MBA at Duke Fuqua or NYU Stern?
Hey all,
Have gotten accepted to Fuqua and Stern and am really debating the decision for various reasons. I am currently in consulting, living in NYC. After my MBA I plan on continuing in consulting, but want to leave the doors open for banking. The problem I am having is that I've been told that Fuqua would be the better school for consulting, while Stern would be better for banking. While I realize that Stern's location in the city would probably prove useful for any finance related field, I feel that it could also be a let down in terms of the community feel since people will be pretty spread out. Additionally, since I've been living in NYC, it might be nice to get a change of environment. However, while community and environment are important to me, my most important purpose is to get a good job (whether I decide consulting or banking).
I realize I've put a lot of confusions in the above paragraph, but any feedback from the community would be helpful in terms of your thoughts on which school would be the better pick? Or any rebuttals countering anything I've said above in terms of recruiting for consulting/banking, community, and/or environment.
Thanks!
Take this with a grain of salt...but I've always heard that consulting recruiting at Stern was very slim and hard to break into, while recruiting for banking at Fuqua is very respectable.
Small sample, but I do know someone who recently went to Fuqua from consulting and ended up in banking when it was all said and done.
I think this hits the nail on the head. I want to say that Fuqua sent 30 students to Deloitte S&O last year, and it places decently onto the street. Did you like your experiences in Consulting? I'm assuming so since you're looking to go back. Based on the few details I have, I think Fuqua would be your best bet. Solid consulting recruiting, respectable IB recruiting, and a real MBA atmosphere.
Also, could you share a bit about your background? As in your GMAT, where you worked previously, extra-curriculars, etc? Just curious.
Duke Fuqua by far. A top 10 MBA for sure.
Hmmmmmm... plausible, but personally I'm still leaning towards a "no".
Trust me, Fuqua has a great school and community environment. If you're coming from a large public undergrad, the difference will be very noticeable (in a good way). Personally, I think it is one of its top strengths.
Stern MBA sucks.
fuqua. consulting will place largely into atlanta (and dallas and now maybe DC with bain opening office there) so if you want to return to nyc for consulting it might be deloitte but thye place very well into banking (just as much as stern -- and you wont have to come to every networking event 'since youre right here')
Fuqua, it has great consulting opportunities paired with IB that is as good as Stern without the obscene difficulty in recruiting.
I think you shouldn't underestimate the 'intangibles' involved with the process. Clearly the recruiting and job availability for each school is important, but the way I see...and may of the other posters see it...Fuqua is either just as good or better than what Stern has to offer for consulting and IB.
Further factor in the lifestyle, environment, community, bonding (for lack of a better term), etc. that you will have at Fuqua, or any smaller, tighter knit program, and I think that makes Duke the winner. I think if I was leaving work for b-school, I would want a change of pace and to move to the program that most resembles a slightly more mature undergrad environment...basketball and football games, nice weather, girls, tailgates, college bars, etc. Stern wouldn't provide all of that and what it could is likely to cost you significantly more. Of course, none of that stuff could interest you, which could make your choice easy, as well.
I would also look at recruiting. I don't know about Stern, but Duke places well in all of the major markets in the US and it really has a well respected international brand name. That last point may not seem significant for someone planning to stay in the US, but international recognition might prove useful if you pursue consulting long term.
In my mind I want to attend a school that has an exceptionally strong brand name in the region I want to live and, if possible, a really strong brand name nationally and internationally...as a hedge.
Regards
Just curious but, why do you think Duke brand name is more solid that Stern's one abroad? I am from Europe and I've met some European people that got their MBA at Stern while I haven't met any from Duke. I do believe, from what I have read around, that Duke has a better MBA but I always had the feeling that I did not have any brand recognition here in Europe.
I think he's referring more to the overall Duke brand (basketball team, much better undergrad school, etc.) than the specific business school brand. Duke's is head and shoulders above NYU's.
Duke > Stern. Everyone here pretty much hit the nail on the head. Better brand, bonding/networking, real mba experience, great all around placement. I went to school in NYC so I know what it's like to have all my classmates spread throughout the city.
there seems to be a lot of questionable Fuqua promotion in this thread. given your comments, Fuqua might be the better fit but let's be clear on the assumptions.
with that said, i don't think Stern is better overall. they are pretty comparable. getting top tier banking/consulting jobs out of either school will be very difficult but 2nd/3rd tier will be very easy.
http://www.fuqua.duke.edu/documents/mba_recruiting/DukeMBAFinalEmployme… http://www.stern.nyu.edu/portal-partners/recruiters/stern-advantage/ful…
Duke has very detailed employment reports (1st link) that includes the companies that recruited their grads. Its a consulting biased for sure (40 at MBB) but there are BBs thrown in there as well.
