Well the letter has come, and good news! I got into INSEAD. This was my first choice MBA school, over other schools I applied to including Columbia, LBS, Kellog, and Chicago. People may wonder why I chose INSEAD instead of some of the more reputable schools in the United States. Well it comes down to a few things. INSEAD is globally recognized, whereas most US schools are not. The only ones that are in my opinion are: LBS, Columbia, Chicago GSB, Harvard, Wharton, Stanford. In fact in the FT rankings this year, those are the only schools that finished ahead of INSEAD. INSEAD also ranks well in topmba rankings, which break out MBA programs by specialty.
The US rankings are all in my opinion useless, since they hold information based on US centric recruiters and do not take into account biases by recruiters based in the US that may have gone to US schools. Anyways enough about that, and my rant about ratings. In my opinion, and in the opinion of most recruiters (which is indicated by salary out of MBA) INSEAD is a top 10 school in the world. Where it ranks in the top 10 is subject to your location and your employer.
Anyways back to the main reason for choosing INSEAD.
1) Name
2) ROI
3) International -> Contacts and Students
Why ROI? You say you can make more money coming out of Harvard, Wharton, Stanford? Well first of all that's debatable, as INSEAD's starting salary of 120,000$ is close to the others. The second point you have to consider is the opportunity cost lost due to a 2 year program as well as the additional tuition fees associated with a 2 year program.
Let's compare:
INSEAD
Tuition - 60000$/year
Living Expenses - 40000$/year
Lost salary - 90000$/year
Total cost - 190000$
Harvard
Tuition - 40000$/year * 2 - 80000$
Living Expenses - 40k/year * 2 = 80000$
Lost Salary - 90k/year + 120k/year (after MBA) = 210000$ - 20k internship = 190000$
Total Cost - 350000$
The difference is about 160000$ or more than one year of your new salary. Lets analyze this a bit further. Even if you were making 30000$ less per year than a Harvard grad (and you won't), you would require over 5 years to make up the difference. And that's assuming the INSEAD grad doesn't get a promotion before you do, because he/she has a 1 year head start on you.
So really the decision becomes a no brainer. And they tell me smart MBAs go to Harvard. Well apparently they are not THAT smart. Also INSEAD's GMAT average above 705 is one of the highest entrance MBA GMAT score required.
Insead is also the most globally diverse school with students from over 70 countries, with no country representing more than 14% of the overall student body. No other school matches that, or even comes close. Oh and INSEAD requires you to know 2 languages well enough for doing business, and requires you to learn a third by the end of your period at INSEAD.
btw did I mention it is in beautiful Singapore? Oh and I can do time in France as well. And 2 months at Wharton if I really want through an exchange program.
Anyways I'm really excited!
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
INSEAD - A new Journey
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5 comments:
Do you think a score of 680 is good or should I attempt once more? I am applying in Fall.
I got 680 and a 6.0/6.0 on essay and i have been admitted in R2 to the Class of Dec-09 ..
GMAT is one measure the school uses to see your quantitative and analytical aptitude where you can use other elements in the application to convey the same. In the end the adcom looks at the complete application holistically to know your person and your candidacy for the school .. You should evaluate yourself whether you can convey your candidacy through different aspects in your file - if yes i dont see 680 as a showstopper .. good luck
Your mention of ROI and the explanation of its returns is based on a simple career ladder, which in my opinion, is not the case for a typical harvard/stanford graduate. Many of whom have gone on to do stuff themselves, maybe earning nothing but their expenses in their first year out of college. But you should actually look at their ROI on average over long term, say, 20 years. IF there was such a study, I daresay Stanford and Harvard's ROI might be considerably higher. But that's just my assumption, with no basis but anecdotal evidence.
Your post is extremely biased towards Insead, expectedly so. You should realize however that education cannot be measured by tangibles alone. Going to Harvard/Stanford/Wharton will guarantee major returns over your lifetime. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/24/harvard-mba-grads-make-mo_n_587901.html)
This is not to knock on Insead or the quality of education there, but to show you flaws in your logic.
"So really the decision becomes a no brainer. And they tell me smart MBAs go to Harvard. Well apparently they are not THAT smart. Also INSEAD's GMAT average above 705 is one of the highest entrance MBA GMAT score required."
Such arrogance - Most Gmat averages at the top 5 business schools in the US are higher than the number you looked up. Regardless, GMAT is definitely NOT a measure or intelligence... it is just a measure of how well you can train your brain to think a certain way. Hope you enjoy your time at Insead...
To the last poster...Are you saying INSEAD does NOT guarantee you major returns over your lifetime? You are grossly incorrect if you don't believe it will. INSEAD is one of the world's top brands and in some areas of the world carries more weight than Stanford/Wharton (not Harvard of course).
INSEAD has been consistantly ranked #1 for ROI in Forbes magazine over the past few years among all the top business schools in the world.
If you honestly believe Harvard is going to get you more money long term, then great, go ahead. But facts and studies show (and don't point to business week which only takes into account US grads) that INSEAD has the top ROI in the world for B-schools!
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