How to pick a Business School? Interesting extract from www.redflagdeals.com

There are many interesting discussions about Canadian Business Schools on the website http://www.redflagdeals.com/ . From one such discussion, I found a nice extract reproduced below:-

That said, the MBA is what you make of it. Having graduated for 5 years now, I can honestly tell you it doesn't matter which school you attend. Most of my colleagues have MBA and we occasionally trash one another for having stupid moments -- Queens, Mac, Rotman, Ivey, Schulich.

So my advice:

1. Pick the school that's most convenient -- trust me, there were days I felt like skipping (eg. snow storm) and the convenience factor kept me going

2. Pick the school that offers a few programs you're interested in -- your initial specialization may change after you've taken a few courses and find others more interesting

3. Pick the school you can afford -- nothing like being debt free when you graduate since you may not see a real (financial) return right away. Trust me, it's rare to get that 100k job right out of MBA.

4. Do apply for advanced standings to skip the first year -- I wanted the full MBA experience and didn't and regret it to this day. First year was all basic theory and personally my GPA was pulled down because I didn't try for those courses -- 95% of what I read I knew so I'd glance over things but the exams were on the 5% that I didn't pay much attention to. As well, with a minor in economics I found myself arguing with the prof in the intro to macroeconomics course on the technicalities, as example. He said my answers were beyond the scope of the course so incorrect. So, save yourself the frustration.

5. Network -- The MBA is all about team work. It's obviously more rewarding if you have a strong team who will challenge your thinking and offer insight. Occasionally, you'll get a few duds assigned by default but you form your own teams most of the time. So get to know which are stronger team players and establish yourself as being an asset to them.