So, I got accepted to UNCW, UNCG, ECU, UNCC, and App State. I am not entirely sure what I am going to major in but I know it’s going to be somewhere in Business. The toughest part of choosing which college is which one is best. I have been hearing mixed reviews over Charlotte, which was my main choice out of the five (growing city and school, more opportunity for jobs). But then I hear App State is good for business too.
I don’t think UNCW is good for me solely because I do want to be able to have good salary job out of college, and Wilmington doesn’t have many high paying jobs (from what I’ve heard and researched). App State would be cool, I know a lot of people from my school are going there. I hate the cold though. I shiver so easily and I am just not good with cold winter. I feel like that would be the only setback. Also I live close to Raleigh area, so App is around almost 4 hours away (my parents hate that). I visited UNC Charlotte and I liked the campus, it didn’t wow me but I know it has potential and it’s probably gonna get even better. I do hear that outside of campus however Charlotte is pretty dangerous and “ghetto”. I am not 100% sure about that which is why I am asking here. I don’t know which one I should pick. UNCG is pretty nice too, my brother went there but I want to go somewhere with a more high ranking business school. I also want to be able to do more than just study (not necessarily party but do things with the new friends I’ll meet there). If anyone could give me pointers that would be great. I was thinking Charlotte just because I know with a good GPA, I can easily get a good job out of my degree from there. Thanks, -Kevin
I’d pick based on fit, where your gut says you’ll be happiest socially. You don’t have to worry about jobs in the city where the school is located, your degree will be good anywhere.
But I’m not from NC, so I don’t have the instate perspective.
These are all good schools. Don’t know if you’re a sports fan, but App. State will satisfy any school spirit urges that you might have. I still remember the satisfaction of watching App. State go into the Big House and stun the Wolverines (and this is when App. State was a D1A (now FCS) school).
There must be a NC resident here on the board who can give you more specific info about these schools.
Make a pros/con list. I started one for you based on your comments above, though I can’t speak to their accuracy (i.e. job predictor)…
UNCW:
Pro –
Con - doesn’t have many high paying jobs
UNCC:
Pro - my main choice; growing city and school; more opportunity for jobs; liked the campus; I can easily get a good job out of my degree from there
Con - have been hearing mixed reviews; outside of campus is pretty dangerous and "ghetto
APP:
Pro - good for business too; I know a lot of people from my school are going there
Con – I hate the cold; 4 hours from home
UNCG:
Pro – Brother went there; pretty nice
Con - I want to go somewhere with a more high ranking business school; I also want to be able to do more than just study
Business is a very popular major, so it will take more than just a degree from any of those colleges to get a good job- and, as @nw2this pointed out- you don’t have to get a job in the same place you go to college! For business, what is going to make the difference is the internships & jobs you do during college (especially over the summers, possibly during term in the last 2 years).
Your first internships / jobs will most likely come with help from the careers office and your profs. Have you looked at the careers & internship info for each of these schools? I think you will find that UNC-C and UNC-W are the strongest.
UNCC has been growing rapidly and it’s a beautiful campus. Everything I’ve heard about it from students and parents of students has been positive. Any larger city will have good and bad parts of town, so don’t let that affect your decision.
That being said you need to go where you feel most comfortable. I just wanted to give you another opinion since it seems like you were asking for one.
I was born and raised in Charlotte. Charlotte is big on Banking. If you lean towards going into Banking, that’s another Pro for Charlotte.
UNCC is located in a sketchy area, so you want to always be aware of surroundings, travel in groups vs solo, and keep your drinking to a lower level that keeps you coherent.
UNCC has a lot to offer, and Charlotte has many parts of town that are thriving.
I don’t think you have to discard UNCC, but use that knowledge as one of the points to consider.
I would check with the career office at each school to see if they offer career fairs in fall and spring of each year. If so, ask for a list of companies that recruit at the school. Decide if those companies interest you. Some schools may have more robust career fairs than others. Also look at the large companies doing business in each college town.
See if you can identify companies you want to work for and then work backwards to figure out which college will give you best education to get a job.
Look at the business major at each school. What concentrations or minors does the business department offer? Are there differences in the general ed courses required? Read the course descriptions. Do they interest you? Business is a huge field, and colleges may vary in how they approach the subject.
Check on college navigator site. How many business majors is each school graduating each year? You want to see that there are enough students to have multiple professors. (My tiny college only has two business professors. Classes got very boring listening to the small people for 4 years.)
Wilmington has the beach!! That is a big Pro in my book. (I did apply and get accepted at UNCW, mostly for the access to the beach. But ended up choosing a better fit at a small private school.)
Best of luck to you.
