What was your opinion of the school in general? I've heard conflicting things about attitudes towards NC State grads who go there.

3/13/2006 8:12:01 PM

I've glanced at their MBA program, just didn't do much for me from the website.

If I went, I'd rock an NC State hat everyday and just punch any nerd that tried to cross me. I doubt you'd have much disrespect against NCSU, escp. considering how hot the Duke/UNC rivarly is right now. I mean, I see at least 1 person per day w/ Duke gear on and it doesn't really bother me. Every so often I'll see some tool wearing Carolina gear on campus and it takes all I've got not to toss some unkind words their way.

[Edited on March 13, 2006 at 8:23 PM. Reason : .]

3/13/2006 8:21:56 PM

i rock my ncsu hat all over the hill
if someone looks at me funny, i just kick their ass and then go have some tacos

3/13/2006 8:24:00 PM

Fuqua >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>













































>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>




















>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

NCSU MBA

3/13/2006 8:25:47 PM

^ lol, obviously.

I'm not going to NCSU's MBA school. I didn't say Duke's MBA wasn't *quality* (it clearly is by the rankings) I just said the layout wasn't my style.

3/13/2006 8:29:23 PM

^^word

what im talking about is the duke education "superiority complex". ive heard stories of people being considered "behind" in certain programs b/c they graduated from state as opposed to a higher-ranked school (business is one of these programs, as are most non-engineering programs).

dunno, i think its bs myself.

[Edited on March 13, 2006 at 8:31 PM. Reason : .]

3/13/2006 8:31:20 PM

my pops was a guest lecturer @ Duke for 1 semester

3/13/2006 8:31:41 PM

one of my current professors lectures there part-time, he suggested applying

3/13/2006 8:32:30 PM

for real though, the fuqua business school will make College of Management grads feel behind because of the lack of concentration on the specific field they want to specialize in

that is where i have my beef with my education

[Edited on March 13, 2006 at 8:35 PM. Reason : .]

3/13/2006 8:34:43 PM

Most of Duke’s classics professors are on sabbatical, and they have retired people teaching the classes. It has traditionally been a strong school, but is weaker than usual right now, and if you started projects with professors, since many are about to retire, you might have to finish them with others. That’s really all I know about Duke and grad school at the moment.

Except for I seem to remember them having lots of strange concentrations for their degrees. Instead of PhD in Philosophy, it would be something like PhD in Philosophy of Women’s studies of the Middle East as it relates to South America in the 17th century.

3/13/2006 10:15:45 PM

Quote :

"PhD in Philosophy of Women’s studies of the Middle East as it relates to South America in the 17th century."

lol, this is true across the board. They don't offer just an online MBA, it's like some "MBA delivered online with Global Initiative in which you travel to Asia and Hong Kong on your own coin" degree.

3/13/2006 10:45:46 PM

I'm planning to get an MBA eventually. Which school is better? Kenan or Fuqua?

3/13/2006 10:45:46 PM

Fuqua is typically ranked in the Top 25, while UNC is ranked in the Top 10. Of course, the rankings you use (Forbes, Business Week, etc.) will give you differing numbers.

You're pretty set with either one; I think UNC's is much more affordable and the grads still get killer jobs & salaries. If I hadta choose between the 2, I'd go to UNC because I really don't see going private school worth the huge debt you'll encounter going to Duke. But that's a personal choice.

But I can't end this post without saying I'd probably shoot myself in the leg with a harpoon before I went to UNC. If you're serious about getting a prestigious MBA, try for Tuck, Harvard, Yale, Wharton, etc. Those are all highly regarded and will put you in just as much debt without forcing you to walk on a baby blue campus. Just google "best mba" or "mba rankings" and you'll find days of information.

EDIT: Also, if you want to stay "close to home", UVA's Darden B-School is consistently in the Top 25 as well.

[Edited on March 13, 2006 at 10:55 PM. Reason : /]

3/13/2006 10:51:04 PM

^IMO, UNC is really the best bang for the bucks. Does GPA really matter when you apply for business school? or experience and GMAT score is more important?

3/13/2006 11:02:56 PM

^ GPA plays a big role as does GMAT scores. Work experience is a big help if either or both of those are sub-par. Without 2 years of full-time work experience, it'll be mighty hard, if not impossible, to get into a highly ranked MBA program.

