Hi, I'm new to this board, my name is Jill and I'm from New Jersey.

I am looking for MBA programs - and saw that Wharton has increased the number of women in it's program to something like 45%. This is higher than most other MBA programs (but still a bit disconcerting since women outnumber men on a societal level.)

So I started thinking - for a woman, is it better to apply for a school that accepts more women? Or, alternatively, should I look for programs that have lower percentages of women students? Would my gender be an advantage in this case? I mean, only 35% of the students at Columbia are women - maybe my odds are better there?

I think this is a really personal choice. I think women and men both have a much better experience in a program where the genders are more balanced: Wharton; Yale; Stanford... Generally, you'll stand a better chance of admission and financial aid in a program where you'll add more rather than less to the diversity: Cornell, Darden, Georgetown; Maryland; Carnegie Mellon, Purdue....

I graduated from Columbia, and while it doesn't have the highest level of gender diversity (I think it's about 35% today), it is rising.

At least at Columbia - as a relative minority, you have an excellent support network. There's an organization called "Columbia Women in Business" that hosts networking events and other activities - and it was very helpful to some of my female friends in the program.

I'd imagine that other top schools have similar organizations - and it's just a matter of finding them and getting involved.

Thanks both. I'll look into those kinds of organizations - there might be some good ones at other campuses too!