<p>Hi, I am an international student from Asia who was recently admitted to both Duke and NYU Stern.</p>
<p>My career goal, like many others these days, is to work for a BB Ibanking firm or a Wall street hedge fund.</p>
<p>Now I do know that Duke will provide me with a more solid college experience and probably more or less an equal opportunity to be hired in those firms mentioned, because of NYU's prime location and practical financial education that is offered, I have pretty much set my mind on choosing NYU Stern over Duke.</p>
<p>Now I visited Duke board to hear what you guys have to say.. I have looked at posts made in the past, including posts from people who chose Duke over Stern and vice versa.</p>
<p>It is really a very tough decision, and although I'm more attracted to NYU at this point, I wanted to know if anyone with Wall street experience can offer me another insight.</p>
<p>I didn't apply to NYU though I considered it but here is how I see the situation.</p>
<p>Both are very strong schools, but Duke has the edge with an overall college experience. It has a much better campus, community and culture unless you really want to be in a big city 24/7. Also, NYU has an advantage with Wall St. internships, but should you ever realize that finance is not the field you really want to be in, NYU will not be as strong as Duke in other fields you may be interested in.</p>
<p>There's another thread on the Duke forums saying it's not any harder to get a FT job on Wall St. with a Duke degree than an NYU degree, but I'm not really qualified to say anything about that. I do know that Duke has a new program in their Econ department that allows sophomores/juniors to spend an entire semester in NYC, studying at Stern and doing internships/job shadowing.</p>
<p>NYU is cutthroat competitive, while Duke is a much more laid back atmosphere. Duke has more prestige (in my opinion), and NYU Stern is generally considered a Wharton reject school. (I guess the same could apply to Duke, although I would assume that more people have duke as a first choice). Overall, I applied to schools like NU, Uchicago, and Duke over NYU stern, because I just didn't like the vibe I was receiving. Stern seems like a school almost focused on jobs, money, and grades, while the other schools seemed to be geared more toward actually learning something. Also, while Stern might seem to provide more lucrative job offers, be aware that it is a hugeee school. I doubt there are that many students at duke who want to do IBanking(even though there's a ton).</p>
<p>I suppose it depends on what you are looking for:</p>
<p>Do you want a more traditional college experience? Rah-Rah sports, very defined campus, lots of school spirit?</p>
<p>Or do you want a more urban environment (i.e. NYC) where your social life will mainly revolve around the city life and its offerings?</p>
<p>These should be the main questions you ask yourself, because people at both schools will have opportunities to work on Wall Street. </p>
<p>My only thinking is that even there is great interest in IBD and S&T at Duke, at NYU-Stern, the competition will be significantly greater simply due to the larger number of individuals interested in the field.</p>
<p>Also another thing about NYU-Stern you are practically expected to have done internships during the school year. There is basically no excuse not to due to its location, while at Duke, given its liberal arts bend, there is more leeway given to students.</p>
<p>My parents want me to go to Duke, because the overall ranking of the univerity is perceived to be higher than that of NYU.</p>
<p>However, I don't really want to spend four years studying theoretical economics; studying finance courses at NYU sounds much more attractive to me. </p>
<p>If the overall difficulty of landing a job in prestigious banking firms and hedge fund is the same, I would prefer NYU's location and pratical education.</p>
<p>So the question is: will Duke degree get me a job more easily than NYU degree will? (less competition and perhaps more prestige?)</p>
<p>For graduate programs, from Forbes, NYU Stern is one tick above Duke. For purposes of this discussion (since it sounds like you would really enjoy NYU more), I'd say that's a HUGE difference and you should let your parents know that you'd really like to attend NYU because of its higher ranking in the eyes of the corporate world. :D</p>
<p>Personally, I don't think there's enough of an overall difference and that you should go with the other factors you mention liking about NYU. Good luck!</p>
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However, I don't really want to spend four years studying theoretical economics; studying finance courses at NYU sounds much more attractive to me.
