AL-71 · Education Path & ROI

One-Year vs. Two-Year MBA
Global Comparator

A 10-month INSEAD MBA forgoes half the salary of a 21-month US M7 — but where you can actually land afterward differs radically. Generic ROI calculators miss three mechanics this tool models explicitly: the opportunity-cost asymmetry (months out of work is permanent, not a rounding error), the career-switch feasibility gate (no summer internship on any 1-year path makes a double switch — industry and function — materially harder1), and the geo-placement gate (INSEAD places <10% of its class in the US3; targeting US salaries through a European 1-year program is a probability bet, not a default).

📊 2025–26 class profiles & published fees · school employment reports 2024–25 · GMAC application trends. All embedded — no live data.
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Your Situation 3-Path NPV
Drives opportunity cost — the 1-yr vs 2-yr asymmetry's core variable
Placement-share gate scales expected salary realization
Double switch without a summer internship → ×0.6 attainment gate
Non-US + US target + European 1-yr = no OPT path
2025–26 class profiles & published fees, embedded
Default 5% — real terms
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Three-Path Comparison
Key Metrics
The Three Mechanics Generic Calculators Miss
Analysis & Caveats
Side-by-Side Program Detail 2025–26 profiles

Sources & Citations

  1. GMAC Prospective Students Survey & Application Trends Survey, 2024–25 — career-switcher motivations and internship-recruiting channel data. gmac.com/market-intelligence-and-research
  2. Published 2025–26 tuition & fees: INSEAD, London Business School, IESE, HEC Paris, Oxford Saïd, Cambridge Judge, Kellogg, Columbia, Cornell Johnson — school admissions pages, captured 2025–26 cycle.
  3. INSEAD Employment Statistics 2024 — regional placement distribution (Europe ~55%, Asia ~25%, North America <10%). insead.edu/master-programmes/mba/career-impact
  4. London Business School Employment Report 2024 — ~70% Europe/UK placement. london.edu/masters-degrees/mba/career-impact
  5. US M7/T15 employment reports 2024 (HBS, GSB, Wharton, Kellogg, Booth, CBS, MIT Sloan composites) — ~85% US placement, median base ~$175K at M7.
  6. USCIS F-1 OPT / STEM OPT regulations, 8 CFR 214.2(f) — post-completion work authorization applies to US-based programs only; European 1-year programs confer no US work pathway.