Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
In Part 6 of the Military to MBA series there will be a lot more information about ways to finance your MBA. You can expect to see more details on scholarships, federal aid, and more details on the Yellow Ribbon Program to help you determine how you will fund your MBA.
This post is meant to be a primer for Part 2 of the Military to MBA series, “Evaluating Schools.” Part of your evaluation should be a detailed consideration of the cost of attendance and how that will impact you after graduation.
In this post, you will see what the top MBA programs offer as far as funding for veterans. Paricular attention will be paid to how each schools elect to match your GI Bill as part of the Yellow Ribbon Program
What is the Yellow Ribbon Program?
First thing to note is that the Yellow Ribbon Program only applies to those with 100% Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits. If you do not have full benefits, then you are not eligible for the program. Kinda crappy, but it is what it is.
For those who do have 100% Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits, the Yellow Ribbon Program can be a huge way to help offset the cost of attaining a top MBA. If you attend a public university, then your degree will come to you at no cost (not included are living, travel, and non-education related expenses).
But if you go to a private school, the costs can add up pretty quickly. As an example, Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business has an annual tuition of $75,108. Your GI Bill will only cover up to $24,476.79 per year at a private college. With a full Yellow Ribbon Program scholarship, however, the school can elect to match what the VA will pay. The best part is whatever the school elects to match, the VA will match ON TOP of that.
Meaning that for a veteran getting their MBA at Tuck, their base tuition expenses will look like this:
- $75,108/year
- — $24,476.79 tuition payment from the VA
- — $22,000 with a match through the Yellow Ribbon Program from Tuck
- — $22,000 match from the VA
- Total cost of tuition: $6,631.21/year
If you are reading that and thinking, “Holy hell that’s a good deal!” you are at least on the path of getting an MBA because you understand how a good deal works.
There are a couple of important things to understand regarding the Yellow Ribbon Program.
- It only applies to those with 100% Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.
- Schools can select how much they will match from the VA AND how many veterans receive a Yellow Ribbon Program match.
That last part is really critical to know. Before you apply and before you select to go somewhere, know what their GI Bill benefits are and how much they contribute toward the Yellow Ribbon Program.
If you really want to crush it as business school, you have to do more than just get in. There’s a lot to be learned and gained from your professors, classmates, alumni, and recruiters. So you want a plan in place to make the most of your MBA. That’s why I strongly recommend “What Now? The Admit’s Start to Maximizing the MBA”. It’s written by a couple of Northwestern Kellogg School of Management grads, so they aren’t slouches (and yours truly contributed as well!). Using the “coffee chat,” as a format, they lay out a gameplan you can use to stay focused and productive at business school. Get your copy here.
So how do the top programs stack up?
Good question. Below are the top 20 MBA programs, as defined by being in the top 20 of either of the big three MBA Rankings (US News and World Report, The Economist, and the Financial Times).
All listings are based on the presumption of 100% Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits used as a full-time MBA program. The numbers and data listed reflect only the cost of tuition and do not include living expenses, books, travel, and other non-education related expenses.
Quick note: Schools outside the US were not included in this list because they do not participate in the Yellow Ribbon Program. Expect a post in the future about attending a foreign MBA program and the unique aspects of that process.
I should also note that business schools tend to have a lot of scholarship money in their war chest. In speaking with veterans at many schools, they affirmed that schools were very forthcoming with money to help offset costs. Below are the official numbers, but you may be able to secure additional funding from schools.
Schools with no costs
These are all public schools that have zero tuition costs for veterans attending with 100% Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.
