I wrote earlier in the year that one of my personal goals was to get accepted to both Katz (University of Pittsburgh) and Tepper (Carnegie Mellon University). I’m happy to say that I was accepted to both programs! I was accepted to Katz a few days after I sent my application in. For Tepper, I had to wait almost a month to find out if I was accepted. Tepper’s admission process was pretty rigorous. The application consisted of four essays, resume, activities, GMAT, transcripts, detailed work experience, and an interview. I will be honest, I was really nervous during the month waiting to find out if I was accepted or not!
Now that I was accepted to both programs, I have to decide which program to attend. I’m pretty sure that I am going to attend Tepper, but the biggest down fall to that is the tuition for three years will be about $120k. That is double the cost of the Katz MBA. That said, my choices are basically:
1) Go to Tepper and get an MBA from one of the top schools in the country and pay around $120k. However, I would only end up with a maximum of 30k in loans.
2) Go to Katz and get an MBA with a good reputation locally, but not nationally. I would have no loans after finishing this MBA program.
Being a personal finance blogger, most would probably choose Katz and avoid taking out any student loans. However, I don’t plan to live in Pittsburgh forever and the reputation from Tepper and the global network will certainly be worth the extra cost in the long run.
Congratulations on your acceptances!
Where would you get the better education? I’m sort of a name-brand-education person, so I would probably go for Tepper if it’s the better education as well as network.
Congrats! I think it all depends on how much experience you plan on having before you move as well. I think good experience trumps education in the long run and employers will look at that as well. P.S. I’m about to be done with my Finance MBA and have been looking into this as well.
Sounds like the application process was really tough. But way to go, you did it! I would go for the more prestigious school as well. The amount of loans you will end up with after graduating from Tepper is a rounding error compared how much you’ll earn over the lifetime of your career and the opportunities it will bring you. YOLO.
I have to make this decision as well except I will be staying in pgh for the rest of my life. How will you Only have 30k in loans??
Mostly because of tuition reimbursement from my employer, but I am the beneficiary of a 529 account with some money in it too.
Are you planning to attend part-time or full-time?
Part time. I interviewed for a job at Pitt so if I got that I could go to Katz for free.
Finishing tepper with >160 (60 undergrad) is INTIMIDATING.
Yeah, 160 would be tough to stomach. Good luck with the job at Pitt. What area are you planning to concentrate in for your MBA?
I haven’t updated my blog, but I decided to go to Tepper. I already send in my $700 deposit.
Congrats man. Tepper is an incredible place that I would love to be a part of, but it is really hard to justify that money. I’m holding off until the last day to put the deposit in, if I stay at my current job I could get 10k a year, but not sure if I want to stay.
I would like to have a concentration in finance, be a part of the entrepreneurship club, but they told me to be open about my options. I definitely agree with them as I am only 23 years old and not hell bent on any specific area. How about yourself?
Thanks. My concentrations are going to be in Finance and Strategy.
Katz is a great school too especially if you are planning to stay in pittsburgh.
Wow, congrats on getting into both places. I can’t afford Tepper and wouldn’t want to take out over $100k in student loans. But it’s like you said, Katz is only regionally well-respected.
That said, I think the prestige of your MBA only gets a foot in the door, job-wise. If you’re applying to the same positions as HBS, Kellogg, Wharton, CBS etc. etc. etc. grads, then you’re going to need more than the name of your institution to seal the deal. After your first job post-MBA, most placed won’t even care where you get it from, but rather, focus on your experiences.
Good luck with your decision.