Which school would you join and why? Please chime in...

Question

In the next few months, I have to decide b/w Fuqua and UCLA Anderson. I know we are not talking about Harvard or Stanford here but I am tagged along with the Indian/Male/IT group which makes even the University of Phoenix Online a stretch school. Heck, I don't even work as a programmer. I work in strategy and project management for a blue chip. But I doubt whether the admissions committee can tell the difference. BTW, the Indian/Male/IT group is popularly known as the YETI brotherhood in our dark inner circles. Why YETI ? Because like the abominable snowman, the Indian/Male/IT is rarely seen in a top 10 B-school. I plan to attend both admit weekends but don't want to be swayed by their marketing spiel.

Summary of my thoughts on both schools...

 Fuqua 
- Private school with a great friendly environment and top-notch facilities
- Can afford to buy a house for a change
- Solid placements in traditional b-school companies
- Good access to NY recruiting if I go crazy during b-school and turn in to a banker wannabe
- Upstart school getting better every year and seems stronger across the board in all functional areas

 UCLA 
- In-State tuition (25K a year) but rents are insane around Westwood
- Located in Beverly hills
- A lot of non-traditional companies also recruit at Anderson. Hollywood, anyone ?
- Smaller program and strong in e-ship which appeals to me
- Large alumni network (35,000+ MBAs including a lot of CEOs and CFOs)

naturallight · Answer

I consider Duke to be more for general mgmt and UCLA to be more for finance. 

But I think it really comes down to where you want to live when you're done with an MBA--east coast or west coast?

batchgmat · Answer

Just curious why you would want to buy a house if you go to Duke? Would you stay there after your two years are up? Also, you would have to deal with the headaches a typical house owner goes through combined with MBA stress...

lhotseface · Answer

The renting vs buying option works in favor of buying in Durham/RTP. It isn't much of a headache to buy a house. I would rather pay a little interest and get tax deductions than loose rent money.

gmatclb · Answer

He's probably talking about the housing market in the 2 areas. LA is really expensive so buying a home is not cheap.

I would go to UCLA.

lhotseface · Answer

Either coast works for me. No real preferences...

lhmcjen · Answer

I think your personal post MBA goals are the most important thing in making this decision. What do you want to do? or what three things do you think you might do?

Ozmba · Answer

Another Duke/UCLA Applicant -- I am Jealous at the options u have :evil:

According to me, both the schools are very similar or lets say Ranked in the same cluser(Hjort),and strong General Management Programs... But after talking to both the students/alumni...I get a GUT feeling that i will be more happy in Duke, may be i am sold on the "team fuqua" concept....which i didnt felt during my interaction with Anderson folks...may be the so called "FIT" or whatever I prefer to study in Durham vs LA , as a student with family...my budget is very restricted ....... so my vote goes for "Duke" Cheers

WBF · Answer

lhotseface, you know how i feel about this question :-D

i honestly don't know much about Fuqua.... i have spoken with a few current students at Anderson and they seem to absolutely love it. classes are only mon-thurs, and they have a solid eship rep as you mentioned. seems like the culture there is truly work hard & play hard. i get the impression that you are truly an entrepreneur at heart, and we know that LA has a solid balance of major corporations and small-midsize business opportunities. i wish Anderson would just give us some scholarships! i'm still waiting on Darden R2, and i would only consider going to Darden over anderson if a scholarship is offerred.

lepium · Answer

I have not applied to any of them so my research is quite restricted. However, I'd go with Duke - Fuqua based mostly on personal preferences(I know, probably I'm not being so helpful). 

To expand: 

1) East Coast vs. West Coast (personal preference). 
2) Smaller community vs. LA (haven't been there but typically big cities tend to conspire against "team building" as people scatter after classes instead of sharing lives in campuses).
3) The whole "Team Fuqua" collaborative attitude. 
4) Reasonable living expenses at Duke (might be able to afford a beer now and then) vs. mortgage the house to pay for a tiny dorm room at UCLA.
5) LA's smog, traffic and other undesirabilities.

Hope it helps. L.

rhyme · Answer

I would probably pick Duke for no particularly great reason other than the cost of living @ UCLA would scare me.

jaynayak · Answer

Also if you buy a house..... and Duke has a in state tution... you qualify for that in your second year.

jayy178 · Answer

i can give you a perspective of LA since I live here and am about 10 min from Westwood. 

Basically what everyone says about rent is true. If you're planning to live right in Westwood, expect 2 bedroom apts to run in the 2200-2800 range. If you don't mind living 10-15 min away prices can drop a little bit. Traffic is bad, very bad. the 405 /10 intersection just plain sucks and wilshire blvd in westwood can be tough to get used to. 

Now some pros- obviously the girls are hot out here. Fast paced life (if you like that ) and great great restaurants from all varieties as well as many local bars/clubs to venture out to. Weather is pretty much one of the best in the US. Moderate temps throughout the year, but you can get to snow during winter in as little as 2 hours or head to the beach the same day.

hope this helps...

aaudetat · Answer

ugh, I hate LA. HATE IT. 

I don't know much about Anderson, I really liked Duke when I was there last week.

lhotseface · Answer

Duke is private so sadly they have no concept of in-state vs out-state. Private universities are generally more costly but have stellar facilities.

pelihu · Answer

That's a tough one. I actually believe the greatest difference between these two schools is their location. UCLA is the clear choice if you plan to work in California, while Duke would be the choice if you are targeting the mid-Atlantic. Since you say that you don't care whether you end up on the East Coast or West Coast, it probably just comes down to personal preference.

In-state tuition is a great bonus, but cost should really be one of the last things that you consider. Of course, with two schools like these which are comparably strong, it might just come down to price.

Which school would you join and why? Please chime in...

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