I was reading through all this and wanted to add my commentary - My DH went to a state school for undergrad and MBA. He had gotten out of the service and state schools were free due to a veteran grant. Post MBA he ended up getting hired by McKinsey - hired straight from a state school MBA program!! He graduated with minimal debt and a fantastic job. Yes, there were many McK coworkers that had graduated from top MBA schools but he found a large group that went to his state school for undergrad.