I'd really recommend a > 3.2 GPA, while GMAT scores really depends on the program. Most programs will display their average GMAT scores of last year's accepted students. Shoot for at least that. If you at least meet their average, you're good. If you get way higher, you'll help yourself tremendously.

I'd guess you'll have a very hard time getting into a Top 25 MBA program with a GPA lower than 3.0, regardless of anything.

3/13/2006 11:35:57 PM

just FYI: the rankings from USnews.

The numbers below the school are:

score/peer assessment/recruiter assessment/avg GPA/GMAT/acceptance rate/avg starting salary/%employed at graduation/%after 3 months/out-of-state tuition&fees/total full-time enrollment

If you want to know the ranking of a particular school not on the list let me know.

Quote :

" 1. Harvard University (MA) 100 4.8 4.5 3.60 707 14.4% $111,800 84.2% 90.0% $35,600 1,786 2. Stanford University (CA) 97 4.8 4.5 3.50 711 10.0% $109,973 74.0% 90.9% $37,998 753 2. University of Pennsylvania (Wharton) 97 4.8 4.5 3.53 716 21.7% $105,103 80.3% 88.3% $39,835 1,639 4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Sloan) 93 4.7 4.4 3.40 697 20.8% $104,309 80.0% 90.7% $37,050 785 4. Northwestern University (Kellogg) (IL) 93 4.7 4.5 3.45 700 22.3% $104,324 71.1% 90.6% $36,370 1,053 6. Dartmouth College (Tuck) (NH) 89 4.3 4.1 3.40 704 26.5% $106,027 75.3% 94.9% $36,390 503 6. University of California–Berkeley (Haas) 89 4.5 4.1 3.48 701 17.0% $95,871 78.1% 92.0% $33,758 495 8. University of Chicago 88 4.6 4.3 3.40 695 N/A $100,676 77.6% 87.6% $37,075 1,088 9. Columbia University (NY) 87 4.4 3.9 3.40 709 14.6% $101,578 78.8% 90.1% $37,412 1,196 10. University of Michigan–Ann Arbor (Ross) 86 4.5 4.2 3.34 690 35.6% $99,546 77.1% 87.1% $36,688 877 11. Duke University (Fuqua) (NC) 85 4.4 4.0 3.40 705 38.0% $94,590 76.9% 90.9% $36,799 806 11. University of California–Los Angeles (Anderson) 85 4.2 3.9 3.59 705 25.0% $95,549 70.5% 88.0% $31,848 656 13. New York University (Stern) 84 4.2 3.8 3.40 700 22.4% $101,689 81.1% 91.2% $35,760 756 14. University of Virginia (Darden) 78 4.2 4.1 3.30 680 37.5% $95,454 63.9% 84.3% $35,200 630 15. Cornell University (Johnson) (NY) 77 4.2 4.0 3.26 673 35.9% $98,661 64.3% 82.5% $35,600 544 15. Yale University (CT) 77 4.0 3.9 3.45 696 25.6% $93,026 63.1% 80.6% $35,180 468 17. Carnegie Mellon University (Tepper) (PA) 76 4.0 3.8 3.30 691 28.2% $90,733 67.4% 91.6% $37,390 387 18. Emory University (Goizueta) (GA) 71 3.7 3.6 3.40 680 36.8% $87,282 65.6% 85.2% $32,518 354 18. University of Texas–Austin (McCombs) 71 3.9 3.8 3.38 670 43.0% $84,408 61.7% 82.7% $30,116 705 18. University of Washington 71 3.4 3.6 3.45 677 40.8% $77,533 83.8% 97.5% $21,515 225 21. Ohio State University (Fisher) 69 3.6 3.5 3.40 664 55.0% $80,049 79.5% 90.2% $27,438 260 21. University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill (Kenan-Flagler) 69 4.0 3.7 3.29 652 46.7% $89,731 58.8% 80.8% $33,386 541 23. Purdue University–West Lafayette (Krannert) (IN) 67 3.7 3.5 3.30 667 44.3% $84,368 68.5% 86.5% $26,988 275 23. University of Minnesota–Twin Cities (Carlson) 67 3.5 3.7 3.25 655 44.2% $85,546 67.7% 91.9% $30,200 217 23. University of Rochester (Simon) (NY) 67 3.5 3.3 3.40 665 37.2% $86,038 66.5% 88.6% $34,095 342 26. University of Southern California (Marshall) 65 3.9 3.6 3.30 685 36.7% $79,192 52.1% 73.7% $1,037* 538 27. Georgetown University (McDonough) (DC) 64 3.4 3.6 3.30 662 41.0% $85,315 58.7% 84.2% $32,976 509 27. Indiana University–Bloomington (Kelley) 64 3.8 3.7 3.30 644 33.2% $84,875 56.3% 74.8% $26,744 450 27. University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign 64 3.5 3.6 3.40 649 38.4% $75,603 41.5% 95.1% $24,660 267 27. University of Maryland–College Park (Smith) 64 3.5 3.3 3.40 651 37.5% $81,126 61.1% 88.9% $30,591 317 31. Arizona State University–Main Campus (W. P. Carey) 63 3.5 3.4 3.40 649 45.6% $74,837 58.2% 91.2% $23,149 204 "

