Shalom! I come from an indigenous tribe in the Philippines.

I earned a degree in Finance from a respected university in the country and graduated Magna Cum Laude. Financial aid from kind benefactors got me out of the mountains and allowed me to experience formal schooling. I have been working as a bond trader for a stable bank in the Philippines since 2008. I have been promoted twice. I also passed the CFA level 3 exam this year.

While I believe that I have already achieved more than what my parents wished for me, my ambitions remain high. I have always wanted to go to the US to get an MBA in finance and eventually look for a stint in investment management. However, I do not have the financial means to fund MBA tuition payments yet.

An MBA grad from CUNY Baruch told me that he can help me fund a degree in that school. What are your thoughts on Baruch's MBA program with a specialization in finance?

I'm also wondering which MBA program in the list below will most likely provide me a full scholarship given my profile..

1. Wharton
2. Harvard
3. Stern
4. Columbia
5. Stanford

I took the GMAT twice. My first score was 680 and I wasn't really happy because I thought that 680 would not lead me to a full scholarship. I took it again (taking two weeks off work) and got a 780!! Got perfect scores in both AWA and IG.

Help please.

Thanks.

I think most of those schools would put you pretty high on the scholarship list. But they are very different schools. Work out which schools really suit you the best.

Thank you for the info Mr. Duncan.

But what can you say about CUNY's MBA Program? Is the campus placement program strong? I think someone is willing to fund my tuition fees there...That means I don't have to spend on the application fees of the other 5 schools...

Thanks again.

Hello indigenous friend,

Probably what your life story tells you is that where you come from dont necessary decide where you will be.

The fact that you passed CFA and have GMAT 780 is incredible regardless of where you come from.

Many Wall St jobs only need either a top MBA or CFA so you know that you have the caliber to achieve a lot in life.

Work out what you want with your experience you will have a lot to reflect on and a choose a program that can make the next step of your life.

Why limit yourself to an MBA. JD or MPP/MPA are also worth looking at. Also there are Sloan Master programmes that you may fancy

Cuny is not one of the top business schools. Compare the starting salaries there with those from the other schools you mentioned. You can do better.

Hello donho! I appreciate your kind words. :) I really hope to work for a top investment management group in NY or PIMCO ;) in the future.

I hope that getting a Finance MBA would help me achieve my goals. Thanks for the suggestions to take other courses, but I believe that an MBA program is what I want right now. Maybe after the MBA? :)

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Hello Mr. Duncan. Thanks for your comments on the CUNY MBA program.

I'd also want to ask how the placement programs of NY B-schools (Columbia, NYU, Fordham, CUNY, St John's, Pace) are doing despite the tough economic environment? I've researched on these schools but I can't seem to find a common trend.

Thanks.

These schools are very different assets, and they don't rise and fall in the same way. Employers come first to the best schools and then move on to the less good ones. Take a look at this article for a general discussion:
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/46967f96-4567-11e1-a719-00144feabdc0.html#axzz27VbqLaNu

In California, PIMCO recruits heavily from USC, UCLA and Wharton.In NYC, they recruit heavily from Harvard, Wharton, Columbia and NYU -- and those are the top four schools for the investment management industry as a whole in NYC. Booth, Fordham, Penn and Cornell are the next four -- but quite a way down. Those eight universities have around 2/3rds of the MBA alumni in NYC investment management. CUNY isn't really on the radar, with much less than 1% of the total.

NYC - based investment firms recruit heavy from Wharton as well (not surprising given its strong finance focus.)

I know that they school offers a full-tuition fellowship for students from underrepresented backgrounds - this might be something to look into.

Thank you Mr. Duncan and Ralph for the valuable information. I will definitely look into what you guys have said.