Hi,

I'm a 30 year old Chartered Accountant from India. I have over 7 years of work experience, 3 years in Ernst & Young India, 4 years in a Multinational Oil & Gas Company in Dubai. Now my dilemma, I got admits to three colleges, not sure which one to choose-

1) Simon Rochester, USA (1 year program) - Reputed school in USA, strong in finance, but seems to have poor recruitments due to no big recruiter in the region. Some say the location is a let-down, very cold climate.

2) IE, Spain - Highly ranked, but hear lot of online horror stories of most of the alumni being unemployed. Many say the school is overrated. Does the school have the reputation among recruiters or is the ranking just a marketing gimmick.

3) Cranfield, UK - Low profile, but seems to have good alumni and a strong program. But UK is in bad shape.

Post MBA I'm thinking of staying in USA or Europe for a few years before coming back to Middle East for work. I'm also in the process of earning my US CPA certification. Any advise would be helpful in getting me out of this confusion!!

Regards,
Confused mind

This is a pretty wide range of schools, and it will depend on what you want to do after graduation. If your long-term goal is to work in accounting, then I'd go with Simon.

IE does have good placement statistics - with strong ties to Latin America and other parts of Europe - but the economy in Spain is not great right now, so this could be a problem.

Cranfield is also a good school, but employment in the UK post-graduation is complicated by visa rules. Be sure you read up on these as you are researching.

I put them more or less in the order you list them. Simon is a great school, and the climate is an incentive for study. Cranfield is excellent and has strong placement compared to other UK MBAs. Unless you speak Spanish, I can't see a reason to put IE before those other two. It will be pushed up in the rankings by the high purchasing power parity salaries of alumni in Latin America.

the economy in Spain is not great right now