If you want to major in finance then probably UNCC given the proximity to the banks in Charlotte. Also, UNCC now has the light rail line straight into campus which should be very convenient. Relatively close to the USNWC which would be great fun.
I graduated from ASU quite a while ago. At the time, their accounting program was very strong and the Big 6 recruited there and offered internships every year. If you want to major in accounting, which is a great major, see if the Big 4 firms still recruit there annually. If so, ASU would be a great choice too.
Perhaps undergrad at ASU and Masters at UNCC…
I’d say App State. Known for happy students, GREAT college town, lots of curricular strengths. It’s a very popular choice for students at my kids’ NC high school. Seriously, our small high school sends prolly 30 kids there a year and I always hear positive reports from parents about how much their kids like it. Lots of loyal App alums out there too. [For others out there in CC land, I think App is an up and coming school; it’s a lot like JMU in Virginia, but nestled in Boone, NC.]
UNC Charlotte is on the way up too for sure – but I think the vibe at App is more traditional college. Of course, if you want big city, then go for Charlotte, but agree it’s kind stuck in a odd part of the city. Not a bad area – just strip mall shopping centers and highways with no main street campus area. The new light rail is awesome though.
Good luck and congrats on all your options!
I would say your top three choices are App State, UNCW, and UNCC.
UNCC, you have most of the pros/cons already: big city, good connections to banks/sketchy area, less strong academically overall. You can stay year round for internships.
App State: traditional college experience, strong business school/cold and isolated. Internships in one of the cities.
UNC W: traditional college experience, good business school, good location/internships can be local or in cities.
Can you visit App State and UNC W, spend an overnight, attend a class? Would you be eligible for the honors college anywhere?
ECU has the biggest business school in the state. Lots of connections and internship opportunities. I would put it ahead of UNCG and UNCC. I know how you feel about UNCC- a lot of kids don’t seem to like it. UNCG seems super artsy as does APP. Also from your area- so yes the 4 hour drive to App stinks. I’ve always liked UNCW, just a nice campus.
Have you looked at the courses they offer for business? Maybe one program will have more classes that interest you.
Dorms? I think most NC dorms are pretty much the same, but maybe one school has better ones?
Sports- App and ECU
A lot of kids have a thing about ECU- anyone can get in … If it’s good for your major, then there is nothing wrong with going there. My D was required to apply to one NC school- she was top 5% of her class IB kid- she chose to apply to ECU. She got questioned why- they had her program- Hospitality. It was a small up and coming program with a great Dean. She hated App’s program. I liked the Business school’s staff- they seemed very motivated.
They are all good schools- congratulations!
I’m a parent so am coming from that perspective, but have been a NC resident almost all my life.
I think you are selling UNC-W short and are overlooking some shortcomings of UNC-C.
I think UNC-W is a good school and will give you more of a traditional college experience.
UNC-C is definitely coming up, but it does still have a little of that commuter school thing going on. My niece who lives in Charlotte transferred there and commuted from home. I don’t think that is uncommon at all. I think the academics at UNC-C are good it just has a different feel from the others with lots of older students, and part-time students. Not as many fresh out of high school college freshman bonding in the dorms although there is some of that.
UNC-G and App State and ECU are all good schools.
I love Boone and think it could be fun to be there for school. It will get cold in the winter, but you get more snow which can be fun if you don’t have to drive in it. App State has an outdoorsy and a little bit of a hippie rep, but there are plenty of people who don’t fit either of those molds. Lots of rabid App State football fans.
UNC-G is a little more arty. It has excellent art and theater and music programs, but also has good programs in other majors too. It has a little of the commuter and transfer thing happening, but not as much as UNC-C. There will be more of a college town feel. Tate Street is cool. Sounds like you have a pretty good handle on it from your brother’s experience.
ECU is a big traditional college in a college town with many good programs. I’m not super fond of Greenville, but the college can be a lot of fun and good.
It’s common to get an internship near your college, & common to get hired by where you intern…
So if you can’t decide, pick the one thats’s closest to where you would like to live.
More true for 1st internships / less true for actual post-grad jobs, esp when your college is not in a major employment hub. A lot will depend on what industry sector the OP develops an interest in- so far, apparently no idea, and both the area of business (marketing? sales? operations? strategy? development? etc., etc) and what sector (film? manufacturing? banking? charity? etc., etc.). Basing your college choice on the relatively small town you think you might want to live in someday it is based in is not a good long-term strategy.
you easily could work at your college site or during the summer at your parents home site, so you should have flexibility in not necessarily choosing a school based on the job market unless you are sure of finance/banking which is obviously huge in charlotte, but raleigh (parents home) isn’t so bad either.
Kevin - what did you pick?
The OP hasn’t been on since that first day he posted so I will close the thread.