University of California Berkeley Haas School of Business
US News Ranking: 6
Financial Times Ranking: 10
The Economist Ranking: 7
University of Michigan Ross School of Business
US News Ranking: 10
Financial Times Ranking: 28
The Economist Ranking: 9
University of Virginia Darden School of Business
US News Ranking: 12
Financial Times Ranking: 23
The Economist Ranking: 16
University of California Los Angeles Anderson School of Business
US News Ranking: 16
Financial Times Ranking: 26
The Economist Ranking: 6
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Kenan-Flager School of Business
US News Ranking: 19 (tied with University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business)
Financial Times Ranking: 37
The Economist Ranking: 26
The University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business
US News Ranking: 19 (Tied with UNC Chapel Hill)
Financial Times Ranking: 37
The Economist Ranking: 26
University of Washington Foster School of Business
US News Ranking: 21
Financial Times Ranking: 49
The Economist Ranking: 20
Schools with 100% Yellow Ribbon Program match for their MBA
These programs all offer a 100% match Yellow Ribbon program match to all eligible MBA veterans in their program, with no cap on how many veterans receive the benefit. Because private schools have a high cost of attendance, you can expect to potentially have som out-of-pocket tuition expenses.
Chicago Booth School of Business
US News Ranking: 1
Financial Times Ranking: 5
The Economist Ranking: 20
Note: Booth also offers a generous scholarship to cover costs. Read more here.
Yale School of Management
US News Ranking: 9
Financial Times Ranking: 11
The Economist Ranking: 21
New York University Stern School of Business
US News Ranking: 12
Financial Times Ranking: 25
The Economist Ranking: 17
While NYU limits their Yellow Ribbon Program match to only $10,000, they do also have the Fertitta Veterans Scholarship, which you can read more on here.
Cornell SC Johnson School of Business
US News Ranking: 15
Financial Times Ranking: 27
The Economist Ranking: 14
Weirdly, Cornell does not have their numbers for the Yellow Ribbon Program on their website. They do, however, list a number of scholarships for veterans and vets I spoke with at Cornell told me that the school was very generous, although they did not provide numbers.
Schools with less than 100% Yellow Ribbon Program MBA match
These schools either contribute less than a 100% match to the Yellow Ribbon Program or have a cap on the number of veterans who receive the Yellow Ribbon Program scholarship at the school.
Quick note: Some of these schools may simply not have updated their numbers, as the total benefits package for the GI Bill tends to change year to year to reflect tuition costs. For the most up-to-date info, you will need to talk to the individual financial office at each school.
University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business
US News Ranking: 1
Financial Times Ranking: 5
The Economist Ranking: 20
Total match:$17,500/year
Cap on number of veterans: NO
Stanford Graduate School of Business
US News Ranking: 2
Financial Times Ranking: 1
The Economist Ranking: 8
Total match:$19,500/year
Cap on number of veterans: NO
Harvard Business School
US News Ranking: 3
Financial Times Ranking: 2
The Economist Ranking: 2
Total match:$20,000/year
Cap on number of veterans: NO
MIT Sloan School of Business
US News Ranking: 3
Financial Times Ranking: 8
The Economist Ranking: 19
Total match:$15,000/year
Cap on the number of veterans: Yes, only 30 veterans. Given their numbers, odds are extremely good you will not be excluded.
Columbia Business School
US News Ranking: 6
Financial Times Ranking: 9
The Economist Ranking: 15
Total match:$15,000/year
Cap on the number of veterans: NO
Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management
US News Ranking: 6
Financial Times Ranking: 14
The Economist Ranking: 4
Total match:$15,000/year
Cap on the number of veterans: NO
Duke Fuqua School of Business
US News Ranking: 10
Financial Times Ranking: 19
The Economist Ranking: 11
Total match:$18,000/year
Cap on the number of veterans: NO
Dartmouth Tuck School of Business
US News Ranking: 12
Financial Times Ranking: 15
The Economist Ranking: 12
Total match:$22,000/year
Cap on the number of veterans: NO
Carnegie Mellon Tepper School of Business
US News Ranking: 17
Financial Times Ranking: 35
The Economist Ranking: 31
Total match:$15,000/year
Cap on the number of veterans: Yes-30. Much like, Sloan, you can expect that the cap will likely not limit you.
University of Southern California Marshall School of Business
US News Ranking: 17
Financial Times Ranking: 46
The Economist Ranking: 18
Total match:$10,000/year
Cap on the number of veterans: No
Related:
Top University Endowments For Veterans
How Veterans Can Finance Their MBA
Military to MBA (Part 1/7): Is It for You?
Veterans at Yale: Dan Kurber at SOM
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