Undecided - 06-06-2020 | Clear Admit DecisionWire

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June 5, 2020 9:52pm ET

Enrolled: Undecided

Admitted: Cornell / Johnson , Dartmouth / Tuck , Duke / Fuqua , UVA / Darden

Applied: Cornell / Johnson, Dartmouth / Tuck, Duke / Fuqua, UVA / Darden, Yale SOM

Entering Year: 2020

Post MBA Career: Investment Banking Companies: Capital One

GMAT: 720

GPA: 3.5

Location: PA

Notes:

I don’t really have any additional notes outside of cola-costs will be same (for finance anyways). I have been going back and forth among Darden Fuqua and Tuck. I love all 3. I guess I’m curious what brand carries the most weight and what others would do. My fears fuqua is large class size. ? Tuck is isolation? Darden is lack of strong prestige?

Like (4)

Show Comments (18) Last: August 14, 2020

anon27821 Likes Earned: 193 OP here-it’s funny I’ve given out advice everywhere on these forums because I love sharing my opinions on programs and fits based off of location and goals, but when it comes to myself I am at a total crossroads. Also applied to Ross and got rejected. Loved Ross the most of all so that hurt the most. (2)

alexbr4 Verified User. Likes Earned: 1706 Always easier to give advice when you are a little removed from the situation. Sounds like you are not considering Cornell, at this stage. Have you examined the career reports, any significant differences in IB recruiting? Are you looking to be in NYC, post MBA? (1)

anon10660 Likes Earned: 292 Congrats! Definitely easier to suggest to others than to decide. In a similar boat myself haha. In your case, personally I would pick Tuck over the rest. It's less than 2 hours away from Boston has a super close knit culture plus the ivy brand. Have a few friends that got into NY or Boston IB from there. Also Tuck is strong in consulting if you change your mind. Fuqua and Darden are both amazing programs too but definitely Tuck is more prestigious imo. I would take Tuck > Darden (case) > Fuqua > Cornell. But that's just my opinion. The three schools you are deciding between are in a similar tier and pretty much interchangeable but for me Tuck would be the winner. (2)

anon27821 Likes Earned: 193 I would want Boston or NY. I love Johnson as well, but not enough to justify going over any of the other three. Wanting to be at a top Bb-GS & JPM would probably be my ideal spots. I wouldn’t mind the flexibility of one day being able to work anywhere or somewhere hot haha. I have examined career reports and it my goals are obtainable from all of those schools. Something about the Tuck prestige is attractive but it is really is totally unique...Do we really think Tuck is in same tier as Darden and fuqua? I’ve always kind of put it in This “CBS HAAS Tuck” tier. (2)

anon27821 Likes Earned: 193 totally unique as in “if you don’t love Hanover, this could be a major life mistake” lol (1)

anon10660 Likes Earned: 292 I agree with you. I definitely do think Tuck is in CBS, Haas tier. Not a while ago Tuck was an M8 haha. Yes Hanover is in middle of nowhere but it does provide easy access to Boston or NY just like Durham and Charlottesville do to RTP and DC. It's definitely tricky but for me Tuck has the prestige over other fantastic schools. Best of luck and do let us know what you decide and why? When do you have to put down your decision by? (1)

anon71472 Likes Earned: 80 So it depends what you want to do after your MBA, but I would say wither Tuck or Darden. If you are looking for a close-knit group of people with a sense of community then I would advocate you attend Darden. Darden is the #11 best program in the country while Tuck in the #12; this is not a huge difference, but this matters for some people. Both Darden and Tuck have excellent post-MBA career prospects so you honestly cannot go wrong. Tuck is in the middle of nowhere so you better be sure you enjoy the area if you decide to attend; Charlottesville has more things to do and is a close drive to both DC and Richmond. Congrats on getting in to an excellent set of schools, you can't choose wrong!! (1)

anon57607 Likes Earned: 6 I had to make the decision between Tuck and Darden myself and here is what sold me on Darden..to me there were three main drivers: 1) yes, tuck has the Ivy Brand but Darden has the UVA "public ivy" brand and the wider university carries a much larger alumni base than Dartmouth. 2) weather - some would say this is not a big deal but for me I preferred a long fall and early spring over a brutally long and cold winter. 3) Charlottesville - I was drawn to both schools because of their close, tight knit community but the one caveat to that is that Charlottesville is a much better place to be based with this tight community than Hanover. I just felt that Charlottesville provided a lot more social outlets and place to engage outside the classroom (i.e. amazing restaurants, vineyards and again, the outdoors for a longer portion of the year). Honestly aside from this, Darden and Tuck were very similar places in my mind. The only other real variable, to me, was case method vs. not. I love the idea of case method so it made it a positive for Darden, but I could see it going the other way if you weren't stoked for the case method. Other thing to consider now ( I made decision pre-COVID) is that case method lends itself better to virtual learning because you are required to stay engaged despite being behind a screen... Good luck! (2)