[Edited on March 13, 2006 at 11:53 PM. Reason : b]

[Edited on March 13, 2006 at 11:53 PM. Reason : .]

3/13/2006 11:51:06 PM

I'm personally looking hard at Arizona State (among others) due to their flexible alternatives to the on-campus program.


If I could just go anywhere to get it, I'd be at Southern California so fast....mmmmmmmm weather & cheerleaders & great football

3/13/2006 11:57:17 PM

Is there anyway to get the company you work for to pay for your MBA degree? Is this common? I'm working on my PharmD degree right now. When I graduate, I plan to go work for a pharmaceutical company. I do want to eventually get a MBA degree though, and I'm hoping my employer would pay for it. Also, do most business schools have a part-time MBA program?

3/14/2006 12:09:24 AM

mba programs are really dependent on what you want to do

are you looking to hit nyc and do something high profile?

better go to duke

want a job with a tech company here?

ncsu will do you fine

unless you're a badass like me the ncsu mba could be limiting if your job search is going to be nationwide (excepting moving to tx and get in on the oil $ - ncsu can hook that up)

right now i'm in a job with mbas from some pretty outstanding schools and i'm more than hanging with them - and i got paid to go to school while they were shelling out $50k more a year than me

really it's what you make of it - the only limiting factor in the mba world is how much work you're willing to put in

the big thing is you want AT LEAST two years work experience or you aren't going to have any context for the theory you learn, looking back on it i think two full time jobs and about 4 years would've been ideal before going back to business school

3/14/2006 12:31:14 AM

When you say 2 years in a full time job, what kind of job are you talking about? I'm a grad student in science right now and don't know much about the business world. I had my mind set on an academic career, and lately private industry has become more appealing to me. Would 2 years of private industry experience working in a laboratory count or does it have to be in some sort of management/administration position?

3/14/2006 12:41:57 AM

^^^ Right-on! That's precisely what I'm doing. I have (admittedly it was surprising to me) found that most major companies will indeed at least partially aid you in getting your MBA, with stipulations.

My pal got her EE degree @ NCSU and has worked for Sony/Ericsson for about a year now. They are willing to fully fund her getting an MBA, so long as she continues to work full-time for the company. If you find a company that'll pay/help pay for you to get an MBA, 9 outta 10 will have that stipulation.

However, if you're in NC, there's LOTS of options. If the company only pays a small amount, ECU offers a 100% online MBA that is basically the cheapest in the country for in-state students. ECU actually has a decent b-school. It's not in the top 100, but it's an option. Also, NC State offers a part-time program and is soon to offer courses as part of "RTP MBA" (see their website for more details). I know Duke offers a part-time MBA as well, however, getting your employer to pay Duke's tuition could get tricky.

Furthermore, most companies won't assist in MBA aid 'til you have worked at least 1-2 years full-time with them. If they're gonna fund you, they expect some payback in the workplace. Typically, larger firms with more capital are more willing to pay more for you to get your MBA. It *is* possible to find a firm that'll pay for you to leave for 2 years and get an on-campus MBA, but that is a rare find these days with so many schools offering part-time and online MBAs.

I've been really blessed w/ the company I'll be working for once I graduate in June; I'll hafta work "1-2 years" full-time with them (but I have to anyway since any "big name" MBA basically requires 2 years of full-time post-undergrad work experience) before they'll assist in me getting an MBA. I also have to remain a full-time employee while getting the MBA, but the choice of getting a part-time (evening classes/weekend classes) or online MBA is completely up to me. Also, once I've put in my 1-2 years w/ them, they'll give me up to ~$30k towards the MBA. Some companies will give more, some less, it just depends on the size of the firm really. I'm as thrilled as can be that I can count on getting a ~$30k MBA for free.

