Weekend program: Booth (25K) and Ross. I live in Detroit.

Question

Hello experts!

I was recently admitted into two schools: Booth (25K) and Ross. I’m based in Detroit and work in the automotive industry. Career goal is to stay in manufacturing industry or switch to IT. I have a PhD from Purdue. I heard that Ross is a better choice if I stay in the manufacturing or IT but booth is definitely another level plus the scholarship. It is really a touch decision as I’m based in MI and will have to drive 8hours every week if I go to booth. Any thoughts?

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bb · Answer

Congrats! Are these EMBA programs?

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tumblerPRC · Answer

It is just a PT program, not EMBA:)

bb · Answer

I am sorry. It’s late and I missed the very first word in your topic. It’s a problem. I have skipping the first words. Pretty silly of me. Thank you for clarifying.

bb · Answer

Now that I messed up the topic, hopefully I don’t mess up the rest of it. My suggestion, years after graduating is that the business school will really matter for your first job out of business school. That is where all the difference comes in your second job will be driven by your first job. I have seen people who have graduated from top programs and then got best jobs and settled into them and then I’ve seen people who graduated from lower rank programs did not get great jobs, but they rose through the years by working hard. So a big question is how are you planning to use the brand and the school after you graduate. if you’re planning to stay in Detroit and that area, it makes sense to be close to your business school and close to where your network is. If you had gone to Columbia, for example, you would probably have very few connections in Detroit and always be detrimental in many ways, and would force you to go somewhere else . Perhaps Force is not the right word, but that would be a natural choice.

What aspect is that part-time programs do not usually focus on recruiting, and while they may not be very upfront about it, I will tell you that, even if they did focus on recruiting, between your day, job, your school, your recruiting will suffer. So looking for a job while in a part-time program is pretty hard. It’s not that it’s hard to bug people on LinkedIn, but most good jobs require a referral. It takes time and energy to connect with the right people to get those referrals.

If you’re looking to get into tech and product management, I feel Ross is just as strong as booth and Sam could argue is that even better. Booth is amazing if you want to get into some niche finance space or consulting, which it doesn’t seem those strengths will be used by you. Taking into consideration, commuting and flying or driving and hotels, and all the other cost, good luck, driving during blizzards, I’m not sure Chicago will be worth it. It’s an awesome program, and I’ve known the number of people who have gone there and had good things to share , but it does not seem to be a natural fit. I hate letting go for a nice opportunity or a nice deal but sometimes it doesn’t have a great fit, and in this case it seems like that may be the case. I think if you were excited to be going to Chicago and you had a significant other there, or you were working remotely from Chicago half the time and you were planning to relocate there, then sure, but if you’re planning to be in Bay Area or Seattle in five years, I don’t think you’ll get any brownie points for driving eight hours every weekend. Anyone else has a different opinion? Am I crazy?

Let me know  tumblerPRC  if you think I am missing smth.

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ambera33 · Answer

Hi - Congrats on getting into the top coveted programs.

Ross vs Booth is definitely a tough choice to make; however the scholarship component might help in making the decision. BTW, you may also negotiate with Ross for getting you a similar scholarship.

I was in a similar situation a couple years ago, and I called in lots of Ross & Booth alums to make a decision. I emailed alums & current students from both schools and asked for their perspective, what they liked / didn't like about their respective schools, how the school culture aligned to my goals & aspirations etc. If you haven't have, attend some classes at both the schools and see where you see yourself more fit in. Not sure about Ross, but Booth has opened up classes for prospective students now.

As for me, I certainly chose Chicago Booth and am glad I did. Booth has so much to offer, even during the pandemic world. Feel free to dm and happy to talk more about Booth and potentially sway you in to go for Booth

All in all, you wont make a wrong decision going for either schools, so relax, enjoy this time, do your research and go for it! All the best.

Weekend program: Booth (25K) and Ross. I live in Detroit.

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