MBA schools with best social scene
I took my GMAT last Friday and scored 690. It is not exactly a great score, but I have decided that I will rather spend my summer writing essays than re-taking the GMAT. In the early fall, I'll submit applications to a number of top 15 schools in the U.S. and maybe also LBS/INSEAD.
I currently work in PE in Northern Europe (Stockholm/Oslo/Helsinki/Copenhagen). Prior to PE, I spent one year in M&A. In the application pool, M&A/PE people are obviously overrepresented, but I've been told that given my geographic background (an international student fresh off the boat from Western Europe), I'll have a decent shot at the top schools in the U.S. I already have a master's degree in accounting/finance, feel well equipped for my current job technically, and might even consider going back to my current fund in Northern Europe.
For me, business school would be all about becoming absolutely fluent in English, expanding my network internationally, and having two great years (partying, weekend trips to Las Vegas, clubbing in NYC... you get my drift).
Currently, I'm working on my essays to NYU Stern and Columbia as I would be thrilled to spend two years in NYC. NYU Stern and Columbia are the only two schools in the U.S. that I have visited and that I feel familiar with. But which other schools should I consider given that I'm more concerned about the social side of the experience than academics and recruiting?
I've heard that some of the small schools outside of NYC - Tuck, Darden, and Duke - should be lots of fun, i.e. lots of drinking and interacting with the undergrad girls on Thursdays. Can you guys confirm this?
And what about H/S/W? HBS must be pretty amazing socially as it is located in Boston... What about Stanford? Are there many hot girls or does Stanford attract male computer science geeks mostly? And I presume that I shouldn't even consider schools such as Chicago Booth and MIT Sloan?
Most Social MBA Programs
Choosing the best school for an MBA depends a lot on the type of experience you want to have and goals you'd like to accomplish. From a social perspective, there's no shortage of options.
User @CompBanker offers his observations based on different visits to schools:
Kellogg is the most fratty and has the prettiest girls out of the MBA business schools">M7 programs. Evanston is boring, but downtown Chicago is only a 20-minute train ride away; Kellogg students go into the city all the time. The school is very laid-back, and the KWEST pre-orientation trip abroad and the annual ski trip are both legendary.Columbia is fun due to its location. It's also super international; Europeans in particular love Columbia due to its ivy league prestige and NYC location. Culturally you would be a great fit there, so definitely apply there, although your 690 GMAT is a bit worrisome since they're GMAT whores.
NYU Stern is in a much nicer part of Manhattan than Columbia: Greenwich village vs Morningside Heights. So in this sense it could be more "fun." Problem is that Sternies have a massive inferiority complex to Columbia, and finance recruiting there is a bitch since you're competing with all the MBA business schools">M7 programs.
Tuck is a smaller version of Kellogg but in the middle of nowhere, which fosters an insanely tight sense of community and loyalty. It's no wonder that Tuck has the strongest alumni network among the b-schools. Due to its location, much of the social scene revolves around outdoor activities: skiing, canoeing, hiking, sports, etc. If that's not your cup of tea, you're not going to enjoy it.Booth is sort of dorky but not as bad as the stereotypes indicate. It's gotten a lot better in recent years by accepting a wider array of students. Booth students are cerebral but also know how to have fun; they're not as fratty as Kellogg, which I like. Plus having easy access to downtown Chicago's nightlife is a huge positive. The city is also cheaper than NYC and Boston, another plus.
MIT Sloan is easily the "least" fun among the MBA business schools">M7. Boston is a great college town for sure, but Sloan's rigorous first-semester core curriculum and the lack of grade non-disclosure adds a lot of stress. The students there seem to work super hard and just don't seem as fun as the other schools. ain't heard that many crazy stories about their partying and traveling.
HBS has several things going for it socially. First, the location. Boston is an awesome town for students. Second, its large class size ensures that there are always people to meet. Third, the students there are super accomplished and interesting and ready to have fun for 2 years. Such an environment is very conducive to having the type of experience you're looking for. HBS students also travel more than any other b-school that I know of; weekend trips to Vegas, Miami, Europe, Caribbean, are quite common. Moreover, going out on a Weekday night for $100 dinners at an upscale Boston restaurant and then going to a nice lounge afterward is common as well. Having said that, it's going to cost you a lot to enjoy all aspects of the HBS social experience.
Wharton is super fun as well, but the Philly location still concerns me. It's an ok city, not as bad as I thought it would be but obviously no NYC, Chicago, or even Boston. The saving grace is that Wharton has a large class, is very international, and has a "work hard party hard" mindset. Similar to HBS, Wharton has a lot of costume theme parties as well as global traveling. It's also 45-50% women, the highest among the top b-schools, so for a single man, this could be a potential goldmine.
