I’m having a tough time deciding between Clemson and Villanova and would appreciate any feedback or opinions. I am going to major in business (finance). At the moment, I am leaning slightly towards Clemson, but I am still torn between the two schools. After visiting Clemson, I loved the feeling I got from being around the campus and in the town area. It also has a better social life. I thought that the people and students there were awesome, the campus was really nice, and the weather was great. The high school that I attend now is very similar to Villanova and sends about 10-20 kids there every year. Maybe it would be good to mix things up for the next few years. My one concern with it, however, is how easy it would be for me to get a good job out of Clemson after graduating. Both are good schools, but Villanova is more respected in the business world. I live in New York so I would like to return to NYC after graduating and hopefully get a job on Wall Street. Villanova has nearly a 100% job placement rating, higher starting salary, and great connections within NYC, so going there would almost certainly get me a desired job. With Clemson, there is not too much information with regards to job placement that I have been able to find. When I spoke to representatives at Clemson, they were not really able to address this topic because many students there are from South Carolina or nearby, and therefore most people wind up working in Charlotte, etc. While this doesn’t necessarily mean that I wouldn’t be able to get a job in NYC after graduation, it doesn’t really help alleviate any concerns. What also confuses me here is how Clemson has a #1 ranked alumni network and #5 ranked career services (Princeton Review) but still leaves me uncertain about landing a job in New York.
Basically, I like both schools and think I would enjoy my experience at either, but I feel that I would enjoy my overall experience at Clemson better. I think that in the end, Clemson could be able to get me the job I want after graduation, but the “sure thing” aspect of Villanova is bugging me. This whole rambling paragraph was probably a bit excessive but I’m just trying the best I can to describe my conflict lol. Would I be better off being at a place I think I would like better in Clemson, or the place that would provide me with a good career path.
I chuckled a little when I read your post. Kids in NY and NJ seems to be talking about schools like Clemson more and more. If you want to come back to New York Villanova is the better bet. The B School at Villanova is a good one and the area is very nice too. The main drag from Villanova to Wayne is loaded with really nice places. The area is first rate for sure.
Villanova definitely if you want to work on Wall Street.
@SternBusiness But would Clemson close the door for Wall Street?
It would make wall street much, much more difficult, unless you graduate top of your class. I found an article, where Villanova is ranked 11th for best feeder schools to wall street.
http://poetsandquantsforundergrads.com/2015/02/04/the-top-feeder-schools-to-wall-street/2/
My niece (from Long Island) is currently a freshman at Clemson and LOVES it!
@mcavs15 Some southern schools are respected in the east but not Clemson. If you had asked to compare Washington & Lee or UNC or UVA to Villanova the answer would have been different.
@crabby955 agree completely with you.