I'd love your opinion. For a non-European who wants to work in retail for a few years and then launch a retail start-up, would you recommend Rotterdam or EM Lyon?

Neither of these is *very* strong for retail, and neither RSM nor EMLyon is very well known outside Europe. In the retail industry, the language issue isn't more or less profound in France than in The Netherlands.

The top schools for retail in Europe are IE, Insead, IESE, ESADE, LBS, Henley, Cambridge and HEC. One advantage that EM Lyon has is a modest relationship with Carrefour, which is a hugh retailer. RSM has fewer people in the retail sector than EM Lyon, but it is a bigger brand and perhaps a better MBA.

I applied to both RSM and to EM Lyon, and was accepted for both, so I am balanced between them.

RSM is certainly a more famous school. For retail and for entrepreneurship, EM Lyon is perhaps stronger - but not by an order of magnitude.

EM Lyon, of course, is cheaper. France has the CAF scheme, which means rent will be heavily subsidised. Lyon is also 19% cheaper to live in than Rotterdam (http://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living/comparison/rotterdam/lyon).

What do you think?

Duncan, that's a tough one, and I can see your dilemma.

In terms of the retail industry, EM Lyon will have a slight edge, but since this industry isn't really a focus of either school, I would see it as a wash.

EM Lyon has a modest advantage when it comes to a structured focus on entrepreneurship, and its connections to venture capital in the region shouldn't be underestimated.

However, with its Centre for Entrepreneurship and associated Startup Campus program, RSM has been growing its capacity in terms of entrepreneurship. There are resources here, but beyond a one-day bootcamp for MBA students, the focus on entrepreneurship isn't as integrated as it is at EMLyon. Right now, launching a business is maybe a bit easier in Lyon, but Rotterdam is catching up.

Of course, an MBA from RSM will have more recognition if you want to launch your business in the UK or somewhere not on the continent. For either school, I think it will be somewhat more challenging to secure venture funding through their established networks if you're not going to be local (in either Lyon or Rotterdam.)

Great points. I think EM Lyon could have an edge because of its specialist masters in luxury retail and in the sports and outdoors industries. EM Lyon also produces more research on retail.But RSM is a safer bet.