Hi Duncan,

I would really appreciate if you could please give your opinion about cranfield mba program. I have been offered a place at cranfield and finding it difficult to make a decision.

About me:

Indian, Male, 26 years old.

Work ex : 3.5 years Software Engineer, from a top MNC.

Have done online courses in finance, marketing and human resource ( had to prepare myself beforehand, so that it could be easy for me during my MBA)

Short term goal :Work in Consulting or Finance domain for a 3-5 years

Preference to work in UK. (Top priority)

My concerns are below:

?I have searched linkedin to get an idea of Cranfield MBA alumni. But couldn?t get a response from those people. Could you please tell me how Cranfield MBA would put my career on a fast track?

?Looking at the job prospects in England, or Europe, is it feasible to invest 35000 pounds in cranfield MBA?

?I completely agree that getting a job depends on one?s capabilities and intellect . But how well recognized in Cranfield MBA in India .Will I get a decent job in India if I couldn?t get a job in Europe?

?The program structure is a bit lopsided with few electives to focus on. (got info from internet, not sure about this)

Good things about cranfield (searched the internet for this)
? Focus is on Personality development.
? Good in consulting

Would request Duncan or any other fellow forum member to please suggest and help me make the best decision

- I think general benefits of the Cranfield MBA are pretty clear. In terms of salary, it's one of the top ten schools in Europe. You can see on LinkedIn the sort of outcomes for Indian alumni of Cranfield. I saw, for example:
uk.linkedin.com/in/sanjaykshahi
uk.linkedin.com/in/rajanand
uk.linkedin.com/in/dynshawitalia
uk.linkedin.com/in/vijayaravindran
uk.linkedin.com/pub/john-sebastian-kuravamveli/53/164/694

Why not ask Cranfield to connect you with some alumni, or look for alumni of your own university who also studied at Cranfield?

Of course it's feasible to attend Cranfield. In terms of percentage of students employed at the end of the MBA, it's in the top 12 in Europe. Mannheim, London and Strathclyde have a higher percentage employed.

I can't comment on the Indian market: ask some Indians.

I don't understand your point about electives. Cranfield has four terms instead of three, to provide more time for electives, so I would imagine that the time spend on electives will be similar to the time on course courses.

Yes, it's a good MBA program and probably worth the investment.

Is this your only option at this point? I'd say if you didn't have an offer on the table from a better ranked program (LBS, Oxbridge, etc.) then it's probably a good choice.

And actually, in terms of international mobility among the UK schools, the FT ranks Cranfield as second, behind LBS, which means grads have relatively good chances of region-switching. Not sure about jobs in India though.

Yes, it's a good MBA program and probably worth the investment.

Is this your only option at this point? I'd say if you didn't have an offer on the table from a better ranked program (LBS, Oxbridge, etc.) then it's probably a good choice.

And actually, in terms of international mobility among the UK schools, the FT ranks Cranfield as second, behind LBS, which means grads have relatively good chances of region-switching. Not sure about jobs in India though.

- I think general benefits of the Cranfield MBA are pretty clear. In terms of salary, it's one of the top ten schools in Europe. You can see on LinkedIn the sort of outcomes for Indian alumni of Cranfield. I saw, for example:
uk.linkedin.com/in/sanjaykshahi
uk.linkedin.com/in/rajanand
uk.linkedin.com/in/dynshawitalia
uk.linkedin.com/in/vijayaravindran
uk.linkedin.com/pub/john-sebastian-kuravamveli/53/164/694

Why not ask Cranfield to connect you with some alumni, or look for alumni of your own university who also studied at Cranfield?

Of course it's feasible to attend Cranfield. In terms of percentage of students employed at the end of the MBA, it's in the top 12 in Europe. Mannheim, London and Strathclyde have a higher percentage employed.

I can't comment on the Indian market: ask some Indians.

I don't understand your point about electives. Cranfield has four terms instead of three, to provide more time for electives, so I would imagine that the time spend on electives will be similar to the time on course courses.

83% isn't terrible: even Harvard only has 89%. Schools with better placement percentages, and with mostly international students, in the FT 100 are (in declining order of salary): London, IE, IESE, ESADE, Rochester, Smurfit; Mannheim; Strathclyde; Bath; Singapore. To minimise risk, why not focus on those?

See http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/global-mba-ranking-2014