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Any tips on how to start and prepare my MBA Application? I don’t plan on applying till 2022 as I want to attend in 2023. What are things I can do to prepare now in order to have a strong application?Background: I’m aiming for HSW, M7, and top 15. I’m currently a Staff at EY within Business Consulting. I graduated from a Top 25 Business Undergrad - majoring in Finance and minor in Advertising with a 3.71 GPA. I want to pivot towards PM or Corporate Strategy in Tech, at Toyota, or Nike. TIA!
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An Oxford MBA means very little to the U.K. job market. Employers know it’s not an undergraduate Oxbridge degree and an MBA is often seen as an expensive passport route.
I’m not trying to dissuade your decision making but laying out facts that with exception to Insead/LBS, MBA hasn’t got much power to U.K. career search.
Kinda equivalent of Yale SOM, your parents will be amazed at the (undergrad-driven) brand name but it's perceived as tier 2 - but not "looked down upon" by any means. Except, notably, by Oxford undergrad & "serious" masters grads
Have known a lot of Americans who've really liked it because "it's like going to Hogwarts for a year" etc, an enjoyable life experience that overall doesn't hurt their careers
I was being cheeky.
But in all seriousness, Yale MBA carries quite a bit more weight with US consulting firms than Oxford does. Yale is a top 10 MBA in the US and all top consulting firms recruit from Yale. Yale isn't anybody's first choice, but it's still solid. A Yale MBA is more like wanting Oxbridge but "only" getting Imperial.
It's not LBS, but I don't think it's "looked down upon."
Their MBA definitely isn't as prestigious as some of their other programs.
If recruitment is your priority, go to LBS. Tier 1 employers recruit heavily from LBS. It’s already a difficult market and to get an MBA from a lower tier program will not help
LBS and INSEAD are the main feeder programs for Finance/Consulting in London
I did Oxford MBA. Saved a lot of money compared to LBS and landed in the McK London office with no prior consulting experience. Wouldn’t change a thing - had a fun year experiencing all the traditions and experiences Oxford had to offer. 99.9% people don’t know anything about MBA rankings and if they judge you by the ranking of the course you did vs what you actually have to offer as a professional, well… 🤷🏻♀️
Yup, they come to campus and do MBA specific workshops. in fact at least 2 of 3 MBBs have Said/Judge MBA specific cycle. McK sent out an email to all Oxford MBAs who “opted in” asking to submit a CV (no cover letter) via special link. I thought “easy enough”, submitted CV - a few weeks later got invited to online assessment, a week after that to R1 and then R2. Started as an Associate, I think in London I have 4 other classmates who started within a few months of each other. Know a few more from my class ended up in other countries (inc NA, Oceania, Africa and Asia). Similar process for Bain and BCG (I didn’t apply), I know a few ppl in both of those from my class who started in London. From McK we do recruit from Oxford, and Oxford MBAs are eligible to take part in other recruitment initiatives - look up Make My Mark in UK for example.
In my year in particular I’d say 8% ended up in MBB post graduation, across all 3 firms. I bunch more got at least to round 1 interviews, at which point your b school is not a factor whatsoever- your interview prep is all that matters. That’s not a very good KPI tho as quite a few ppl in the class typically focus on sustainability, social impact or entrepreneurship as Oxford markets itself from that angle quite heavily. It’s all on the employment report.
Basically, my best advice to anyone on this - it’s not about your course, it’s about what you do before/during your MBA. If you are passive with extracurriculars, have a mediocre GMAT/GRE, dont bother with polishing your CV or case prepping - LBS name is not gonna save you.
Don’t get me wrong, LBS is definitely higher ranked but for me personally I thought 2 years without income + rent cost + tuition was a big financial ask vs 1 year at Oxford where the outcome after graduation can be the same. For me it worked out.
Agree with the above sentiment. Oxford is a good MBA but in the UK top tier consulting firms and finance shops have a preference to LBS and INSEAD
I've met plenty of Oxford MBA grads at MBBs who graduated in the last 5-6 years, if that's an indicator. Though admittedly LBS beats hands down in sheer volume if suppose
Agree that they exist but definitely the exception not the norm (at least in my experience). I'd say IESE is more common than Oxford
INSEAD/LBS are the only two MBA programs in Europe worth going to