anon23541 Likes Earned: 12 Because you're recruiting for banking, I would go Tuck --> Fuqua --> Johnson --> Darden - although you can't go wrong with any of them! If you don't mind being in Hanover for 2 years, then Tuck is a great choice. If you want to be somewhere with nicer weather, Fuqua seems like a good choice. Congrats on your admissions to 4 top programs and BOL! (1)

anon32488 Likes Earned: 62 I might be the odd one out here, but given that you are recruiting for I banking, I’d think Johnson would be higher on your list. TBH I think they place just as well if not better than these other schools. The I-banking recruiting process along with the immersion in the spring seem like solid pieces of infrastructure that might give them the edge. Did you receive any scholarship? Another consideration is that you would have “above average” stats at Johnson, which would make your resume stand out more from your peers. I’ll concede that if “prestige” matters to you, Johnson is lacking in the dept relatively. However, from a rankings perspective, all of these schools are ahead and behind each other in various rankings. Don’t think you can go wrong any way you choose! (3)

anon23541 Likes Earned: 12 agree with 32488 above - Johnson is fantastic for IB! But I think the Tuck brand carries more weight and will open more doors down the road (2)

anon27821 Likes Earned: 193 Thanks for all the love guys-still undecided and thinking things through. Be a great one for the podcast (4)

anon36796 Likes Earned: 39 These are all great options! I think Tuck is a tier above the rest though (1)

anon95718 Likes Earned: 1 2019 Employment Report says by function, Tuck sent about 20 students to investment banking, which is about 8-9 percent. Darden didn't have an accurate number for IB function, but their blogs said historically each year it sent 15-19%(42+) of students to IB. Duke sent 39 students(11%) to IB in 2019, and Johnson sent 22% to IB, which is 58 students. Besides, Tuck has 24% of students finding jobs in Financial services, Darden has 25%, Fuqua has 23% and Johnson has 38%. In this case, Around 35%+ student seeking jobs in Finance sectors get into IB in Tuck, 60%+ in Darden, 47% in Fuqua, 58% in Johnson. Hopefully, these data are helpful for you to make a decision. Considering Tuck's reputation in Wallstreet and student interests, I would say the chances to get into IB from those four schools are pretty similar. If you look for prestige, go Tuck. If you dedicate to IB, consider Darden and Johnson. If you want to explore more industries, especially Tech, Fuqua is the strongest above all. (1)

anon34639 Likes Earned: 8 First, I have friends at all four of these schools, three at MBB and the one from Duke/Fuqua in PE. All these schools are in the top 5 to 15 bracket and none of my friends believe one school is better than the other (though they were competitive during app process). To echo 32488 above, you pursue a Cornell MBA if you want to do IB or hotel / real estate PE (call this “prestige finance”). Per 95718, Cornell Johnson’s placement of 58 graduates for IB alone is nearly triple that of Tuck’s. I recall asking a Tuck alumnus about hotel and real estate PE recruiting and was told, “your on your own for that, but for other types of PE we place well.” Johnson sits within the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, which includes the Hotel School and Baker Program of Real Estate. Tuck lacks this integration with Dartmouth but makes it up for how they place in VC/PE (non hotel / real estate) and at MBB. If brand name is the main factor, I’d choose Cornell or Dartmouth above the others. If you want to aim higher than a group like Capital One and do IB (bludge bracket or elite boutique) or hotel / real estate PE, I’d opt to pursue a Cornell MBA. Other types of PE and VC opportunities might be more reachable via a Dartmouth MBA. Last, unless a person has earned an MBA, they won’t recognize names like Tuck, Johnson, Fuqua, or Darden without being prompted by what university they are located in. Never heard of UVA as a public ivy, on a related note. Kellogg, for instance, sounds like the name of a cereal without knowing it is Northwestern. All-in, I’d rank Johnson and Tuck near the likes of H/S/W and (maybe) Booth for placement in prestige finance roles. This said, Cornell Johnson’s Two Year program doesn’t rank as high for graduates chasing consulting and tech roles. (1)

alexbr4 Verified User. Likes Earned: 1706 More details on this decision inthis episode of Wire Taps: https://www.clearadmit.com/2020/06/episode-107-wire-taps/ (1)

anon27821 Likes Earned: 193 Taking my talents to Durham. Ultimately decided that fit mattered most and I could see myself in fuqua blue. Tuck was tough because of the Dartmouth prestige but I recognized that if I removed Dartmouth from tuck my decision was Fuqua in a no contest (2)

anon57489 Likes Earned: 2 Welcome to Team Fuqua!! @anon27821 (0)