Why Yale? How do you like it so far?

[Mccanale]

I have a question for the current students. When deciding to go for an MBA, what about Yale was specifically appealing to you? Now that you are enrolled, what do you find are the best aspects of the program? What are the programs weaknesses?

Also, if someone could comment on the diversity of their class I would appreciate some insight. I am looking for a school that is focused on having a well rounded class, not just 4.0, 750 GMAT, and no work experience. I have heard from some friends at other schools that this is the case and I am wondering how Yale compares.

Thanks,
Mike

[gladiatorma]

Coming from an undergrad in business, I was looking for a business school that wasn't an "mba factory". A small class was very important to me.

I also scrutinized the culture of the school very heavily. I can't stand MBA students who think they are more important than they are, and Yale SOM thankfully doesn't have too many of these personalities.

I was also very attracted to the mission of SOM. I'm a former ibanker but I do believe business has a role in society, and SOM seems to really embrace the notion that the line between public and private sector interests.

As for the well rounded class, SOM definitely fits the bill. The bankers and finance people are definitely present, but we're balanced out with people with plenty of not-for-profit experience and aspirations.

As an example, in one of my learning teams (a random group of 7 people whom I was assigned to work with, we had a person from the financial services sector (The Hartford), a consultant (Deloitte), a software engineer at Microsoft, an employee of the Yale School of Music, a not-for-profit consultant, a guy was in shipping and ran many entrepreneurial real-estate start-ups in Europe, and a Canadian ibanker (me).

My advice to you would be to visit the school and don't ignore your gut feeling when you meet students. Talk to students, meet them, and trust your gut. After all, as Stephen Colbert once said, your gut has more nerve endings than your brain...

~ Gladiatorma.

[bsa]

Hi Mike,

I was in your position just a few months ago with school "fit" being one of my primary concerns. I looked at Yale primarily for its academic outlook, new curriculum, small size and diverse student body. Four weeks into the program and the school has more than surpassed my expectations.

Though we havent forayed into the "perspectives" aspect of the new curriculum yet, the school is ensuring that we build a strong foundation in basics concepts of accounting, economics, statistics etc. The atmposphere is geared towards continuous learning and we are constantly engaged in discussions and debates both inside and outside the classroom. A very unique aspect of Yale is the emphasis it places on developing team building and interpersonal skills. One of my core courses is on "Interpersonal Dynamics" where we are divided into learning teams of 6-7 members with whom we spend the entire semester. The emphasis on both academic and social skills truly validates the school's mission statement

In terms of diversity, you can take a look at the class profile at http://mba.yale.edu/MBA/students/profiles/class_statistics.shtml. It should give you a fair idea of how diverse the class is. Id be happy to answer any further questions.

Anuradha-Class of 2008

[paulip88]

I'll repeat a piece of info that I was told when I was in your shoes a year ago. You'll get a fantastic education wherever you go. What you need to figure out is fit.

For me, I had some skepticism about Yale at first, but all of that vanished after my first visit. The people here are awesome. Not only do we have a very diverse bunch of people, but they all embrace the diversity of the group. People here are genuinely interested in each other.

[Mccanale]

Thank you for answering my question - Yale sounds like a great program and I specifically like the sound of the interpersonal focus, and the culture of Yale sounds good too. I have a couple of friends who attent Wharton, and from what I have heard I don't even have interest in their program.

My primary goal is to find a small program, at a good school, that will challenge me academically as well as provide a network of peers who come from vastly different backgrounds. I know many schools fit the bill, and I will definitely get a good education at any of them - but Yale is starting to sound increasingly more appealing to me.

I am going to schedule a campus visit within the next few weeks and see what it has to offer. Then the hard part about getting accepted comes.

Unfortunately I will be coming with a low GPA - but I took a course over the summer and got an A in it, and right now I am taking accounting and I should get an A in that as well. My GMAT is right at the cutoff - 640. Although if you take the highest Quant (44) and highest Verbal (40) then I would have a much higher score. I hear Yale looks at your highest overall and this individual breakdown as well. Outside of that I have great work experience, I have been a manager of a business for 4 years, moved up in my company, and I am a very focused individual. We will see - I am definitely going to give it my best.