INSEAD is much easier to get into than the elite U.S. MBA programs. The chateau parties at Fontainebleau are legendary, and Singapore campus is fun too although the city's oppressive humidity is a major turn-off for me. Much of Singapore's social life revolves around really upscale nightclubs and the awesome hotel rooftop pool parties. The student body is the most international among any b-school in the world, so in that respect, you won't get bored. I also think INSEAD has hotter girls than its U.S. counterparts (LBS also has a ton of European hotties).
OP, best of luck. I personally think you should retake the GMAT but if you insist otherwise, take a look at applying early decision to Columbia. I personally think HBS/Stanford/Wharton will be extremely hard, but you're quite competitive elsewhere.
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A Scandinavian Brady!
Caveat -- personal opinions below -- other people's opinions may vary drastically:
I think you're on the right track. If you're like most international students who love NYC, you'll want to be sure to apply to Stern / Columbia. Given your profile, they are probably a good fit in terms of admissions and meeting your b-school goals.
I wouldn't recommend Tuck for you if you're a "big city" kinda guy -- you may struggle with the small campus and tight knit aspects of their program. You got to really like the outdoors to go there.
Duke, from a hot girls and party perspective, could be a very good choice. You're in the South so life is undoubtedly different than New England, but it could work. Duke is also a very "international" program.
I don't know much about the school, but also consider looking into UCLA.
Stanford is a small school, so your choices will be limited. You also don't fit the criteria they are looking for in an applicant (Western European working in a relatively unknown PE fund with a 690 makes Stanford a real reach).
While you're right that MIT and Booth have a reputation as more work and less fun, you may enjoy them for the same reason you'd enjoy NYU / Columbia: Both schools enable you to live in a major city (Boston or Chicago) and gain access to all the opportunities those cities provide. I wouldn't totally strike them off your list without doing some research first.
Actually, I thought that I would have a good shot at Stanford since there aren't a lot of Europeans applying for schools on the West Coast?
Out of curiosity, how is the GSB "from a hot girls and party perspective"? :)
Really good stuff - thanks. In fact I wouldn't mind having a more traditional college/campus experience (like you see in the movies), I'm just not familiar with it really. Is Darmouth College a party school?Also... Is it normal that the MBA students "interact" with the undergrads? From a dating perspective, I would assume that the ambitious ladies in their late-20's wouldn't be into short-term/unserious relationships?
Reasons to apply to INSEAD Singapore instead/as well:
1a) Better shot at getting into INSEAD than a similarly-ranked US school. I'm assuming that you're not dead set on working in the US. INSEAD will place you just about anywhere you want to go within Europe and Asia.
1b) Stronger hiring environment.
2) Arguably a better fit with the school, what with already speaking at least two languages and all.
3) Party scene is fantastic, for the right kind of person. That is, someone who's got a little disposable income to spare, has a modicum of charisma, and preferably is international. Being white nets you bonus points.
I have heard Kellogg has some good looking ladies and a gr8 social scene. I do not know if that is true though.
Check out www.poetsandquants.com. It has a ton of info about the top MBA programs.
This is based on my observations and visiting friends at multiple schools.
Kellogg is the most fratty and has the prettiest girls out of the M7 programs. Evanston is boring, but downtown Chicago is only a 20 minute train ride away; Kellogg students go into the city all the time. The school is very laid-back, and the KWEST pre-orientation trip abroad and the annual ski trip are both legendary.
Columbia is fun due to its location. It's also super international; Europeans in particular love Columbia due to its ivy league prestige and NYC location. Culturally you would be a great fit there, so definitely apply there, although your 690 GMAT is a bit worrisome since they're GMAT whores. My main beef with Columbia's social scene is that the community isn't very cohesive since a lot of the students lived in NYC before school and thus have their own social circles. If you look at the essay questions, you will see that adcom is obsessed with building a community.
NYU Stern is in a much nicer part of Manhattan than Columbia: Greenwich village vs Morningside Heights. So in this sense it could be more "fun." Problem is that Sternies have a massive inferiority complex to Columbia, and finance recruiting there is a bitch since you're competing with all the M7 programs.
Tuck is a smaller version of Kellogg but in the middle of nowhere, which fosters an insanely tight sense of community and loyalty. It's no wonder that Tuck has the strongest alumni network among the b-schools. Due to its location, much of the social scene revolves around outdoor activities: skiing, canoeing, hiking, sports, etc. If that's not your cup of tea, you're not going to enjoy it.
