Claremont McKenna Vs. Uchicago

Colleges and Universities A-Z Claremont McKenna College
1

<p>For a number of reasons I'm choosing between these two colleges to attend. I'm going to major in econ and intend to go into IB out of undergrad. I know UC is world renowned for its econ, yet CMC is reputed to have the #1 LAC econ program. I definitely feel a better fit at CMC and much prefer LA/the weather, but UC will probably place significantly better among top BB IBanks.</p>

<p>I love CMC, but I do have a few main concerns. For one thing, job prospects and employer recognition. Would a CMC degree be seen as less valuable simply because they don't know much of it. How hard are academics? Is it too easy? Or conversely is everything too difficult and graded on a bell curve? Are in term internships available and easily accessible? All in all, if you know anything about the two schools, would anyone be willing to give me some guidance on what to look for when choosing between them? Anything you can offer is much appreciated.</p>

2

<p>Too many people believe that their choice of school will give them fewer or more opportunities in job and grad school placements. While this may be true to a certain extent, the difference between two schools such as UChicago and CMC is negligible. It’s what you do during college that will matter much, much more.</p>

<p>That being said, both schools are excellent options (I wouldn’t necessarily say CMC is #1 for econ, though). I’d recommend picking the school you feel will give you the best college experience (academically, socially, etc), as both schools can provide the same outcomes.</p>

<p>Now, to address your specific concerns. I’m not a CMC student (I have several friends and my brother who all attend CMC or Pomona), and perhaps a current student could answer these more specifically, but I’ll do my best.</p>

<p>As I mentioned earlier, your job prospects in economics-related areas will not be affected by your choice of either CMC or UChicago. CMC is very well-known among employers, and is considered very valuable.</p>

<p>Academically, I would say that CMC is going to be slightly easier than UChicago (but by no means easy), purely because the CMC economics department is more practically focused, and UChicago is more theoretical.</p>

<p>CMC’s Career Development Center is top-notch, and you should not have much difficulty getting internships with their help.</p>

<p>As for picking between the two schools, I’ll say it again: you can’t go wrong with either one. It comes down to your own personal preference and what you want your overall college experience to be like (small vs big school, LAC vs university, etc).</p>

<p>You have some great options, good luck!</p>

3

<p>Just a few notes on the CMC econ program: </p>

<ol>
<li>You can do a sequence in financial economics. </li>
<li>You can apply for a BGI/Michael Larson Scholarship of $10,000 and a Robert Day Grant for half tuition. </li>
<li>CMC seems to place really well in IBanking in Los Angeles. Just google “linkedin claremont mckenna <firm name=”" here=“”>" where you replace ‘firm name here’ with something like UBS or Citigroup and you’ll see. I think Lazard LA also recruits at CMC. </firm></li>
<li>The student investment fund at CMC seems really top notch: [CMC</a> Student Investment Fund - Claremont McKenna Student Investment Fund](<a href=“http://www.cmcsif.com%5DCMC”>http://www.cmcsif.com)</li>
<li>You can get a MA in finance during your four years at CMC if you so desire. </li>
<li>The alumni network is really tight at CMC. I have been doing some heavy research and have found that a good number of CMC alumni have started funds or manage portfolios, and often hire a great deal of CMC students as interns. One such person would be Michael Larson, who runs Cascade Investment (aka Bill Gates Investments). </li>
<li>[rdschool</a> - career - employers - part3](<a href=“http://www.claremontmckenna.edu/rdschool/career/employers/part3.php]rdschool”>http://www.claremontmckenna.edu/rdschool/career/employers/part3.php)</li>
</ol>

<p>Why Chicago might not be the right choice: </p>

<ol>
<li>From what I understand, economics at Chicago is highly academic whereas at CMC, there is more of a practical focus. </li>
<li>Chicago weather sucks. </li>
<li>Chicago is known as the place where fun goes to die, while CMC has been ranked #1 in the nation for student happiness. </li>
</ol>

<p>Ultimately it comes down to you. But as an incoming CMC freshman interested in finance, I must say that I am really impressed with the job opportunities that the school offers. Plus you can’t beat a liberal arts education.</p>

4

<p>Re: non-summer internships, you need to consider the practicalities of getting to the office where you might work. Google maps doesn’t do LA traffic justice. Most of the financial services firms are in the Century City area or downtown LA, which are not a practical commute from CMC. </p>

<p>I would rather go to CMC because it’s not in Chicago, but there are reasons to go to bigger, better known schools. As banks cut down the number of campuses they visit for recruiting, I suspect that smaller schools like CMC won’t be visited as often (or at all) not because the quality of the students is lower, but because the banks need to have more options per $ spent on recruiting efforts.</p>

5

<p>Actually, all of the major BB IBanks visit CMC at least once, but usually twice, every year. We are incredibly well known within the industry and a CMC econ degree is considered not only very valuable, but also desirable.</p>

6

<p>Recruiters consider interviewing at any of the Claremont Colleges as interviewing at all of them, since all consortia students are eligible to sign up no matter which College hosts the visit. That means a company recruiting at Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd, Pitzer, Pomona, or Scripps would have access to an undergraduate pool of over 5,000 - about the same undergraduate size as most private universities. Page 4 of Claremont McKenna’s Career Services Guide describes this Consortium Agreement in greater detail: <a href=“http://www.claremontmckenna.edu/csc/CSCGuide/11-12/2011-2012CSCGuidewithBookmarks.pdf[/url]”>http://www.claremontmckenna.edu/csc/CSCGuide/11-12/2011-2012CSCGuidewithBookmarks.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

7

<p>I’ve often heard people describe UChicago as “the place fun goes to die”. If you are trying to focus on purely academics and not the social scene then UChicago is probably for you. If you want both then CMC might be a better option.</p>

8

<p>Just to clarify, the whole “where fun comes to die” thing started as a t shirt logo made by one of the undergrad houses. It’s ironic and funny, in a typical UChicago way. </p>

<p>UChicago is in the 3rd largest city in the US. It has more than 5,000 undergrads and even more grad students. There are serious sports teams, one of the country’s best student run radio stations (WHPK), a crazy awesome athletic center, concerts, clubs and more study abroad options than you can shake (or drink) a “Le Trou Normand” at.</p>

<p>It’s a more mature and clever sort of fun than you would normally equate with a bunch of 18 year olds, but you can have the time of your life…</p>

<p>Keep in mind that improv comedy started at UChicago and WHPK was one of the main cultural hot spots for rap and hip hop back in the late 1970s and early 1980s. There are many, many ties between the art/music scene at UChicago and NYC and for anyone who knows what they’re getting into, UChicago can be the time of your life.</p>