rankings should only be considered as a starting point, it's probably not the best to ignore the continuous slide in rankings.
Again, Ross is a top tier program and probably one of the only few that I could possibly choose over Fuqua!
3. UNC KFBS
Pros: -
1. Can take some of the classes at Duke, so can get access to major marketing electives. By itself, have heard a lot of praises for most of the professors.
2. Location - same as Duke.
3. Network and community - Probably the best community of all the schools I know. Alums and students alike are very responsive and helpful and will go to great lengths to help you. Really feels like a great community tbh.
4. Great resources for entrepreneurs - especially the EIRs and other different programs they have for entrepreneurs.
5. Much higher scholarship.
Cons: -
1. Brand recognition compared to the other two schools.
2. Can be a bit too laid back.
I absolutely fell in love with the community at UNC throughout my interactions with the student ambassadors.
But otherwise, the admitted student community is not remotely as active as the other two schools! To be honest, I am only considering UNC because of the interactions I have had with the students and alums.
Sorry for the very long post, but I wanted to give you guys as much clarity as possible.
Please share your thoughts. Any opinion, any insight will be greatly appreciated!
bb souvik101990 bigge2win
FinanceMan
Masters of Science Forum Moderator
Joined: 24 Feb 2020
Last visit: 07 Nov 2024
Posts: 249
Given Kudos: 113
Location: United States (OK)
Schools: Fuqua MSQM-BA Online "22 (M)
03 May 2020, 07:39
Kudos
Bookmarks
Congratulations on your admits!
I will be up front in that I am matriculating in Fuqua's Master of Science in Quantitative Management: Business Analytics program.
Duke Fuqua has been such an awesome community. Since updating my LinkedIn, I have connected with MBA, MQM, alumni, etc. and they have been so welcoming and inclusive. Dr. Petranka has been awesome as well in reaching out.
Tough place to be between Fuqua and Ross, but I lean towards Fuqua!
Posted from my mobile device
I will be up front in that I am matriculating in Fuqua's Master of Science in Quantitative Management: Business Analytics program.
Duke Fuqua has been such an awesome community. Since updating my LinkedIn, I have connected with MBA, MQM, alumni, etc. and they have been so welcoming and inclusive. Dr. Petranka has been awesome as well in reaching out.
Tough place to be between Fuqua and Ross, but I lean towards Fuqua!
Posted from my mobile device
Regenerate
03 May 2020, 08:41
Kudos
Bookmarks
I started this thread a few weeks ago and given your stated concern about relative positioning in the rankings for Ross and Fuqua, I thought I'd share the longer view with you.
The tl;dr version ... over the last ten years, Ross has been (in average) very slightly high ranked than Fuqua ... and ... Fuqua has seen their average ranking drop approximately 1.7 slots vs where they were (on average) 11-20 years ago ... and ... over the last 20 years, the standard deviation of ranks has been much greater with Fuqua than Ross.
...............
Since Fuqua and Ross are so close in your mind, I'd consider calling the admissions office at Fuqua and Ross, explaining your situation, and asking if they'd be able to help make up your mind with scholarship money.
Personally, I'd probably pick Ross ... unless you knew you wanted to LIVE in NC post graduation (NC is beautiful). I've never lived in MI, but I know the winters can be brutal.
Posted from my mobile device
The tl;dr version ... over the last ten years, Ross has been (in average) very slightly high ranked than Fuqua ... and ... Fuqua has seen their average ranking drop approximately 1.7 slots vs where they were (on average) 11-20 years ago ... and ... over the last 20 years, the standard deviation of ranks has been much greater with Fuqua than Ross.
...............
Since Fuqua and Ross are so close in your mind, I'd consider calling the admissions office at Fuqua and Ross, explaining your situation, and asking if they'd be able to help make up your mind with scholarship money.
Personally, I'd probably pick Ross ... unless you knew you wanted to LIVE in NC post graduation (NC is beautiful). I've never lived in MI, but I know the winters can be brutal.
Posted from my mobile device
