Tuck South East Asia Ambassador Program
Q: Since there's a slim chance I could visit the school before my application, it would be really great if you could share some information about the environment and social life in Tuck.
(Teguh, April ‘08) So far the Tuck experience has been everything and much more than what they promised. I'm very excited to help other Asians especially Indonesians strengthen our presence here at Tuck. I really think that the community and the general approach to education are excellent and is a great fit for me.
Q: I have some savings, but I would still need some aids / loans to cover the cost of Tuck MBA. I would appreciate if you share your experiences on this financing matter.
I am financing my MBA with a loan from Tuck. Tuck provides loans for international students (something that not all MBA program does). There are various loan programs. You can check it out at http://www.tuck.dartmouth.edu/admissions/aid/loans.html .
If you have some savings, you may try to offset the loan to reduce the interest burden. Or, depending on your risk-averseness, you may want to invest them in assets that return higher interests.
Q: What do you like most about Tuck? And (if there's any) what you consider as drawback?
(Teguh, Dec ‘07) I like the people, the size of the school, and the location. I think Tuck people are very down-to-earth, yet are very talented and smart. I like that the school is small, such that we get to know everyone and are expected to know everyone at a personal level. The professors call the students by name in class. We know one another. That is a big plus, because this will be the network that you bring with you when you leave school. The drawback will be that Tuck’s brand is not very strong among smaller local companies in South East Asia, especially outside the consulting/investment banking/big corporations world. Among the senior executives of major corporations and firms, I find Tuck is very well-regarded and well-respected.
Small town
Q: In some of the forums, some people decided not to go to Tuck because it resides in a small city. I am actually a person who enjoys living in a big city.
(Teguh, April ‘08) I like that we're in a small town, such that there's not much distraction from outside life. I've lived in small towns (Balikpapan and Magelang) and big cities (Jakarta, Singapore). There are pros and cons on living in a small town. On one hand, you don't have the range and depths of entertainment and the vibe of a big city, where things happen. On the other hand, you are surrounded by beautiful nature (the nearest ski resort is just 30 minutes away), and you can feel that the community is so much stronger, even with people outside of Tuck. It's hard to imagine the same thing happening in a busy city like New York, for example. People will tend to have lives outside of school that they don't share with the classmates. Of course, that's not necessarily a bad thing, to sometimes get away from the intensity of the community (news/gossips travel at speed of light around here). But I like it this way =). In any case, Boston is just 2.5 hours away.