Booth is sort of dorky but not as bad as the stereotypes indicate. It's gotten a lot better in recent years by accepting a wider array of students. Booth students are cerebral but also know how to have fun; they're not as fratty as Kellogg, which I like. Plus having easy access to downtown Chicago's nightlife is a huge positive. The city is also cheaper than NYC and Boston, another plus.
MIT Sloan is easily the "least" fun among the M7. Boston is a great college town for sure, but Sloan's rigorous first-semester core curriculum and the lack of grade non-disclosure adds a lot of stress. The students there seem to work super hard and just don't seem as fun as the other schools. They definitely go out; however, I just haven't heard that many crazy stories about their partying and travelling.
HBS has several things going for it socially. First, the location. Boston is an awesome town for students. Second, its large class size ensures that there are always people to meet. Third, the students there are super accomplished and interesting and ready to have fun for 2 years. Such an environment is very conducive to having the type of experience you're looking for. HBS students also travel more than any other b-school that I know of; weekend trips to vegas, Miami, Europe, carribbean, are quite common. Moreover, going out on a Weekday night for $100 dinners at an upscale Boston restaurant and then going to a nice lounge afterwards is common as well. Having said that, it's going to cost you a lot to enjoy all aspects of the HBS social experience.
Wharton is super fun as well, but the Philly location still concerns me. It's an ok city, not as bad as I thought it would be but obviously no NYC, Chicago, or even Boston. The saving grace is that Wharton has a large class, is very international, and has a "work hard party hard" mindset. Similar to HBS, Wharton has a lot of costume theme parties as well as global travelling. It's also 45-50% women, the highest among the top b-schools (thank you Ankur Kumar for this!), so for a single man, this could be a potential goldmine.
INSEAD is much easier to get into than the elite U.S. MBA programs. The chateau parties at Fontainebleau are legendary, and Singapore campus is fun too although the city's oppressive humidity is a major turn-off for me. Much of Singapore's social life revolves around really upscale nightclubs and the awesome hotel rooftop pool parties. The student body is the most international among any b-school in the world, so in that respect you won't get bored. I also think INSEAD has hotter girls than its U.S. counterparts (LBS also has ton of European hotties).
OP, best of luck. I personally think you should retake the GMAT but if you insist otherwise, take a look at applying early decision to Columbia (which is a lot easier). I personally think HBS/Stanford/Wharton will be extremely hard, but you're quite competitive elsewhere.
I wonder what the odds are of two different people using the adjective "massive" to describe NYU students' supposed inferiority complexes.
Also note the same singular/plural disagreement in both statements. EDIT: I'm sure we all remember who Derivatives is...yes, I'm convinced mbavsmfin is some brady4mvp/IP hybrid troll account.
Haha. That killed me!
Sounds like IESE would fit the bill as well. Great scene already in general in Barcelona and with the international modules some good opportunities to travel as well. People are friendly and outgoing, making for some good parties as people tend to work hard but party very hard as well.
A note on the Stanford social scene: Stanford has approximately 0 attractive women (+/- 1), and Palo Alto is a boring boring town pretty far away from the better San Francisco, so the social options are pretty limited. Couple that with all the Silicon Valley startup CS guys, and you pretty much get the ideal anti-social scene
Yeah, because being closer to a frozen IB/Consulting Mecca like NYC/Boston/Chicago yields a much better variety of pantsuits and parkas.
Weather is worse, but those are real urban centers with a lot of young people. Being a b-student in nyc/boston/Chicago is insanely fun.
Commenting just on social scene, Kellogg is great; Tuck drinks a lot because there is nothing else to do up there and should be familiar to you coming from Scandinavia; MIT actually has a much better social scene than HBS - Sloan kids dont really study all that much either beyond the core; Cali schools like Anderson and USC are really fun. Hated Wharton social scene primarily because I didnt find Philadelphia all that much fun, but then you are just an hour drive from NYC.
Tuck is awesome if you're into outdoor stuff.
Anderson is fun? That's surprising.
Brady just had an aneurysm reading that.
This is somewhat misleading. They don't just have access to downtown/north side Chicago: they live there. The vast majority (90+%) of them live in/near the Loop and commute via train (10-15 minute ride). Some apartment buildings has enough Boothies to be called Booth dorms.
A lot of Booth students have 4-5 day weekends and get to enjoy living in the center of Chicago, which is a major advantage of going to Booth (especially over Kellogg).
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