Bill Glick, dean of the Rice University – Jones Graduate School of Business, was recently featured in an article from US News which examined the important factors to consider when choosing an MBA program.
US News recently released their 2017 ranking of the Best Business Schools, and with it, important insight into what sort of factors US News deems the most important for prospective students to consider. Bill Glick, who serves as chair for the board of directors of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International, in addition to his role as dean of the Jones School, offered important advice to prospective students.
In the article — which details four statistics that students should measure before enrolling in any MBA program — Glick explains why projected salary is an important factor to consider. In particular, he advises students to look into a school’s employment reports to get idea of alumni salaries — not just right after graduation, but a few years out as well.
According to Glick, ‘time in school’ is another important statistic for students to know. Since business school programs can run anywhere from one year to more than three, knowing how long previous students took to complete each program can have important ramifications on how long it will take to recoup an investment.
Depending on the cost of school and your current salary, a professional or executive MBA program may wind up being a better fit for some students. For example, for a student making $100,000, a professional MBA program, which typically consists of weeknight/weekend classes — leaving students free to work during week — would allow them to keep a stellar salary while still earning their degree.
Other important factors mentioned in the article include cost of living and scholarship funding. Especially if the cost of school is daunting, it is important for students to consider the average scholarship award from each program.
“In some schools it’s 70, 80 percent of the class getting a scholarship,” said Glick. “Those scholarships could be very substantial. Anywhere from a full ride to something a little bit more nominal.”