What do you think of Montclair University for grad school? (unemployment, schools)

[thenewyawkah]

Hi all,

I am in the not-so-wonderful position of being unemployed long term in NYC and have considered going back to school for an MBA in Marketing. I'm not so enamored with NYC (I am a trailing spouse who went along for the ride when my husband took a job) and would really like to go to school in a friendlier environment than the city seems able to provide. Someone told me about Montclair State University and when I visited I liked what I saw.

Here is the dilemma: We have been here for 2 years and from what I've experienced, getting work is based almost exclusively on who you know and the prestige of your associations. I understand the first and abhor the second - but don't want to shoot myself in the foot any worse than I've done through my long stint of unemployment. Will going to Montclair be a good move to help establish a career here? I am by no means limiting my career aspirations to NYC and would be perfectly happy working in NJ.
Any advice would be enormously appreciated.

[Lusitan]

Honestly, if you're in NYC right now, you should try to take advantage of the universities that NYC has to offer. They have more prestige in the region, and nationally, than Montclair does. You will get more for your money.

NYU, Columbia, Fordham, CUNY (Baruch) ... lots of good choices right there.

If you plan to work somewhere else, a small regional school might now be a bad idea, but you should be very sure about where you'll be looking for a job before you take that step, because if you end up somewhere else you'll find your resume will look less impressive because people won't know a thing about your school.

If you're thinking about working in NJ, but still may end up elsewhere, you may want to consider one of the better known NJ universities, such as Rutgers or Seton Hall.

Good luck!

(by the way, I abhor both the "who you know" far more than I do the "prestige of your association" factors ... )

[iMike]

Lusitan,

Why would you suggest NYU or Columbia as an alternative to MSU. Columbia is an ivy league school and NYU is up there too. We're talking about 40K(undergraduate) a year and outstanding academics to get into these schoools.

I currently attend MSU graduate school(MS Computer Science). I have a couple of friends who are doing the MBA program as well and they rave about it. One of them came from NJIT and the other from Ramapo College just up north. They both love what MSU has to offer for its MBA students.
The graduate tuition is very reasonable compared to other universities but you have to check online and factor in the fact that you're out of state and will have to pay more.

Good luck

[NJ Chutzpah]

why an MBA in Marketing?

why not just get an entry level job and work your way up from there?

[Lusitan]

iMike - I didn't intend to knock MSU, but I stand by my recommendation to seek out a more well-known school.

There's a big difference between getting a degree in a "hard skill" area like Computer Science, Engineering, etc., versus getting a degree in a "soft skill" area like business, law, history, art whatever, etc.

If you do well in school and learn the skills you need, you'll have options and a fine career ahead of you practically no matter what school you graduate from. There is much less "school snobbery' in those fields.

But business school, and MBA programs, are to a large extent about the contacts you make, the weight your degree carries, and how well-known your school is. Sure, there are always exceptions to every rule, but by and large, someone studying one of those "soft skill" fields really needs to consider this factor.

You're right though, that Columbia and NYU are expensive schools. Baruch (CUNY) is much more comparable to MSU, but I think it has a better name recognition, both in the city and in the rest of the country.