MIT--> Wharton, Harvard, Stanford, [Sloan] MBA

<p>I've been wondering about acceptance rates into MBA programs for MIT students. I was accepted to MIT and planning to attend. I want to go to a top graduate business program after MIT and I was wondering a couple of things... </p>

<p>a) How do MIT students do in the admissions pools for these schools- acceptance rates would be useful if they are available,</p>

<p>b) Would my selected major at MIT be a significant factor? Right now I am between management/finance, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering. Would the major I choose at MIT make a difference in my acceptance to a business program? (not that I am going to stray from what I like just for the sake of business school, but I'd like to know). Would they rather see I studied management than engineering because it's more related to business?</p>

<p>c) I've heard that MIT undergrads have great access to MIT for grad school if they want. Could I go to Sloan for an MBA pretty easily provided I graduate in decent standing?</p>

<p>d) Since MIT doesn't rank its students, in what ways do graduate schools distinguish between MIT students? Would research in engineering fields still be an attractive attribute for a business school applicant? What else would one want to do to get into business school? What kind of grades (aside from "the best possible", which is obvious) would one want/need from MIT in order to have a good chance at a top MBA? I don't see myself cruising through with all A's, so are B's from MIT seen as "enough" for HBS or other schools?</p>

<p>e) Finally, is it a common thing for MIT engineers to go to business schools after earning a degree in engineering? Again if anyone has statistics, acceptance rates, % of the class that goes on to business schools and/or business jobs, I would really appreciate it. </p>

<p>Thanks a lot in advance for the help!</p>

<p>As far as I know, MIT students don't tend to apply to Sloan for MBAs, because the coursework for the undergraduate program is substantially similar to the MBA coursework (which is to say that most of the classes are joint grad/undergrad courses). Getting an MBA at Sloan would mean they would be repeating much of their undergraduate work. My Sloanie friends who have gone back to business school have almost uniformly gone to Harvard for their MBAs.</p>

<p>MBA programs are different from science/engineering master's and PhD programs in that students are only very rarely accepted to business school straight from undergrad. Work experience is crucial for a competitive business school application, so most people graduate, get a job in (e.g.) finance, and go back to school two or three years later. In this way, engineering majors are not at a disadvantage relative to management majors, as finance firms just like to hire smart people rather than preferring people who have previous coursework. A very substantial number of MIT undergrads take jobs in finance and banking after graduation (see the graduating</a> student survey; of undergrads who took jobs, about 43% took jobs in finance or consulting in 2007).</p>

<p>It's my understanding that most competitive finance jobs require relatively high GPAs, but I'm not sure what "relatively high" would actually be.</p>

<p>You might consider sending a PM to the user sakky about this -- he has a lot more knowledge about Sloan and MBAs than I do, for sure.</p>

<p>Thanks. Do you know what the acceptance rate to HBS is for MIT students? If you could make a guess, what would you say the median GPA is at MIT? Would a 4.0 out of 5 from MIT be viewed as strong by business schools (if you know)?</p>

<p>no, 4.0/5 is still low.</p>

<p>The median GPA of graduating seniors at MIT is a 4.2, but most finance recruits have GPAs higher than this; since going back to an elite business program is very dependent on the work experience you have when you apply, I would assume the median GPA for returning MBA students is about the same as the median for students getting competitive finance/consulting jobs.</p>

<p>I don't know what the acceptance rate for MIT alums is at HBS. The Careers Office doesn't keep track of that data, I believe, because most people go back to business school when they've been out of college for several years.</p>