PREMIUM ESSAY

Selecting Your Schools

Deciding which schools to apply to is not an easy decision. There are many aspects to consider. These can include location, future career goals, school strengths, and your own relative strengths and weaknesses.

The main thing to determine is your goals for business school. There are many different reasons for going to business school such as Harvard Business School, Stanford Business School, MIT's Sloan School of Business, or Wharton School of Business. We'll explore a few of them here:

• Career change - It can be difficult to make dramatic career changes. Going to business school can be like "starting over." Employers are willing to consider applicants with limited direct experience in their field, especially is they see coursework and internships during business school that build toward the desired new career path. You'll want to select a school with strong recruiting relationships with companies in your field of interest. It also doesn't hurt if the school has a strong academic reputation in that area.
• Increase earning potential - It is no secret that individuals with MBAs have higher earning potential over their careers than individuals without advanced degrees. (DATA?) However, these benefits sometimes are not immediately realized. Business school is expensive in terms of tuition and living expenses, as well as opportunity cost of lost income. It can take some years after graduating business school before the increases in income will make up for the expenses of attending school. You're interest is in getting into the school with the best overall reputation as possible. School reputation can help open doors to better opportunities.
• Credentialing - At some point, many business career paths require an MBA in order to advance to the next level. A business degree can ensure that you will never be passed over for a promotion or position simply because of credentials. Again, a high overall school reputation will give you an edge in opening doors for interview opportunities. (School rep only gets you so far. Once you are in the interview, your work experience will take on more importance).
• Round out skill set - You would think that going to school would be about getting an education. However, although business school exposes you to different areas you may not have been exposed to in the past, it cannot make you an expert in these areas. The best way to build your skill set is to get actual work experience in the areas where you are lacking. Similar to those looking for a career change, you may want to look for a school with a strong academic reputation in the area you are looking to grow in. However, you may want to focus more on schools where you can best get an internship with a company that would provide you with actual working experience in your area of interest. This counts far more in the minds of potential employers than classwork.
• Networking - Business school is a brilliant arena for developing a rich network across industries and functions. You have the opportunity to get to know individuals who will be successful in many different parts of the business world. This can be beneficial as you advance in your career and need to seek advice or opportunities from people with a wide range of experiences. Again, overall reputation of the school matters most. Better schools will attract a higher quality student body. In addition, you should consider the diversity of the student body.
• Break from daily drudge of working - Business school is hard work. And many MBA students select courses of study which enable them to continue to work while engaging in part-time courses. However, for students who choose to attend school full-time, it can be an opportunity to take a break from work and get some "mindspace" to consider other personal and professional interests. In this situation, you many want to get a better sense for what students do in their spare time to understand if they are able to pursue other interests or if they are completely occupied with problem sets and papers.

Once you determine what your goals are, you will be better able to determine which schools are best aligned for meeting your goals. But before you make a final determination, there are a few other considerations. In most cases, you will want to apply to the schoolsw with the best reputation for which you are qualified. The top 10-15 schools as ranked by magazines, etc. are generally considered as elite schools. So within those schools, focus on the ones which will meet your needs best in terms of location, access to employers of interest to you, and academic areas of focus.