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saturnring11
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Choice of Schools Updated on: 01 Jun 2006, 21:18
Originally posted by saturnring11 on 30 May 2006, 22:15.
Last edited by saturnring11 on 01 Jun 2006, 21:18, edited 1 time in total.
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Hjort
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Choice of Schools 31 May 2006, 05:00
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Hi,

It is unclear what your goals are (is this that Tech e-ship for your family's manufacturing company?) but that is what the essays are for.

For the ultraelites you have a good basic platform for the rest of your application (essays, LORs, etc.). As you well know, for schools that enjoy demographic profiling, you will be ascribed to a very competitive group. Given your interests, I am not sure that I would pick that exact subset of ultra elite schools (no MIT?).

Among the elite cluster schools UCB is a logical choice albeit highly oversubscribed but NYU is a bit more puzzling. Michigan is a another logical choice here, perhaps Cornell as well.

Georgetown is even more puzzling- especially since you skip over all of the trans elites to arrive in the near elite cluster (Georgetown is a very good school but I am not sure that many would consider tech e-ship its forte). I am surprised there is no mention of Carnegie Mellon or perhaps Texas.

What do you think?

Hjort
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Canis lupus
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Choice of Schools 31 May 2006, 07:41
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For tech e-ship i would throw in Univ of Maryland(Smith) and Purdue in too..Atleast over Georgetown..

I dont see HBS as a strong tech eship player..Hjort will correct me if im mistaken..

Best of luck
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saturnring11
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Choice of Schools 31 May 2006, 07:42
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I think my goal is pretty straightforward: Steer my business into an area that offers higher gross margins than manufacturing does. China's arrival on the global scene has killed margins for most folks in manufacturing. I'd like to remedy this situation.

As for my choice of schools -

Stanford: Excellent for Entrepreneurship, 5 miles from my current home, strong reputation. Getting in here would allow me to continue my volunteer efforts.

Berkeley: A good fit for my personality. Same reasons as Stanford.

NYU and Georgetown: Location, International Business focus, recommendations by Alumni.

Harvard: Excellent brand, quality of classmates.

Wharton: Reasonable chance of getting in, High quality of classmates and faculty.


Of the schools you suggested, I got my Master of Science from the University of Texas. I'd prefer to gain new experiences. I'm done with the state of Texas when it comes to education.

CMU/Michigan - I'm not fond of the location. I'd prefer not to apply to an engineering powerhouse.

Cornell - Possible choice. I need to look more closely at it.

MIT - I know a few MIT grads. I haven't heard good things about the atmosphere around the school.

Would you recommend other schools? I'm considering Babson but am concerned about its lack of a well-rounded program.
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Choice of Schools 31 May 2006, 18:32
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OK, so your goal is to move the family business into higher margin products - that makes sense.

Just to be clear, my goal here is to help candidates optimize their portfolios, I have no interest in dictating what schools one "should" apply to. Some candidates find this process helpful, some find it annoying, some find this process to be both.

For what it is worth, I was more concerned with the ultra elites you excluded than the ones you included. All of the ultra elites will have high quality faculty and students (those who say otherwise are probably trying to sell you something).

If you pick NYU for location and intl. business, it is surprising that Columbia is absent for your portfolio. If intl. business is a high priority, the Midwestern ultra elites are conspicuously absent from your portfolio.

I would examine the comments you have heard about MIT more closely, I have heard negative comments from graduates of nearly every school I have come across. The comments you have heard might be indicative of your experience there, but, then again, maybe not.

Re: CMU and Mich., I find it a little hard to reconcile a desire to stay away from strong engineering schools while still applying to Stanford. If one is searching for the best opportunity, I suggest taking it where it is found whether that be in the tundra or the Sahara.

Babson is a another good school, but it is frankly outclassed by the schools you have already mentioned.

OK, your turn.

Hjort
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saturnring11
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Choice of Schools 31 May 2006, 21:22
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Hjort,

First off, I value your opinion. That is the only reason I'm here :)

What I tried to do with my choice of schools was to pick 2 stretch schools, 3 schools within my range and 1 safe bet. As you suggested, I'm giving MIT a hard look again. I will make it a point to visit the campus.

Columbia is missing because I picked NYU over it. I am trying to keep the list of schools I apply to down to 6. The reason for picking NYU: I think I'd have a better shot at getting in.

CMU and Michigan don't make it in because I feel I think they'd be too engineering centric. I'd prefer a business/management focussed environment. This is my personal uneducated opinion. After two degrees in two different engineering disciplines, I think I'm already strong in that area.

Kellogg and Chicago aren't on the list because I haven't researched them.

If you could tell me which of these schools are beyond my reach based on the brief profile I've provided, it would benefit me immensely. Is applying to more than 6 schools feasible?