Brandeis MAief program: Insider Information.

StreetApprentic

I've seen some CDers have been admitted by Brandeis MAief program. As a current first year student, I can provide some insider information on this program.



In general, this program has a comprehensive    curriculum in Finance, Business, and Economics. There are some excellent professors from whom students can learn valuable skills. In the current weak job market, the reputation and location of Brandeis (9 miles from Boston)    facilitate    students' job searching.


1. Quality of education.    


Most professors graduated from Ivey League Universities. As in other universities, not all the professors are welcomed by students. So the choice of courses will be very critical to the quality of    the experience here. Several professors have both Ivey Leauge degrees and extensive professional experiences in investment management, commercial banking, consulting, and the federal reserve system. These professors are most popular in students. There is a heavy emphasis on teamwork so students    are expected to    attend many team meetings and cooperate with other students.    


This program has    more international students than U.S. students. The number of Chinese students is increasing during recent years. In my class, 1/5 to 1/4 are Chinese students, who graduated from Fudan University, Nankai University, Renmin University, Zhejiang University, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Xi'an Jiaotong University.... There are also many European, especially French students here.


The Greater Boston area holds many business and academic events every year. I have attended many of them and learned a lot from experienced businessmen and scholars.


2. Career prospect.


Brandeis is very strong in undergraduate education. Its    International Business School is young and not famous in the U.S. For students without work experience (candidates for entry-level jobs), Brandeis is a popular source of entry-level employees for U.S. employers. This has been proved    in my internship interviews with U.S. companies. For students with    several years' work experience, MAief may not be the best choice because you will face    the competition from MBAs from famous universities. Many MAief Chinese students found jobs in the U.S. after graduation, although    few of them        were hired by famous companies.


In the current weak job market, the location of your university    is very important in job searching. Brandeis is 9 miles from Boston, where there are    a lot of    companies of different sizes. This factor is directly related to    the job placement record of Brandeis    MAief Chinese students: many of them finally found jobs in small and medium-sized finance and consulting companies in the Greater Boston area. However, this record may not be maintained because the number of Chinese students here is increasing.

[此贴子已经被作者于2004-3-31 15:32:06编辑过]

funnytiger

good article. other than the above info, you should know the following as well



1. this is a jewish school. what is the deal? Jews control most of the finance companies in USA. you get upper hand because of this.


2. this school is rich. chances that you get scholarship is much higher.


IMHO, this school is great choice for people who won't be able to go to top 30 business schools, but would want to get into finance sector.

[此贴子已经被作者于2004-3-29 8:41:20编辑过]

freegirl

So what's the rank of Brandeis, funnytiger?

funnytiger

sorry, I don't know its ranking. IMO, when the school ranks below 30, it    is the location and industry connection that make the most sense

freegirl

funnytiger, the overall ranking number    of Brandeis from USNews is 32, even higher than BC. I don't know which ranking system I should more depend on: ranking    by major or ranking by schools? Thanks!


In addition, StreetApprentice, I heard from Brandeis IBS office of admission that: the job placement for MA students is 86% three months
after graduation for the Class of 2003 (this is a pretty strong number and
should be better for the Classes of 2004 and 2005 as the economy improves. Based upon what you heard, is this information correct? Appreciate your sharing.


    

freegirl

Up!

funnytiger

I would say ranking by school > ranking by major (people may disagree)


regarding the employment rate, well, don't rely on those number, sometimes it make almost no sense to international students.

vivian2008

Up!

[此贴子已经被作者于2004-3-31 15:05:03编辑过]

StreetApprentic

I have asked the director of career services and here is some information about the job placement record of Brandeis International Business School:



For U.S. students: 90% of them secured jobs three months after graduation.


For international students: 78% of them secured jobs (including jobs outside the U.S.) three months after graduation. 50% of these job offers were from U.S. companies.


The director explained that the number (78%) for international students is lower because    some of them first tried to find jobs in the U.S. and only began looking for jobs    abroad when they were unable to find jobs in the U.S.


In November 2003, 95% of all the graduates had found jobs.


On the website of Brandeis International Business School, you can find that employers of graduates include many big names such as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Fidelity, GE Capital, McKinsey, BCG, and so on. Don't be disappointed if you come to this school and find that it is hard for you to get into these companies. This phenomenon can be explained as follows: A small number of students are BA/MA students who are Brandeis undergraduates starting taking courses at Brandeis International Business School in their senior year and received Master's degree at the end of the 5th year. These students are popular in the job market because they combine the strength and reputation of Brandeis undergraduate education with rigorous graduate degrees. Top investment banks and consulting firms like these candidates very much. This preference is evidenced by historical records.


I have read a book written by a Chinese student who is now a trader in the U.S., saying that the level of English is highly correlated with the achievement of Chinese students in the U.S. According to my experience in internship searching, the results of interviews are highly correlated with candidates' English communication skills. No matter how capable you are, employers will only hire you after they have a good interview experience with you. This is evidenced by the following fact: because of their better English communication skills and understanding of American culture, Chinese students who got their undergraduate degrees in the U.S. have a better record of finding business-related jobs in the U.S.

[此贴子已经被作者于2004-3-31 15:28:45编辑过]

freegirl

very useful! Thank you for both of you!