How to choose a B-School?

We get into a business school only once, so it’s essential we are well-informed and choose the right B-School. Let us look at some of the key things to be kept in mind when it comes to choosing a B-School that may determine both, our professional and personal development in our post MBA life.

Location of the B-School,

The geographical location of the B-School is an important factor for those institutes that hold a lower rank. Location doesn’t matter for the best colleges. The influence of its geographical location on an institute is very little for the best 20-30 institutes. As you go down the list, the location factor becomes more and more predominant.

Location is important because of the following factors:

• Every institute has a combination of full time and visiting faculty members. In an institute which is well connected, it is easier for the visiting faculties to take sessions. The visiting faculties are important as they have a high level of competency when it comes to a particular domain. Hence, institutes in cities get an advantage.

• For an institute which is located in a city which has a high number of industries and companies, it will help you not only score a great internship but also a fantastic job. Remember, telephonic interview is less preferred compared to the conventional personal interview.  For this reason, other factors remaining the same, institutes  located in Mumbai, New Delhi, and Bangalore score better than institutes of similar rank based in other cities. Again, top 20-30 B-Schools would be an exception to this.

Return On Investment(ROI)

The ROI is the most important factor that is considered while selecting a B-School. The ROI basically reflects how much return – in terms of salary – an MBA Graduate will get after paying the required fee. It is calculated as Salary/Investment. Naturally, an institute charging high fees will be able to provide good placements. Sequencely, an institute with high ROI should be chosen. Nowadays you can easily get a loan from banks when you get a seat at a reputed institute. So even if a good ROI institute charges high fee, you may consider taking admission as banks will provide you with a loan.

Choice of subjects and majors

Business has many areas of concentration. You may want to specialize in a domain of your choice or go for a general management program to get a perspective of all the areas. It is important for you to choose a school that has the subjects and majors that will address your goal in going through a business degree program. For example, if you are interested in starting a business of your own, you can look for a school that offers a solid foundation of business courses and at the same time allows you to specialize in entrepreneurship. Similarly, you may be interested to build a career as a data analyst. You should then specialize in analytics.

Students and Alumni

Throughout your course, your fellow batchmates are going to be a constant source of learning. A good B-School has a rigorous admission process and chooses the best candidates. Similarly, the best candidates will choose the best students. Hence, institutes having rigorous admission processes can be a criteria to select a good B-School. Having the best batchmates and alumni base will help you in the long run by Building the right networks. A couple of years down your MBA, your batchmates are going to be at key positions in the corporate world. It is important to create the right networks as good quality students have a higher chance of making it big in their careers.

To conclude, these were some major criteria you must consider while applying for a B-School. There are other factors too which are of importance, such as, standard of faculties, reputation, etc.

GATEFLIX wishes you all the best for your career in Management.