Part-time and online MBAs are becoming extremely common nowadays; hardly anyone has the means to quit their job and somehow still afford to live/pay for school for 2 years. I'll already have a wife & a house...the last thing I could afford is to quit my job. Just check the websites of the MBA programs you're interested in and it'll be easy to tell if they offer part-time or online MBAs. Also, the biggest factor here is 1) how long would you have to work w/ a given company to get aid from them and 2) how much aid would they provide? That could or could not limit your choices a lot. Also, it helps that I'm already in business, going into a business position, so clearly an MBA would benefit the firm if I got it. If an MBA wouldn't do you any good in your position, the employer is less likely to pay for it. After all, they're "investing" in your MBA and expect some sort of return.

Being that I'll be located in a rather remote location (the capital of WV, Charleston) with no real "quality" MBA programs around, I'm looking solely at 100% online MBA programs. The good thing w/ those is 90% of them don't have a price hike for out-of-state students. The bad thing is, they're typical crazy expensive already.

The best online MBAs I have found in my weeks of looking at all this are: Arizona State, Penn State, Drexel, UMass @ Amherst, and University of Florida. Indiana University offers an online MBA and have a very reputable b-school (Kelley), but I just don't like their program layout nor their website-from-1997. If you're going to be staying in the Triangle, you're choices are really limitless outside of the firm's ability to aid you. NC State, UNC-CH, and Duke are all solid MBA choices.

Sorry this was long; hopefully it was helpful

EDITED for this:

Quote :

"When you say 2 years in a full time job, what kind of job are you talking about?"

I have found from calling and reading requirements online that "2 years of full-time work experience" means: 2 years of full-time work AFTER your undergraduate degree. As in, at least 40 hours a week working for a company that provides your means for living day-to-day. If you're working while in a graduate program, you might not get away with it. For example: I took 8 months off of undergrad to work FULL-TIME (40 hours/week) doing real tasks (not labeled an "intern") with the company that I would eventually become employed full-time with. However, most MBA programs will specifically ask for work while NOT in school. Your miles may vary, but I'd (unforunately) be uncertain about how much that "work while in school" would actually count.
As for WHAT you do, it would matter some. Most MBAs *prefer* business-related work because every single course you take will relate back to your BUSINESS knowledge. Obviously some things from working in a lab would correlate, but not nearly as much as if you worked in an accounting department, a finance division, or in a supply chain group. Really though, it'd be how you spun your work experience in your letter of purpose to show them you dealt with some sort of business aspects in whatever work you did.

[Edited on March 14, 2006 at 12:54 AM. Reason : .]

3/14/2006 12:44:41 AM

^yea, it's really helpful. Thanks alot.

3/14/2006 12:49:52 AM

I'm at a company that is paying for my masters degree (^^ no waiting period). It's the best deal ever -- they are paying for me to get a pay raise.

[Edited on March 14, 2006 at 12:54 AM. Reason : sdfsdf]

3/14/2006 12:54:28 AM

listen to drtaylor. that is sound advice.

i also got an MBA from NCSU and am hanging with the big boys. i sit at and across the table from Ivy leaguers regularly. my boss is a Duke undergrad and a Duke MBA. after a summer internship alongside a Kenan-Flagler (UNC) and a Babcock (Wake) MBA, I was the one that was asked to stay on.

word to the wise though, not that many people outside of NC and Texas have heard of the NCSU MBA. it doesn't have the brand equity yet, but its only a matter of time. i had to hustle to get the job I have, and its pretty much my dream job.

both drtaylor and I were Biochem undergrads from State. i think the technical undergrad + the MBA arms us with a solid value proposition. that's generally the story NCSU tries to set up. if you don't have a technical background, have a stellar GMAT. Queti was a Chem E & MBA. might want to ping her as well.

3/14/2006 1:06:07 AM

also, i think drtaylor got his MBA here completely on scholarship.

i had to foot my whole bill, but my whole bill was less than one semester at the schools down the road.

3/14/2006 1:09:11 AM

^what's the average gpa/gmat score for acceptance NCSU business school? Also, does it require 2 years working experience like Kenan and Fuqua?

