Schulich VS UCLA

cecilia_fish

I have a banking background, and is interested in getting a job in asset management area, preferrably in real estate investment.

I got admitted to both schools, I know UCLA has a better reputation, but am quite skeptical, and not sure if it's worthwhile to spend so much more tuition and living exp to get an MBA from there.  The USD88k+living exp is a significant investment for my family... Any advice??

Schulich (One year accelerated program, CAD24k).  I completed my undergraduate studies at Schulich as well, meaning that I will be very familar with the sch system and everything.  I believe my life over there will be easy and enjoyable.  The only thing I worry is that the placement of Schulich @ undergrad level and I am talking about a good year back in 2006 is really so so.

UCLA Anderson (Regular two year program, USD88k).  The cost of living in LA is much higher than TO.  However, I have been in touch with current students at Anderson.  They are VERY responsive and supportive to incoming students, this is something I couldn't feel at Schulich.  The arrangement of everything at UCLA seems much better too.  I also like that they called to offer me the place which is a lot more personal than Schulich.  I can already feel the difference between paying CAD24k VS USD88k - incomparable basically~

zz1234567

You haven't addressed where you want to work after graduation. Relocate to California, go back to TO, or go to northeast USA(i.e.NYC, since it's close to TO)?

Class of 2008 Schulich undergrad career report looks good; the avg starting salary is only slightly below Ivey and at the same level as Queen's.

cecilia_fish

I want to remain in banking or move onto asset management.  I prefer working in North America for 2-3 years and then move back to HK.  Based on my exp, if I graduate from TO, I will tend to stay in TO.  I am not saying moving to NYC is impossible, just the chances are very slim.  Why recruit sb from a no-name brand (from the eyes of US recruiters) in Canada when all the best biz schs are just nearby...

As for recruitment report...um...at least this is not what I experienced in 2006.  OR Canada is just not a place for banking/ finance ~~ 

zz1234567

Seems you are indifferent with all the non-monetary issues (i.e.location), and all you want to know is that whether 88K investment in UCLA is worth compare to 24K investment in Schulich, here is my result by assuming you will work for only 20 years after your MBA:

Time	Schulich (CADK)	UCLA(USDK)
0	-20	-60
1	-20	-60
2	85	102
3	88	105
4	91	108
5	93	111
6	96	114
7	100	117
8	103	120
9	106	124
10	109	127
11	113	131
12	117	134
13	120	138
14	124	142
15	128	146
16	132	150
17	136	154
18	141	158
19	145	162
20	150	167
NPV@5%	1,163	1,279

You should play this yourself in detail.

cecilia_fish

zz1234567, thanks for your replies...I had lunch with a recent UCLA graduate today, and he shared with me lots of insights of the school.  We have very similar background, and he told me that the opportunities available at UCLA is unbeatable compared to Canadian schools.  He's very bright, which is exactly someone I'd like to work with at school.  I think I will go to UCLA without any hesitation now. 

caesar2005

本来就没什么好比较的，这2个学校，不属于同一个档次的。几万块的学费差距，在你毕业后，也就是不到一年的工资而已。

btw，加拿大的金融服务业还是很发达的，当然，投行就不行了。

cocolan

UCLA的金融在全美是知名的好，在西海岸不比Stanford、UCB差多少~