<p>Sorry if this is the wrong place, but I wasn't sure where to post this thread.
On to the question.
Does it really matter where you go for college as an undergrad? And/or does it only matter for grad school and in my position, where I obtain my MBA degree?</p>
<p>I plan on going to a top-tier college, but I've heard and read from many places that it doesn't matter all so much if you aren't going to your number 1 college of choice and etc because it only counts in grad school, not undergrad.
I'm really confused here, so can you guys clear it up for me, thanks.</p>
<p>If you do grad school then where you go to grad school matters a lot more than undergrad, but if you go to a better undergrad school you'll be able to get more internships, etc. and hopefully into a better grad school. So it doesn't matter to the employer as much but it still "matters."</p>
<p>Depends which field you're in, but yes it does matter where you go. Weighed against the grand scheme of things though its probably not that big a deal.</p>
<p>Actually, it doesn't matter quite as much as some of the more fretful HS students who post here tend to think. Which is why we parents tend to say things like "go to the cheapest school and stay out of debt while you are an undergrad".</p>
<p>If you are confident that you want to go to grad school, choose an undergrad school that you can afford to attend with minimal debt, where you will be challenged academically and can succeed socially and academically, where you can get to know your faculty members (who may eventually be writing letters of recommendation for you), and where you have a decent chance of being prepared for a career - including meaningful on and off campus jobs/internships during the school year and during vacations.</p>
<p>As for MBA programs, that is a whole special case itself (and has its own forum here at cc). Will you want a Harvard/Yale/Chicago/Stanford type MBA, or state flagship type MBA, or a "wherever I get it and even online is OK" type MBA? Will you want a 5 year joint BS/MBA, or an "I've been working 20 years and now really need an MBA", or something in between?</p>
<p>Click on "Discussion Home" in the upper left of the screen, and then scroll down in the new window to read the MBA forum. You may get some good ideas there.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Does it really matter where you go for college as an undergrad?
[/quote]
Out in the working world nobody cares where you went to college; they care what you DO on the job. So even a few years out of college it doesn't matter in the sense that I think you're using it, the sense that the name on your diploma is going to open doors or smooth your career path.</p>
<p>However it most certainly DOES matter where you go. Colleges come in all sizes, locations, and atmospheres. Some are party-hardy places, some incredibly studious. The size of your classes, attention you get from advisors and faculty, etc. comes in many flavors. At some most students are living on/near campus, others are commuter schools. While you can go overboard on fit, there is no doubt that everyone has preferences and the kid who is ecstatic in the heart of NYC probably wouldn't be so enthralled in a small LAC in the middle of the countryside and vice versa. And lastly getting that first job, some schools are viewed more favorably than others by prospective employers.</p>
<p>As others have noted, it matters a lot as respects your undergrad experience. It matters a little, but not very much, from the standpoint of your ability to have a good grad school experience (assuming you work hard as an undergrad, wherever you go). It matters almost not at all from an employment standpoint (assuming you have taken a graduate or professional degree in the interim). I have done enough hiring over the years that I have come to realize my only real interest in where someone went to undergrad is related more to simple curiosity than with any concern about credentials. </p>
<p>I would certainly be favorably impressed, looking at a resume, that someone went to Yale undergrad instead of, say, East Dakota State. That said, how and where they went to, and how they did at, their Grad/Professional school, and how they conduct themselves in the interview, are immensely more important than that marginal favorable impression.</p>
<p>Lets put it this way: if you get a 4.0 at Pitt, you are better off than if you get a 2.0 at Penn. On the flip side a 3.5 at Penn is probably better than a 3.8 at Pitt Grad School-wise.</p>
<p>Obviously in the workforce generally, Grad > Under Grad, although if you can why not go to both a great Grad and Under Grad ;)</p>
<p>A majority of very sucessful people in this world did not attend top schools. Some don't even have a degree. Check this out by looking at the CEOs of the Fortune 1000s. Look in the news. Its really what you do after you get your degree that really counts.</p>
<p>CCFanatic, I'm going to have to disagree with you. I mean, let's face it. A 3.5 anywhere is not going to get you into a top law or med school. lol</p>
<p>My sister who attends NYU was telling me about a meeting they held for students who wanted to apply to law school, and they straight up told them that a 3.5 with an average LSAT school was something Harvard would throw away immediately. And considering that NYU has a great law school, I assume they know what they're talking about.</p>
<p>And I don't think where you go for undergrad will hold you back significantly. I know of several UGA students who have gone on to Harvard business, med, and law because they kept a 4.0 and etc.</p>
<p>Everyone, thanks for all your comments; they were very helpful.</p>
<p>@ happymomof1: I'm talking hyps etc. My main goal is to get into uPen, but I'm an incoming sophomore in HS so I still have lots to learn as far as business schools go and which school best fits me.</p>
<p>Also, let's say your main goal was to get into Harvard or any top tier grad school and you wanted to make sure you will get in. So you took the route of going to a highly respectable undergrad school, but not T-15-25, but still a very good school. This person didn't want to go to a top notch school because it might've been to hard and they didn't want to ruin their chances of getting into their dream grad school. So where I'm trying to get is, will this make it easier for someone to get into their dream grad school if they took the route of going to an easier undergrad school and getting a 4.0 rather than going to a better school and getting around a 3.3-3.5?</p>
<p>I just thought of this from gkc4's post since he knows of UGA students getting into Harvard with a 4.0</p>
<p>When you're out in the work world, it doesn't seem to matter as much where you went for undergrad, but that doesn't mean that undergrad doesn't matter.</p>
<p>It's four years of your life, first of all. Why not go somewhere that you'll absolutely love? </p>
<p>Second, undergraduate education should be more of a personal thing than a work world thing. I mean, unless you go to graduate school (where you'll be doing specialized things anyway), when else will you get to be academically challenged with lots of bright students your age who love to learn, in an environment that encourages learning? College is also a time for soul-searching (which they did in the 60's and 70's, maybe not so much now), but it is important, personally. </p>
<p>So I think that it does matter because it helps make the transition from student to adult, and because it's your education, which I'm sure you value.</p>
<p>
[quote]
A majority of very sucessful people in this world did not attend top schools. Some don't even have a degree. Check this out by looking at the CEOs of the Fortune 1000s.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Those are the exceptions. There are many, many more people who don't succeed with no degrees. Just to keep a reality check</p>
<p>Alright..I understand the idea of going to a school you will love, but obviously you would rather go to a school that is big on social life instead of study study study.</p>
<p>But what I was asking in my previous post is that will people go to easier undergrad schools and obtain a 4.0 so they can go to the grad school of their dreams?
