Hi all,
I am considering taking a MBA at Telfer, next year. The school seems well ranked, accredited and the stats on it are good. However, I am worried about the lack of an internship. I have been working in education for 4 years, so business school will be a big change in careers. I feel like the internships that some schools offer would be an important networking tool and a way to add some credibility to my resume. However, I have noticed that many of the top schools do not have internships.

Could anyone shed some light on this? I want to be able to get a job after by MBA (obviously), and am wondering if the credibility of the program is enough of a foot in the door.

Thanks for any help !

Internships are not needed by people staying in their industry. If you are changing careers, a programme with an internship will be more than helpful.

Thanks Duncan.

In your opinion, as someone switching industries (as I am), is an internship more important than school prestige/ranking. I am trying to decide between Victoria and Ottawa. The pros of each are very different.

I am also considering Simon Fraser and Calgary, but they are lower on my list.

Thanks for your insights.

Honestly these are not schools that are too far apart in the grand scheme of things. They both use a 550 GMAT minimum. Both programmes are small (around 45 students). I would think that the macroeconomic environments would be more major factors. If you don't speak French, then I would certainly suggest you look at Victoria. There are fewer opportunities there and progression may be slower, but the risk is less.

Thanks for your thoughts.
I really appreciate you taking the time to share your insights.

Duncan - Thanks for ur inputs.

I have one query about Telfer, it has triple accreditations, 12 months only, low tuition and yet you value it along side UVic ?
Why?

Also Telfer has consulting / management project which is as good as internship plus an international visit.

How about Telfer Vs McMaster FT Vs UVic FT MBA ?? Your rating preference? Based on overall brand image and ratings plus career/placement numbers.

Thanks a lot to everyone taking time out for this. It really helps settle the dilemma. :)

From some other research I have done, Telfer is a good school if you have a lot of experience. The consulting stream is a great option, but finding a good consulting job with no business experience will still be challenging.

Also, I disagree that that consulting project is of the same value as an internship. There are groups doing the project with one company.... the likelihood of landing a job from it are much lower.

If I were you (and I was in the same position as you very recently) and you don't have a lot of previous experience (under 5 years) I would choose McMaster, then UVic, then Telfer. Uvic has a bunch of great programs for people new to the field (international trip, consulting project, internship with a huge network across Canada). I do think Ottawa U is more prestigious, but not extremely so. Their placement numbers and starting Salary is also high, but their typical student has much more experience than Uvic, so this will skew the numbers.

All said I think that all three are good schools and would be a good choice.

Also, thanks to everyone that helped me decide. I ended up deciding on Queen's. Still, part of me wishes I wish going to UVIC next year.

Thanks emgh. Queens is great, you are yet to join it or already there?
I do have 2.4 yrs of exp only, and hence I was worried about telfer.
I have cleared mcmaster interview, now awaiting coop interview and then il know whether il gt coop or FT MBA.

Emgh or any expert, could you please elaborate a bit about Uvic, I am not feeling confident about it.

What did ur research suggest you about its placement of international students and what specializations are in demand in Victoria and Vancouver.

Also how good Ryerson MBA will hold against degroote and uvic?

Thanks

I would say that the biggest downside of UVIC is that it's in Victoria. There are not many opportunities to work right in the city, so you would probably have to relocate. More opportunity in Vancouver. Not sure about specializations.

I know that UVIC strengths are working with international students and having a really big internship network (3rd largest in Canada). They have 60% international students, and have a strong international specialization.

I've heard good things about Ryerson, but I don't know much about it, since I wasn't personally interested in it. Would probably have good opportunity if you want to live in Toronto. I would rate it around the same as McMaster, but the program is a lot bigger, so not going to be as personal.

UVIC seems like a strong program, but its still newish, and so hasn't established itself as much as others. I would go with your gut though, if you are having reservations, it's probably for a reason.

As I said with 2.4 years, I think McMaster is by far your best option.

Thanks buddy.
lots of positive things fr uvic.