<p>I'm paying for my entire college and I want to go into business. I was accepted and want to go to Michigan, which will cost me a little over 100k for four years. I am a NMSF and could go to Alabama (not so good for business) for free. I will only have earned around 33-34k when I go to college. So that's around 70k I don't have for college. I'm sure I'll make some money in college and through jobs/internships in summer, so maybe 50k in debt. If I went to Alabama, I'd be coming out with around 45k. But I also need to consider how much I will spend on things after college- getting a car, renting an apartment, buying furniture, insurance, etc. Obviously that's a lot of money. So, would it be smart or stupid to go to UM over UA? I know I will have a lot more debt, but UM is a much better school. I don't expect to be an average student and get an okay or pretty good job. My goal, and I think it's realistic, is to be in the top 5-10% at Ross, or top 2-3% at Alabama. I'd most likely be able to get a better job and make more money if I went to UM. But is it worth a 100k difference?</p>
<p>If you are top 5% at Ross, you have shot at top investment bank and top consulting companies. You will never get that chance at bama no matter how good you are. </p>
<p>If you can keep debt around $50,000, that would be very reasonable. It maybe sounds a lot, the reality is that it is not that really that much. If I were you, I pick Ross.</p>
<p>Michigan is one of the best undergrad bschool programs in the country.</p>
<p>You have in state tuition, which makes Michigan a bargain compared to private schools.</p>
<p>Michigan will open a lot more doors for you over the years and lead to a lot more opportunities than Alabama.</p>
<p>You say yourself that Michigan is a much better school. It appears that is where you really want to go. If that is true, then go with your heart - you are only going to college once.</p>
<p>You have to make this decision.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>I’ve never visited Alabama, so I can’t say how much I would like it. I could probably keep the debt at 50k coming out of college, but I’d then need to borrow more for an apartment, car, insurance, etc. before I even get my first paycheck. I’ve always done really well in school, and my goal is to be in the top 5%, but I can’t say that that is realistic for sure. It’s not like everyone around me at Ross would be stupid. What if I do worse than I thought and graduate around 20%? Then that’d be a lot harder, because most of those kids aren’t making anywhere near 100k.</p>