The Harvard Business School (HBS) has one of the nation’s most highly-rated MBA programs. Naturally, it has turned into what one might call a factory of important personalities. If you want to be a powerful executive, billionaire, or US President, attending Harvard Business School is likely going to be on your road map. HBS is well known for producing big-name alums like George W. Bush, Stephen Covey, Thierry Porté, and Sheryl WuDunn. But are the HBS alums satisfied with their education? Is all of the hype actually translating into something tangible for HBS alums and their alumni network as a whole?
Recent research is mixed. According to a survey of 100 students by The Harbus, 51% of MBA students consider themselves extremely likely to recommend the program to a friend or colleague. This is great news for the HBS! To put the findings into context, the HBS received a net promoter score (NPS) of 41, while national drug store chain Walgreens received a 42, and Apple received a 70 score for laptops and 67 for the iPhone. In terms of brand recognition, this is incredibly impressive for a university program.
However, while the HBS is highly recognizable, and students feel confident and adequately prepared after leaving the program, they don’t necessarily feel as satisfied as their counterparts in other MBA programs. According to a Forbes study that measures satisfaction of business school students, it was found that HBS ranked 20th out of 50 in overall satisfaction and 31st when measuring the happiness of alums in their current jobs.
Perhaps the secret to satisfaction rests at the top, where Stanford’s Graduate School of Business (GSB) ranked number one.
“The true benefit of the Stanford GBS is that it aims to create future business leaders and not just focus on the short term to ensure that students are satisfied at that moment in time,” says Mano Iyer, class of 2006. “The program is designed to teach skills and thinking that you can apply throughout your career regardless of the position you are in.”
In the end, getting an MBA is a big decision, and it is a decision that shouldn’t be addressed lightly. Your satisfaction might be lower if you choose the wrong school, but it could be much lower if you choose the wrong profession altogether—especially if you dump a lot of money into your education.
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