Harvard Business School vs. Stanford GSB
Why would you choose one over the other? Interested in hearing your thoughts on how the two business schools compare to each other
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There are so many threads on this haha. A pretty recent one actually. Moral of the story — neither one will provide more opportunity than the other.
I would pick GSB:
1) Much harder to get into. Exclusivity is kinda cool I guess
2) smaller class means same access to top opportunities that HBS students get, but less competition between classmates
3) no grade disclosure — I do not want to deal with another academic experience focused on fighting to beat the curve, keeping up with try-hard classmates, and dealing with students trying to screw others over to get better grades. I think a non-disclosure environment would be such a cool academic experience at a top school
4) Curriculum flexibility — GSB allows you to customize your schedule much more than HBS does. I don’t want to be forced to take a principles a finance class...
5) Broad array of teaching methods — I think the case study method is cool, but I don’t think it’s ideal for every course. 2 years of almost exclusively learning via case studies where half of your grade is participation, sounds rough.
6) Palo Alto is such a nice place to be. Not a big fan of cold weather lol
At the end of the day, I’d give a leg for either opportunity. I just feel like GSB would provide a more enjoyable experience that is better suited for me.
Would absolutely take HBS, not because of any material difference in prestige, but because Palo Alto sucks compared to Boston. Not even on the same level, despite the better weather. The whole region below SF is very sterile.
Well this is one of the worst takes of all time
Have lived in both areas and would take the Boston area over Silicon Valley in a heart beat. So much more history, culture ( real culture). The original melting pot. Totally different vibes. Full disclosure - from the northeast so I connect with that vibe. Although both are quite liberal, it's acceptable to have alternative views in the northeast. SV is so open minded it turns out to be the most closed minded environment I've ever seen. Try smoking a cigar in public (at the park) in the Bay Area. Almost impossible to do.