WP Carey (Full Ride+Stipend) VS Goizueta Emory (50% tuition waiver)

Question

Hi all,

Hoping to get your thoughts on this. I was recently accepted to  Arizona State University (WP Carey)  after putting down my deposit for  Emory (Goizueta) . I am now having a really tough time deciding between the two schools.

Background: US citizen, chemical engineer, Currently Working in Petroleum Industry in Bangladesh

Post MBA target: Looking to switch to a business field (have not decided which sector)

ASU WP Carey 
- Full Tuition Waiver and $15k Stipend for 2 years
- Strong Supply Chain Management Program
- Not well renowned for other Post-MBA fields (e.g. Finance, Consulting, Marketing etc.)
- Upcoming business school with budding reputation (only this year US News has ASU MBA @ No.25)
- 93% of students get jobs within 3 months
- ~$100K median salary

Emory (Goizueta) 
- Ranked in Top 20 for several years
- Strong reputation and big alumni database (bigger brand value)
- Well known for Consulting, Marketing and Finance 
- Have to take a loan of~$60K
- 95% of students get jobs within 3 months
- ~$115K median salary

bb · Answer

I would go for WP Carey. You would be crazy to pay $110K just to get a bump of 5 ranking points and some side benefits that come from attending Emory. Yes, it has more alums but there is also a concept about quality vs. quantity and usually really big schools do not have a great alum response rate... .this makes judging quality and alum network hard.

The only thing about WP Carey is that it only graduates 64 people a year vs 180 from Emory. 
As to programs and their quality and competitiveness, they both have applicants with pretty much the same GMAT scores and Work Experience. The schools have the same average GMAT in fact.

My suggestion would be to abandon your offer at Emory and become a very happy member of the ASU community unless you want to live in Atlanta or have a network there. However, if you plan to be in the west (CA, WA) or elsewhere, ASU should serve you very well at the price they offered.

My only concern is size..... The downside you should be prepared for is that you will unlikely get much of on-campus hiring events with that size of a program. This is something to ask current students about as well as class options/diversity of courses offered, facilities, etc.

Congratulations on getting into both programs!

khanimran070390 · Answer

Thanks BB for the helpful reply.

I understand your viewpoint. But, I have a concern. WP Carey specializes in SCM (not known for finance, marketing, etc.) and I am not sure which business field to target yet. Whereas, Emory has a more balanced program with graduates taking jobs in many sectors. Should, I have reason to worry about this issue.

Also, I have to take a loan of about $60k at Emory and not $110K.

I have no preference on locations. I generally like the warmer climate and both these schools do a great job at placing students in those places.

Recently, Carey has bumped its class size to 120. Also, the program is very competitive nowadays with acceptance rates at 15%.

Your thoughts would be appreciated again!!

Mo2men · Answer

WP Carey is really is known as one of the powerhouses for SCM.

Although you do not have location preferences, It would not be wise to trap yourself in a schools that does not offer what you want. I think you must have preliminary goal in your life. What did you write in your goal essay for both schools? What is you short term goal. This is a good starting point, even if you change later.

bb · Answer

Thank you for pointing out the obvious thing I missed - 50% scholarship at Emory. $60K is much better than $120K.

The only thing I can add to my original post/suggestion and to your clarification is a bit of demystification - there is the chicken and the egg question that many have - do HBS folks find great jobs because they went to HBS or is it because HBS admits only the best of the best who would not have issues finding those jobs in the first place?

When someone says "School X" has great placement into MBB or Finance, that often means, that the applicants it attracts are drawn to those industries, and are natural candidates. For example, would Wells Fargo hire someone without any Finance Experience but from Emory or someone with 4 years of Finance roles but from WP Carey? I probably don't need to answer that question. The school's value and brand matters mostly for the first job you are getting - the top 10 have a great on-campus recruiting machine and resources, in part due to the candidates they attract, not due to the professors they have or something amazing they teach (you are not going to use much of the theory you will learn in bscool at work - your job will likely rely and be done better using your bschool knowledge but you get so much and so many things crammed in BSchool that you can't use all of them. It is mostly about the basics - being professional, delivery good presentations, team work, and sharp mind. It is not about knowing the valuation strategies or accounting principles in GAAP that you will use on the job.

So I am going to get to my point as I have to run an errand - unless a school offers on campus recruiting events/opportunities that many students take part in, you are out there on your own - you will be bugging alums, sending in resumes, and cold-calling recruiters. You may click with someone from Emory right away or you may click with someone from ASU - it is a toss up..... The two schools are very close in rankings and selectivity.... Unless Emory can give you something more than ASU, in the long run, you won't have that much of a difference between the two programs besides you will likely go west from ASU and be more on the east coast/south with Emory.... that's the retrospect years after getting an MBA.

VeritasPrepDozie · Answer

That is a lot of money to turn down at Carey but Emory will provide you more career flexibility. Not to live in the past but it really helps to have a picture of what industry/career you are targeting post-MBA before applying for this specific reason. I would spend some time now, thinking through a short list of career options to determine whats most realistic. It does not need to be final but certainly needs to guide you a bit otherwise it will be hard for you to make an informed decision.

Money is the only real defining criteria in this decision and Carey is winning for me based on that.

Good luck!

Money is the only real defining criteria in this decision and Carey is winning for me based on that.

Good luck!

keats · Answer

I think it would be great if you can get some clarity on your goals. I agree that WP specializes in Supply Chain and most of its students pick job in this function. However, the diversity and the class it offers is incomparable. The acceptance rate is at par with a top few schools and since I have a few friends there who are currently studying at WP, I see that they are very happy with what the school has to offer. Also, you have the chance to intern and may be earn a full time in California ( a lot of people go to Cali from ASU) So, if you want to work in California, ASU can be a much better place to be at.

WP Carey (Full Ride+Stipend) VS Goizueta Emory (50% tuition waiver)

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