3/14/2006 1:14:43 AM

^ I know for a fact that w/ a good GPA/GMAT and a blow-their-socks-off interview, you can enter NCSU's MBA program without work experience. "MOODY" did just that, so PM MOODY for that story if ya want.

Latest full-time MBA class at NCSU (mighty impressive, actually):

GMAT: average was 601
GPA: average was 3.3

http://www.mgt.ncsu.edu/mba/future/class_profileFT.php

[Edited on March 14, 2006 at 1:18 AM. Reason : .]

3/14/2006 1:16:22 AM

Sweet. Within a year I'll have a master's in crop science (think genetics/molecular bio more than "how to drive a tractor"). I'll definitely have to give an MBA more thought before it's time to make a decision about my next step in life.

3/14/2006 1:18:48 AM

back when we started, the average range/middle range was somewhere between 620 and 640

2 years is their stated minimum, but we had two kids i knew of right out of undergrad that had 700 or more on their GMATs

not sure about GPA's


i've got to make an overseas call and then hit the hay...pm with questions and i'll answer tomorrow or something

3/14/2006 1:19:35 AM

601 is lower than i expected

and

Quote :

"Business- 40%"

also not what i expected

[Edited on March 14, 2006 at 1:21 AM. Reason : this class is a lot different than mine]

3/14/2006 1:20:13 AM

GMAT's pretty much all around are going down. The most recent class of Harvard B-School entrees had about a ~700 average GMAT.

The reality is the GMAT is a stupid freaking test (juding by these study books I'm reading, anyway...) and I personally think it's good if schools rely less on it.

3/14/2006 1:24:53 AM

To those of you that already have MBA's, do you feel like your job ultimately benefits the consumer, or do you feel like you're getting paid to help your company make more money? For example if you're with a pharmaceutical company, do you feel a connection to the people whose lives you've improved by taking your company's drugs, or do you feel like your job is help you company be more profitable?

3/14/2006 1:35:31 AM

hahahahaa

Focusing on the short term bottom line is the norm. MDs work at pharmaceutical companies because they don't want to deal with patients

[Edited on March 14, 2006 at 2:23 AM. Reason : sdfsdf]

3/14/2006 2:23:07 AM

Well that wouldn't work for me then. Call me too idealistic, but I need to have the feeling that my job is helping the public in some way. I don't think I'd be happy just helping a rich company get richer.

3/14/2006 3:06:19 AM

Quote :

"ive heard stories of people being considered "behind" in certain programs b/c they graduated from state as opposed to a higher-ranked school"

It all depends on the quality of your education and what you decided to do with your undergrad years. I can testify for BCH451 being top notch at NC State and pushing their students beyond what is normally expected in a course like that; however, not everybody is requried to take it ... most of the time it is an optional elective. AGain, depends on what you decide to do with yourself.

I dunno about business specifically ... if its a requirement that you spend $125,000+ in tuition at one university instead of $25,000 at another before attending a graduate school, maybe I'm missing something.

3/14/2006 6:37:08 AM

Quote :

"Queti was a Chem E & MBA. might want to ping her as well."

yep. add agentlion to that list too. for what i do, the ncsu mba is just fine. i work in a very technical field but the mba gives me something most people i work with don't have and it will help me move up into management or business planning. i never wanted to work on wall street or be a high powered exec. middle management is fine by me (any higher and the responsibility + hours isn't worth it for me personally). and my mba has me set up well for that. i had the scores to get into pretty much any program i wanted but ncsu made sense. plus, i did it in only one extra year (special program they have/had with the engineering school).

3/14/2006 10:09:39 AM

I got the feeling Fuqua was nothing more than a MBA factory when I was there. As soon as I got into Emory, I withdrew my app from Duke. Not only is it too big now, they're doubling the size by 2008/9. It might be a good school on paper, but that's about it in my eyes.

On the plus side, the MBA program has a rugby team, which was about the only saving grace in my mind.

3/14/2006 1:41:26 PM

My great grandmother went to Duke, let me ask her...oh wait...long dead.

3/14/2006 3:15:15 PM

^wow, I didn't know that duke let woman enroll at the time. When did she go there?

3/14/2006 3:19:44 PM

^my great aunt went there in the early 40s, to the med school

more than likely Maryland is going to be my top option as of right now just b/c they have everything i want

3/14/2006 3:58:59 PM

^^I can't really remember. I know women were enrolled on a limited basis and she did some kind of medical thing.

3/14/2006 4:56:31 PM