Wharton V/S Booth($$$)

Question

Hi,

I was fortunate enough to get into Booth and Wharton. I received a $60K scholarship at Booth v/s no scholarship at Wharton. For context - I plan to pursue a career in consulting post MBA. My second preferred career option is Product Management.

I am having a tough time deciding between both the schools and would appreciate any guidance in this regard.

bb · Answer

Congratulations on your admits. You were wondering if you should go to US news number one ranked Chicago booth or number five ranked Wharton? 😂

Those rankings are pretty crazy.

For consulting, I think you are going to be in a very similar position in terms of recruiting. It will be up to you to clear the interviews and both programs will help you get there but it will be your performance that will decide whether you get it or not.

With product management, I don’t think you will have any hard time at the booth but Wharton has been investing a lot into their tech exposure and tech recruiting so I would say they win this round.

Overall, Wharton has a nicer brand ring just since it is part of the elite top three but since you’re not recruiting for very niche industries, I feel grabbing $60k at the #1 ranked program can’t be wrong….

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Anji_Del · Answer

Thank you, BB! I appreciate your feedback here!

Just one thing I would love to add - I am an international student from India and worried about H1-B in the States. With this in mind, I believe Wharton’s brand may help secure international jobs as well.

What are your thoughts on that?

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bb · Answer

I would say there’s definitely a value in a stronger brand. When you send a cold résumé or ask for help from people who may not be very familiar with business schools, I think there’s definitely value there and it could be a deciding factor….

I can tell you that when I was getting my MBA, I was so poor and it did not matter if I had to spend 50,000 or 100,000 or 1 million, it made no difference since I didn’t have that money and those amounts were astronomical to me. You may be a better judge of how valuable the brand will be in your home country. I cannot comment on that. You will get some other benefits as well by attending a larger end a more recognized program. However, if you’re going to recruit at consulting companies the pure brand will make enough difference.

PS. If you were leaning towards Wharton, I don’t think anyone could blame you because lots of other people will be attending paying full price. You’re only getting one MBA and it’s important to feel you made the right decision. For some people, they may choose a top 20 rankings school with a full scholarship instead but others would choose a full price at an M7…. Or even the top 10.

So you need to be comfortable with your decision. No matter which program you go to, things will not be perfect. You’ll be disappointed with some thing. You may feel your career services needs to do better or you may feel that the professor was not good enough or your classmates are stupid. It’s never perfect so you want to avoid regrets. That’s what can kill dreams regret….

I also would suggest looking at financing options because there may be a difference in loans in terms and opportunities for international applicants making one of the programs easier or more attractive.

Anji_Del · Answer

I think this has been the most helpful advice I have received till date. Thanks a lot, BB!

I am leaning towards Wharton mainly because of its brand value. While cost is a huge huge factor for me, I’d like and want to believe that I will be able to recover it in the long term.

Thanks for penning it down the way you did! I will also take a look at some financing options! Once again, Many thanks!

Posted from my mobile device

bb · Answer

When I was going to school, I decided that if I was going to be in trouble, it didn’t matter with the amount was 😂 I would be in trouble either way 🥴

Thank you for the kind words, I really appreciate it.

PS. Keep in mind that the interest rates are probably going to be on the high side right now but you will be able to refinance your loan once you find a job and establish a credit history. So in your calculations don’t assume that a slightly better interest-rate will last forever because it will not

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Anji_Del · Answer

Hahaha. I definitely relate to that ! 😅 trouble either way, indeed!

Thanks for the feedback on interest rates as well. 🙌🏻 will be sure to keep this in mind!

Do you think there are any external scholarship options that one could apply to post receiving an admit ?

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bb · Answer

There are very few external scholarships. We have a list of them from a few years ago and I will try to find it but it’s very very short. Most scholarships available will be at Wharton. It’s possible and I would actually encourage you to reach out to the admissions team to see if they have any scholarships post admission. Those are not common but they exist.

Anji_Del · Answer

Thank you, BB! Wharton did suggest a few scholarship opportunities post-admission but I believe everyone would be competing for those!

If you do find the list, I would be happy to take a look at it!

P.S. - this platform has been a great resource for my GMAT preparation and I would love to thank you for making this process so much easier for MBA candidates like me!

Wharton V/S Booth($$$)

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