I'm relating this to the post where someone said they knew many people who got 4.0s from UGA and went to Harvard.
So I guess, my two part question here is if it's ok to go to a more social orientated undergrad school and have fun, and do that whole soul searching thing, but at the same time pull of a 4.0 and get into your dream gradschool?
Is that possible or am I in la la land?</p>
<p>There are many paths to success. Some are easier to take than others. Let's compare two extremes. Two people are equally successful. One goes to Harvard undergrad and the other goes to UMass at one of the other campuses (not Amherst). Both are equally smart and hard working, do very similar ECs and both get 4.0s in economics. When they apply for jobs they are both very sociable and smart, so they do well at their interviews. </p>
<p>The kid from Harvard has the whole world at his finger tips. With good grades and ECs he can get almost any internship or job at any top company. Once you're at a top company it gets easier to apply to top MBA programs and even top Law schools. Once at a top MBA program or top law school it gets easier to get a great job with good pay. If you do well at a top company it'd easier to get better paying jobs and you keep moving on up.</p>
<p>The kid from UMass has his work cut out for him. His career services and network are not as strong, so it is tougher to land a good internship. In a business week article I read today it said that many top companies like JP Morgan have almost 90% of their new hires as former interns from the summer before. That makes it tougher to get a good job out of undergrad. That requires more work and more proving yourself to work your way into a top MBA program. Law is still a lot about grades and LSATs, but work experience still counts. It just makes the whole path to success tougher. </p>
<p>It is still possible to end up President of Bain or something else really amazing and well paying, but the whole road is tougher. Not to say that it is easy if you go to Harvard or another top school either, but it is a lot easier. It doesn't matter where you went to college if it is between any top elite school like Ivies, Stanford, Duke, Williams, Cal, Michigan, UNC, Emory, Vany, etc. it really won't make a difference down the road and you should go where you will be happier. However, if your choices are Dartmouth and Auburn, Dartmouth will clearly give you an edge in the future job search.</p>
<p>Then again, having a top business job isn't for everyone. If you want to be a teacher, doctor, government worker, or something along those lines, it doesn't matter as much where you went to school (elite or non elite). You just have to gauge what is best for you and make your decision accordingly.</p>
<p>Thanks man; you cleared up everything.
One more thing.
What if you interned for a business in your junior year in HS. How would that change things?
Can you give me another scenario or example if someone interned at a top financial company or something like that in their junior year of HS? Maybe even sophomore.</p>
<p>VenCat89 brought up a very good point, about getting internships at major companies and such. Prestige isn't everything, but it helps a lot.</p>
<p>And I skimmed through this thread and didn't realize until now that you're specifically interested in business. I don't really know much about getting an MBA, so I guess my previous post focused more on law and med school, where grades and LSAT/MCAT scores rule most everything. </p>
<p>I guess what I'm trying to say is a smart student is a smart student. I don't really know about other state colleges, but UGA's honor program is pretty successful and to maintain a 4.0 while taking the most challenging courses there is the same level as Emory. So the people I know didn't really take the easy way out, they just took advantage of the opportunities they were presented with.</p>
<p>Top financial firms don't do stuff with high school students as far as I am aware. Maybe they do, but if you can land something at a top bank in NY while in high school then you probably have enough connections to get a job no matter what. My uncle works at a prestigeous bank on Wall Street. He graduated from a top 10 MBA program. Some of the people above him went to local schools like Long Island State (or something like that). However, he has told me that if I want to have the best chances of landing a job with him when I graduate college I really should be at an Ivy or somewhere equally prestigeous. </p>
<p>He has said that his company will hire top people from local schools like CUNY and SUNY, but they mostly get back office jobs. You can fight to get hired and then fight more to work your way up, but if you have the option of starting out at Harvard or Wharton vs SUNY, it's less of an up hill battle to get hired and then to get into a high paying position.</p>
<p>I just want to clarify that I in no way want to make it seem like these better jobs fall into the laps of students at Ivies. They have to be successful in the classroom, have good ECs, have good interviewing skills, work hard when on the job, and have a little luck in order to be successful and have a high paying job. What I do want to say is that starting at an Ivy or other top school makes the whole road easier (in terms of getting a good internships which leads to a good first job which leads to good MBA...) compared to attending a much less prestigious college.</p>