Wharton or Booth: Where Would You Go?

Jeremy Shinewald of mbaMission

Jeremy Shinewald, founder and president of mbaMission:

“First, I should say that the recent negative publicity regarding Wharton’s admissions office would have zero effect on my choice. From a brand perspective, Wharton is pretty much unassailable—as is Chicago Booth—and I believe the decline in application volume Wharton has seen over the past few application seasons is really just a blip.

“You have asked me which school I would choose, so I feel I should note that I won’t generalize for others. MBA programs are vast and complex learning institutions, so everyone should have his or her own criteria for choosing one and we help our applicants make choices based on their wants and needs. For me, the structure of a school’s curriculum and learning experience is crucial, and in this regard, Wharton would be a better fit for me. I find that its longer core curriculum, learning teams and cohort experience would provide a more powerful vehicle for academic and social immersion. I know that Chicago Booth has its excellent LEAD program, which also facilitates bonding among classmates, but to me, the common experience endures at Wharton, and that is a design element I consider very important.

“Additionally, because of my personal interest in entrepreneurship, I would carefully evaluate each school’s entrepreneurial program—particularly its “output.” Wharton has the edge here as well, because more Wharton students are starting businesses these days—roughly 7% of the school’s most recent graduating class did so, compared with about 3% of Chicago Booth’s 2013 class. I am sure that Chicago Booth has its stars, but Wharton has had some high-profile successes as of late, such as Warby Parker and CommonBond. I would lean toward the institution that could claim the more robust start-up ecosystem and pipeline, and for now, that is Wharton.

“None of this is to denigrate Chicago Booth, of course. It is an excellent school with a flexible curriculum that would appeal to many (rather than my personal preference for an extended core) and it has robust entrepreneurial offerings through its Polsky Center. Although I am sure that Chicago Booth would create ample opportunities for me in the area of entrepreneurship, overall, I believe Wharton would better fit my needs at this time.”