16. Is Harvard Really Worth It? with Jake Taylor

A lot of people believe that if they can't get in to a top-tier college or graduate school, it's not worth going. Yet, there are a lot of considerations that play into your decision to go back to school, and the prestige of the program is only one factor in choosing the school that's right for you.

In this episode of The Dominate Test Prep Podcast we catch up with Harvard Kennedy School of Government alumnus Jake Taylor who recounts his journey from working on Wall Street to teaching middle school math in Spanish Harlem to ultimately going back to graduate school at Harvard -- and he answers the question of whether it was worth paying full sticker price at Harvard vs. going to a less-prestigious school where he would have received scholarship money.

We discuss a number of important topics that can help inform your own decision about if/where to go to school, including:

• When did Jake realized that working on Wall Street wasn't his life's passion, and how did he have the courage to make a change?
• Funny story: How can following someone around a grocery store help you achieve your career goals?
• After teaching for five years -- and enjoying every minute of it -- how did Jake know it was the right time to go back to school?
• How did he choose between the GRE and GMAT?
• Why did he turn down scholarship money from other schools and ultimately decide to go to Harvard?
• Was it worth it?
• What was the job search process like on the back end of graduate school?
• Looking back, what's the #1 thing he thinks people should consider when choosing their own college or graduate program? (Hint: his answer may surprise you)
• And more!

One of the things Jake mentions as being really helpful during his transition out of Morgan Stanley and into the classroom was the counsel of people who had gone before him. Jake's experience and thoughtful insight into the key decision points of his own journey can be part of that similar counsel for you. We trust you'll find the conversation helpful!

FROM THE MAILBAG

In this week's "From the Mailbag" segment we answer the question of whether you should take time to write A, B, C, D, E a bunch of times on your scratch paper (short answer: "yes") and how to do it most effectively.

A DOSE OF MOTIVATION

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot

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