In Palo Alto, you don’t hear people describe Stanford as the “Harvard of the West.” No, they think of Harvard as the “Stanford of the East.” The GSB certainly holds the bragging rights this year on their home turf. Here, 2018 grads pulled down $148,388 on average -- $6,000 more than their Boston rivals. That’s not to say the West isn’t welcoming to MBAs east of the Rockies. Just Berkeley Haas ranks alongside Stanford GSB among the 18 highest-paid graduates from the Class of 2018 (with UCLA Anderson and USC Marshall placing 19th and 20th respectively in starting pay). Looking for a pay raise? The West Coast is the place to be, with only Texas A&M grads seeing their pay dip here over the past three years (though Mays grads still earned more than peers at Michigan Ross, Virginia Darden, and Texas McCombs). Among the very highest-paid, you’ll find a Stanford grad, who is banking $300,000. However, the West tends to be a meritocracy, with larger-than-expected checks being cashed by graduates from Georgetown McDonough ($170,000), Pittsburgh Katz ($157,500), and Michigan State Broad ($152,500).