,
All BBs except DB recruits for IB on campus at Fuqua. GS takes 3-4 every year for IB on average.
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Basically it depends on what you define as better. At a place like UVa/Duke/Mich, more people are gunning for consulting vs banking and at NYU, more are going for banking. So that means 50 vs 200 people in a corporate event. Also means alumni are bombarded more (but then again NYU probably has more).
The location also comes with positives and negatives. Obviously from Stern, it's easier to network and you will see more NYC boutiques (if that's your thing). But I was told by my alumni that the expectation is very high for Columbia/NYU students and they are expected to show up almost all the time they don't have class. If you are out of town, it's more like one day a week (Friday). When I was recruiting in Fall, pretty often I'd open a closet to put my luggage in some BB, and there is a Columbia backpack or something in there.
If you are decent, you will get whatever you want from either place. Go where you seem to enjoy (NYC vs. college town, etc.).
obviously there will be more students pursuing jobs in their school's strongest industry than in any other industry.
higher expectations and a more strenuous recruiting schedule are part of the tradeoff that results in the best IBD placement on the street (in columbia's case) and much better placement than fuqua (in the case of stern). i'm not sure how this supports your argument. this is totally misleading advice.We can go around in circles, but it's never clear cut. E.g. VC/Startups hire so few people that very few of them will step out of Stanford/Berkley vs. BBs who show up at all campuses. Columbia is just better than either Fuqua or NYU or whoever else (similar to Booth) and will always have better placement. For b school, go to the best school you can. If they are similar, pick whatever.
fyi that everyone is harping hardcore on the placement stats, he said hes interested in consulting OR banking... so lets stop just comparing IBD hiring stats between the two schools. fuqua is a core MBB school for dallas/houston offices
stern core mbb for nyc? lawlz
i think it's obligatory to intervene/clarify when people knowingly give false self-interested advice in these "what should i do?" threads that may actually influence someone's life/career decisions.
Do you think Stern's IB placement is really THAT much better than Fuqua's? Are many/most of Fuqua's finance jobs in areas outside of New York (I know their impressive MBB placement is often in offices outside of the Northeast)?
EDIT: Would your response be that much different if we were comparing Stern to a place like YSOM (similar tier, but closer to NYC than Duke).
NYU Stern wins hands down. Mainly due to location factor. Most people who post on this forum are college students who have no idea what wall street is like. In this economy, every firm is downsizing and are less incline to spend money recruiting. Think about the total cost of going down to NC and taking the person in for an interview. They can get the same qualified student from Stern or CBS in NYC. These students can probably work part time as well.
He wants better community. Fuqua He wants to get out of NYC and experience something different for a few years. Fuqua. He might want banking. Slight advantage to Stern. He might want consulting. Strong advantage to Fuqua.
Anyone want to do the math on this?
If you've already 'done the NY thing' and gotten it out of your system, this one is pretty clear. Duke Fuqua. Yeah, I know that USNews ranks Stern higher, and perhaps internationally NYU Stern has a bigger brand because international attention tends to gravitate towards financial hubs, but I'd lean towards Duke for the better experience and better consulting. If this were IB, it'd be a different story - Stern is one of the "Big 4" in banking.
All, thank you so much for your responses! I am overwhelmed by the great responses and surprised how most people are leaning towards Duke! This was helpful. Will keep your comments in mind when deciding.
Also, for a few of you out there...I am a female :)
I've done the NYC thing for 5 years and am going to Fuqua with the intention of going back to IB.
A Stern student/alumnus a little upset?
multi
have ppl's views toward this debate changed over the past several years?? New admits to both Fuqua and Stern needs some help! Thanks!!!
It would help if you relayed your goal post MBA and your background.
I say Duke has the edge. Duke has a really strong name. But you can't go wrong with Stern. NYU is one of the most underrated schools in the country. USNews has NYU ranked below 30 but its clear top 20 school in my book.
I got into Duke & NYU. To my shock Duke was cheaper and in NC a low cost states so living expenses will be 10-15k cheaper on that alone+5k food/utilities expenses. So its not trivial. Not to mention Duke is 12 mins away from UNC-Chapel Hill which also has a top B school and has a lot of hot blonde chicks! The Duke/UNC combo gets lots of NYC recruiters in the area so you don't need to worry the geographic advantage NYU has being NYC, so it washes away. Your far from NYC but its definitely in your reach. Not to mention you have access to the Charelotte job market which is growing which you dont have access to at NYU. Just an added extra but its not a major thing.
