When I decided to attend Tuck after spending four years in Hanover as an undergrad, many of my non-Dartmouth friends asked, “Why?” and, “How could the rural, Upper Valley be a good location for a business school? Haven’t you had enough of New Hampshire?”
So, beyond the sentimentality of returning to quaint, beautiful Hanover and being able to get my daily fill of Dirt Cowboy coffee and Lou’s breakfasts, I’m here to shed light on why returning to Hanover was the best decision for me.
When deciding on where I wanted to spend the next two years of my life, I knew I wanted the full MBA experience. For me, this translated to the community I wanted to be a part of. In my various phone calls with friends at other business schools, I was surprised by the number of people who had their established friend group but felt somewhat distant from the rest of their MBA class. With every person I spoke to at Tuck, the opposite was true: there was such an incredibly vibrant and strong community at Tuck. One student even noted that “you have to actively try not to be a part of the Tuck community.” As a New York native and Dartmouth undergrad, I’m well aware that Hanover is a small town in rural America. But for an engaging two years of my life, being able to focus on forming connections with peers (or rather, friends-to-be) and on my own personal, transformative journey without the distractions of city life, Hanover seemed like the ideal place for my MBA experience. And as you will likely hear and experience firsthand, Tuck students really are #TuckNice.
I’d be remiss not to pre-empt concerns prospective students may have about Hanover being in New Hampshire and yes, it does indeed snow here. But snow is great! Many of my fellow T’21s learned to ski or play hockey this past winter, so there are some major perks to having a longer winter season! And overall, the winters are not too bad. Even if you hate cold weather, Tuck is completely connected indoors so first-year students living in the dorms can stay inside all day if desired.
My last main rationale for Tuck is why most people get an MBA: to launch their career. Sure, people at most MBA programs graduate and get great jobs, but given my interest in consulting, an industry that Tuck is a major feeder school for, Tuck was a great fit for me. Beyond the percent of students landing consulting jobs after school, the strength of the alumni network at Tuck was a major selling point. As a Dartmouth undergrad, I already recognized the value of the greater Dartmouth community, but it became clear very quickly that the Tuck alumni network was even more passionate and tight knit. In many ways, Tuckies seem to share a common bond—a shared set of values, appreciation for the Tuck community, or perhaps simply it’s the shared experience of two years in Hanover, NH.
Everyone says college is the best years of your life, but I’m beyond thankful to have one more year with the Tuck family and many more years as an alumnus. If you want to get the most out of a two-year MBA experience, I can think of no place I’d rather be than at Tuck.
Matthew Ginsberg is a Tuck MBA student and a member of the class of 2021. Matt earned his bachelor's degree from Dartmouth College in 2016 and worked in economic consulting in Boston prior to returning to Hanover for business school.
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