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<p>The competition for finance internships will be stiffer at Stern, but if major applicability/practicality is what you are looking for then Stern is probably a better fit for you.</p>
<p>I'm not sure how relevant finance classes are to a i-banking or hedge fund career since most of the students accepted by top firms attended liberal arts schools and were not exposed to a business curriculum. Basically, what I have heard is that you should have strong critical thinking and quantitative reasoning skills. There are multiple majors in the liberal arts/engineering areas of study at Duke in that regard which would prepare you even better for a career in business than an undergraduate business education.</p>
<p>It's too bad that you can't visit the schools before you make your decision. You should really try talking to some current NYU students, though, before committing to Stern. In my experience, my high school friends who went to NYU were really disappointed with their time there. From my friends' accounts, it seemed like NYU had no sense of community and they felt really lost there. A couple transferred and were really happy they did it. I actually know a few NYU transfers here who could tell you a similar story. Basically, what it comes down to is that Duke is a better school academically, socially, and in terms of the support structure it provides. I think you might definitely and seriously regret not coming to Duke if you choose NYU, yet I know of nobody here who has ever expressed regret over not going to NYU (and I am sure there are plenty of kids who got in--if you can get into Duke, you can definitely get into NYU).</p>
<p>With respect to post #10 above, there are probably few students applying to both NYU & Duke since the environments are so dissimiliar. In the instant case, the OP clearly indicates a preference for NYU & NYCity, while the parents want Duke. It would be interesting to know to which other schools the OP applied.</p>
<p>This is a hard choice. Although both Duke and NYU Stern will give you strong opportunities for Wall, I recommend Stern in the sense that it will be more focused on business/finance in its core education. Like you said, you might be disappointed with your decision to come to Duke if you aren't into studying 'theoretical' economics. Since you are a type of person who might enjoy learning core applied business course more than Econ, Stern, imo, is the better choice for you. Stern is arguably the second best undergrad business school in the U.S. right after Wharton, esp. in finance. (maybe tied with MIT's Sloan)</p>
<p>Besides, ask yourself what geographical settings you prefer. Duke is in the south and is in the rural area. NYU is in the largest and busiest city of the world. Duke has amazing sports scenes and good social life. NYU will offer tons of dining, internships, pro sports, and many others. Lastly, I don't think you should be worried about NYU being ranked lower than Duke. NYU Stern has pretty solid rep overseas in business sectors and many companies/employers are very aware of NYU Stern's name.</p>
<p>I'm also having this problem of choosing NYU Stern or Duke. To me, Duke seems like much more of a complete college, but I'm not sure how painful economics will be for 4 years when I'm trying to get into a financial firm. </p>
<p>NYU's location almost seems too perfect to pass up. I've heard that getting internships is pretty much expected because it is that easy. Also, getting straight into practical business concepts seems much more interesting.</p>
<p>Hopefully the visit to both schools will be the deciding factor. Can anyone else contribute what they think about this?</p>
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I've heard that getting internships is pretty much expected because it is that easy.
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<p>Yes it is. Stern students have NO excuse to not have internships during the academic school year. They are at a huge disadvantage if they do not.</p>
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Also, getting straight into practical business concepts seems much more interesting.
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<p>Yeah...again...if this is what you are seeking then NYU Stern may be a better fit but definitely visit both schools, because the social experience could not be more different.</p>
<p>I visited both Duke and NYU... although yes Duke had a beautiful campus, NYU was right in the middle of Manhattan.</p>
<p>And about the internship.. I was told that yes you're pretty much required to do internship during the summer but not necessarily during the academic year.. </p>
<p>I heard that majority of Sternies don't start doing internships until their junior summer. </p>
<p>Mmm.. I think I'll be choosing Stern.. hopefully I won't regret :)..</p>
<p>NYU Stern sounds like a good fit for your interests transat. Just keep in mind that you're passing up having a more cohesive social life, living on a campus with large outdoor spaces, a tightly-knit residential community, etc. If all this doesn't bother you, then you're definitely making the right decision I think. </p>
<p>My advice would be at least to visit Duke to put your doubts and rest and so you don't have to wonder "what if".</p>