I say go with Duke. Because of the lower tuition and lower cost and you still have access to NYC + bonus Charelotte. But you cant go wrong with Stern! Honestly. Great school and tip of my hat to you. Good choices to choose from.
Lmao. Someone really didn't like me referring to Fuqua as not a top 10 school. Relax, man. For what it's worth, I think it's a solid school with a great reputation, and I'd be happy to attend Duke. However...
Quite clearly, H/S/W/Sloan/Booth/CBS/Kellogg are in the top 10. Remaining contenders include: Tuck, Haas, Yale, Duke, NYU, Johnson, Ross, Darden, UCLA. You only get to pick 3. Personally I think Duke gets slightly edged out by Tuck, Haas, Yale, and possibly NYU, but it's up to you to decide. Honestly doesn't really make much of a huge difference either way.
I agree its too close of a call. Stern has a big name. But I say why not also go to a school with a better name overall. Duke>NYU from a general school perspective. NYU is definitely an underrated school in the rankings, given their faculty, programs, job opps.
.............
Can anyone share their thoughts on how Duke places into BB IBD in NYC vs NYU these days? I see the employment report has 5 GS, 5 JPM, 5 MS, but doesn't say whether those are IBD or not. Is Duke actively recruited from the major BBs?
~50 students seriously recruit IB every year. Every BB is on-campus at Duke. A few advisory firms also are active and recruit on campus. The overwhelming majority (~85%) end up in NY, not Charlotte. In terms of where candidates end up for summers, there are usually 3-4 offers each for GS/JPM/MS every year, 5-6 each for BAML/Barclays, 3-4 each for Citi/CS/DB/UBS.
As I have never attended Stern, so I can't really compare. Hope this helps.
Dukex2.. a have a similar concern.. I will love to go to Duke but the location issue is really something that worries me. I will like to follow finance carrer path, specially in sales & trading or investment management in offices in New York.
You wen to Duke...do you know if the job offerings are for Atlanta for example? Most of them for corporate finance?
I fear I must choose NYU, Columbia or other "more finance" university.
What are your thoughts? Thank you very much in advance.
Stern or Fuqua (Originally Posted: 03/29/2009)
Which one is better for a MBA?
I'd say Stern for Wall St.
wow.....no contest FUQUA
How would you know?
DO you even know what your talking about 10% of the time, aren't you still in college?!
I'm looking to get into equity research or investment management.
http://w4.stern.nyu.edu/ocd/recruiters/placement.cfm?doc_id=100720
Stern's MBA employment report.
Couldn't find a similar page for duke, but this should help you make your decision
https://www.fuquaworld.duke.edu/cmcfiles/DukeMBAFinalEmploymentStats07-…
Pretty comparable: Stern may be better for IB & S&T, and def better for overall NYC placement, but Duke is stronger as an overall MBA program (factoring in management and consulting).
Investment management and ER are less NYC-centric than other capital markets positions, so NYU's location is less advantageous for you.
I would keep this in mind: Duke's roots are as a general management program - it only recently allowed tracks other than pure management. This is reflected in its high proportion of management and consulting career placement. NYU seems like more of a Wall Street Prep type place. They have a more distinguished (and arrogant, publicity seeking) finance faculty and probably more of finance alumni base.
Still, it could be close enough to come down to culture and geography.
I'd go with Duke... I think their general management curriculum is much better than at NYU, and you can still get a concentration in finance or whatever. Don't forget that one part of getting an MBA is to also understand how and why others make their decisions--- As you're interested in ER/AM, that's something you'll want.
As joe said, pay attention to culture too...
Its all subjective. I feel as though fuqua has a better brand name/overall experience. Sterns has a nasty stigma attached to it and im sure several people throughout the industry can agree with this.
So it's "no contest", but it's also subjective and your own opinion.
Give me a break
Several people throughout the industry would agree with this? What the fuck are you talking about? Aren't you supposedly an NCAA D1 athlete still in UG trying to get a job?
Are you referring to the stigma of placing very well on Wall Street? Thats definitely a pretty nasty one. I have friends in banking who are Stern MBA's... they are all doing really well for themselves. And every now and then when I get up with them and some of their b-school friends, most of them are working at reputable HFs and PE funds.
Maybe Duke UG has a better brand name. Stern definetely has the better brand for MBAs seeking to work on Wall Street. And no one in their right mind would begin to suggest the experience in Durham, NC would be better than the experience in NYC. Especially if you're going into finance.
Seriously, stop talking out of your ass.
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