Georgetown MSB vs HKUST MBA

Question

I have an offer from Georgetown MSB (T25) and HKUST (decent Asian MBA program). MSB has offered a scholarship worth $25k which covers ∼20% of the tuition fee whereas HKUST has 40% of the tuition fee covered. I will be paying the remaining tuition fee with my savings at HKUST and would have no debt upon graduation. Cost of living in both places is around the same ($2K). Not sure whether MSB is worth the $100k debt in the current environment, considering I'm not sure how things would be when I apply for jobs. I see myself working in consulting or banking. Not very fixated on any particular continent/geography. Any suggestions which may include some insight on Asian B-schools would be appreciated. I am an international (Indian) student. Thanks!

bb · Answer

Congratulations. It’s a different schools in different parts of the world

Do you happen to speak Cantonese or mandarin? Are you planning to work in the US or are you a long-term plans already firmed up? Basically, if you want to be in the United States, Georgetown is the way to go…. PS. I don’t think $2000 of living expenses will be enough in either of these places probably… but we can cover that later Posted from my mobile device

buzzkill667 · Answer

Hey bb, thanks for your reply. I would not like to be in the US for more than three years (can stretch this to five years)after my graduation. Would like to relocate to Asia/Europe after paying the $100-120k loan which may take time. I do not speak Cantonese or Mandarin which can be a problem when it comes to recruiting in HK. 
Does Georgetown do well when it comes to consulting considering it was never a target school for MBB

bb · Answer

Hong Kong recruiting will be a challenge without language skills so it would have to be Singapore. That is traditionally where most HKUST alums recruit. There is a small community of ex-pats there… but I don’t know a whole lot about Singapore recruiting unfortunately. I know there are MB bees and consulting companies operating in the city and obviously plenty of finance but I don’t know how booming or challenged the recruiting landscapers right now.

If you’re looking to work in the US after graduation, Georgetown is the only option really. I think consulting is possible but it depends on your personal background and if it’s attractive enough for getting chosen for an interview and also performing at the interview. A lot of the people without consulting the ground fail to clear the interview stage unfortunately.

There was strong consulting recruiting and a pipeline at MBS (29% of the class, though obviously we know that consulting recruiting is taking a positive moment, just ask the people who got pushed back a year 🥴) so there will be a consulting club on campus and I think you’ll get some help preparing for the interviews and everything else but consulting chances are never guaranteed. You may get sick for your interview or the interviewer may really not like you or who knows. Of course if you have consulting background already, that is a big plus.

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buzzkill667 · Answer

thanks for your valuable insight, bb. Exactly my point- given the current environment where consulting firms are holding back their offers/pushing it by a year, I am not very optimistic about my chances in consulting given that I have worked in a business analyst/technical role in an insurance consulting firm (WTW) and I would only be bringing my technical skills (programming/database management languages) to the table alongside some domain knowledge. I was under the assumption that consulting firms are usually agnostic of your work experience though having some prior consulting work experience under your belt definitely makes recruiting easier. I would be okay with a tier-2 consulting role in that case, if at all I do make it through the interview. Do you have any knowledge on consulting opportunities at HKUST or Hong Kong in general and whether it's mandatory to know Mandarin/Cantonese to work in consulting there?

bb · Answer

PS. Thank you for your question and allow me to clarify, I did not mean that you won’t be able to get the consulting job because of your work experience. It’s rather interviewing. You should come from a consulting background, you know how to handle interviews but otherwise, it’s a lot of interview prep…. And a lot of client facing skills.

If you’re trying to bring your technical experience in programming, I feel we can probably try to apply for a consulting company already since those roles may not require an MBA? But if you’re looking at the management consultant, those require interviewing and presentation skills and you need to impress your future clients not only with your work but also with your perception of work 😂

I would probably spend a bit of time already figuring out consulting rules that you would like to recruit for or other jobs are rolls you like to recruit for. Don’t expect that when you come to business school, someone will take your hand and will spend two weeks analyzing your strengths and weaknesses and then they’ll magically give you everything and tell you where you should go and apply. Nobody will do anything. You will feel exactly as comfortable as you feel today. Start the recruiting now, start your research. There’s no employer research classes in business school and there are no résumé writing classes either so you need to jump on these things ASAP so that they don’t take up time during the very busy fall and spring recruiting season.

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WLGUY007 · Answer

Congratulations on both the offers.
If You see yourself working in US gor US school...if its in Asia- You can't go wrong with HKUST.
While , scholarship is important its not the only decision factor, check with alumni in both schools, how are the placements in HKUST and McDonough for the industry that you want to venture in post MBA.
Living Expenses - depends on personal choice.
I would highly recommend choosing a school where you can make most of your MBA learnings, not aware about HKUST but have heard good things only, so check and check as many times as you can.
DC is expensive so is its MBA but you can't know what the future holds in 2025, so my recommendation is that you go for the one which will give best ROI(not just the salary, but proximity to your home, family and well your career progression).
Hope this helps.
-
Sk

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akbindia · Answer

Hi buzzkill667,

I am sorry for being late to be replying on this thread, as I was busy with my investment banking internship. You might have already taken a decision. Just to share, I would have recommended going with GU-MSB, given that it is really a great school. For many reasons, pursuing an MBA from US should be preferred, as far as I think. It exposes you to so many experiences that supersedes other experiences. And I went to a US B-school after having done an MBA from IIM Indore (before that, I did B.Tech. (Mechanical) from IIT Delhi). Unless, someone has a personal preference of going to some other geography. Also, GU-MSB is highly underrated. Georgetown University is extremely renowned in US otherwise, with GU's alums spread far and wide. I realized that during my investment banking networking last fall. I am glad I chose Georgetown. The experience exceeded my expectations. And what better city to spending two years of your life at than Washington DC. I would have gone to HKUST if I didn't have a US B-school admit in hand. Even a Notre Dame, or UWash, or Simon Rochester would have been great. McDonough is a definite YES. Disclaimer: I have no inputs on HKUST.

Georgetown MSB vs HKUST MBA

Georgetown MSB vs HKUST MBA

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