augustus021 wrote:
Hi everyone,I am lucky to get offers from both schools, but don't know what to choose, need your advice
My profile
- Southeast Asia man, who studied and worked in my country for my whole life till now.
- 4 years in the commercial strategy team of a tech company
- Short-term goal: MBB Consultant in either Singapore or my country
- Long-term goal: tech start-ups + open a side business: college/MBA admission consulting/test prep + NGO/NPO work
- Hobbies: I like playing sports: gym, running, swimming and traveling. Not a party guys. I want to utilize this MBA experience to explore more things.
My research
Yale
Pros
+ Global brand name - an advantage when I want to open a side business
+ I can take electives from other schools - I want to explore law/drama school
+ The school's focus on social impact, I feel resonated with the mission, and network to talk with NGO/NPO leaders in my class
Cons
- College town, lack of entertainment opportunities
- Lower rank than Kellogg (not sure if it affects my short-term goals of recruiting for MBB in Southeast Asia)
Kellogg
Pros
+ Higher rank school + better at consulting? I heard that the Consulting club at Kellogg is among the best
+ Better location, easy access to Chicago -> more fun weekends. Kellogg also has KWEST for students to bond, which sounds so fun
+ More experiential courses such as the San Francisco Winter Quarter or Growth Strategy Practicum -> I cannot find similar courses at Yale
Cons
- Not a global brand name, only a few friends in my network know the school -> disadvantage if I want to pivot to another industry in the long-term.
Now I'm more towards Yale SOM because the Yale pros linked more closely to my career goals. What do you think?
@augustus021 Congrats on the stellar admits! However, I would say it is somewhat of an unconventional choice to study in the USA if your short-term goals are in SEA. It is not clear whether you received any financial aid, but it does look like it's going to be very expensive.
You should not worry about the brand recall of both the schools, especially Kellogg. Everybody who has done a reputed MBA or works in a global environment knows about Kellogg. Also, because you are targeting Singapore in the short term, I would like to remind you that Kellogg has an exchange program with INSEAD and a significant number of Kellogg MBAs study in Singapore during the exchange and scout for opportunities there. So I think you will not go wrong with Kellogg from your goals point of view (in consulting in SEA).
In the long term, if you are concerned about the brand value of your MBA, I would say Kellogg has an upper hand here, although the network potential through the alumni might still be limited in SEA,
which is why I would highly, highly recommend doing the INSEAD exchange program to take advantage of its network capital.Get personalized advice tailored to your unique circumstances in the B School admissions process. Reapplying? Get a free ding analysisBest wishes
Aanchal Sahni (INSEAD alum, former INSEAD admissions interviewer)Founder, MBAGuideConsulting
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https://mbaguideconsulting.com/ | Message(WA): +91 9971200927| email-
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