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Colleges and Universities A-Z Bentley University
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<p>an acquaintance of mine did get a full scholarship to bentley. needless to say, the type of student to get a full ride here is one that would rather easily get into an ivy league school. but i must say, in response to arnoc, that you should definitely apply to some of the top-25 undergrad business programs out there if you think you have a decent shot of getting in. i'm not sure where you're from but why not try NYU, carnegie mellon, UCLA, USC, BC? </p>

<p>i've been at bentley enough to understand the disadvantages of coming here.</p>

<p>the biggest disadvantage, by far, is the lack of a name. i cannot stress enough the leg up students have by going to a school that has a prestigious name and an established alumni base. the business world is very "aristocratic" in a sense because investment banks, hedge funds, and other highly desireable fields of work recruit heavily from what are called "target schools".</p>

<p>it's a pity because when you apply for summer internships, which is crucial to getting a job after graduation, students from target schools such as MIT, cornell, and even carnegie mellon will get first dibs. companies will come in as early as september and october to fill their summer internship slots. students from bentley will be left feeding off the scraps in january and february. this is not to say that no one from bentley has made it into i-banking, but out of 1,000 students in this year's senior class, there are less than 10 who will be going into investment banking. frankly, that is quite horrible, considering of those 10, more than half of them used family connections to get that position, NOT bentley's career services.</p>

<p>and if you think about it, wall street is made up of people with top-level pedigrees. harvard, yale, you name it. during the campus recruiting season, these same people are going to want to hire kids from the schools they went to. with the lack of an established alumni base in nyc from bentley, it's going to be very tough. not impossible, but tough. and that is the situation i am finding myself in right now. i have 3.9 GPA, was part of a group that started a school organization, and did my fair share of extracurriculurs, but have had no luck thus far in getting responses from my internship applications, whereas a friend of mine from USC with a 3.6 gpa and no extracurriculus already has an interview lined up with one of the bulge brackets.</p>

<p>so does going to bentley versus going to NYU/USC (hell, even UT-Austin) make a difference? absolutely. just make sure to get a great GPA no matter where you go. if you have questions feel free to PM me.</p>

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<p>krazyk,
What you say may make sense if your focus is strictly on I-banking. I don't profess to know anything about that field so I will take your input as being true of your situation. However, not everyone attending Bentley has that intended career path and for those interested in an excellent Finance/Accounting/Business education in the New England area, Bentley offers top notch name recognition and excellent placement statistics in those areas.</p>

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<p>I received a letter of acceptance into the honors program today... anyone else?</p>

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<p>RatedPG,</p>

<p>Bentley does have pretty good job placement for accounting, as I'm aware that the Big 4 located in Boston come here quite often to fill their slots. On-campus recruiting for other majors, even finance, is still lacking. Management majors will have their choice of applying to either Walgreens, Dunkin Donuts, or Gorton Fisheries (famous for their fish sticks), for internships/jobs. I am being serious. For anyone that's interested, I can copy and paste the list of jobs available on our career services website to give potential applicants a look at our placement.</p>

<p>If I were paying $42k to be offered those jobs, I would have chosen just to stay in-state and go to UNH. I am not saying that Bentley does not offer a great education, but for the value of what you are paying, you should only come here if you intend on majoring in accounting. But the argument will go that accounting is such a big and booming field (has been since Sarbanes-Oxley), that you could graduate from a state college with a good GPA and still get the same accounting job as someone from Bentley. Yes, demand for accounting is very high and will be in the future. Rarely matters what school you come from. In finance, brand name is everything unfortunately, and Bentley cannot offer that.</p>

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<p>Krazyk notes,"the biggest disadvantage, by far, is the lack of a name. i cannot stress enough the leg up students have by going to a school that has a prestigious name and an established alumni base. the business world is very "aristocratic" in a sense because investment banks, hedge funds, and other highly desireable fields of work recruit heavily from what are called "target schools"."</p>

<p>Response: Maybe,.....just maybe, you are right regarding investment banking;however, there are VERY FEW opportunities in investment banking compared to the number of applicants. Bentley does, however, have an excellent placement record for jobs in finance, financial planning, and in accounting. I also know of several Bentley alums who are financial analysts.</p>

<p>Krazyk also notes, "
If I were paying $42k to be offered those jobs, I would have chosen just to stay in-state and go to UNH"</p>

<p>Response: Certainly, I wouldn't go into high debt for ANY school and that includes the ivys. However, my son attended a well-regarded accounting program in our in- state school and now attends Bentley graduate school; thus, I have seen the difference between a public university and a private school/LAC as Bentley. </p>

<p>There is no question that our in-state school was MUCH less expensive. HOWEVER, we got what we paid for. If the state needed to cut its budget, the school saw teacher and course offerings cut. My son almost didn't graduate on time because a major required course was cancelled. Juniors and above could no longer live on campus due to insufficient housing and had to become commuters. The administration and advising was horrible at our state university. There were generally no warm furries felt by anyone. Even the food at our local state university was mediocre.</p>

<p>Bentley by comparison has so far been VERY student friendly. The administration seemed to be "on the ball" and the advising has been quite good. The advisors seem to know my son too ,which is quite different from an impersonal state university. Also, the dorms, food and facilities, such as student union and gyms, are in much better shape than that found at our local state university.</p>

<p>Even the quality of the accounting/tax courses didn't come close to the qualty of what he was taking at Bentley. In addition, Bentley seems to have had MUCH better liberal arts offerings than that provides by our local state university. In fact, you can take courses at nearby Brandeis for credit. No such similar oportunity was provided by our local state university.</p>

<p>Bentley even provides full videoing of all courses in case the student misses the class or can't attend for one reason or another. This type of technology was not provided by our local state university.</p>

<p>Bentley had an accounting lab with all of the best accounting software for the kids to learn from. They had one of the most amazing trading room for finance courses that you would have to see to believe. No such technology or facilities were available at our local state university,which was supposedly highly-regarded in accounting and finance!</p>

<p>Is it worth 4 times the cost to attend Bentley, maybe...maybe not. But definitely, the kids at Bentley are geting and have gotten a better overall education in both business, accounting, and liberal arts than the kids got at our local state university in both my opinion and my son's opinion.</p>

<p>Bottom line: The grass in not necessarily greener at the state schools. In fact, the grass probably isn't as well manicured. The only think greener might be your bank account,but educationally, I don't think most state schools are as good as Bentley in either accounting or finance or give as good a liberal arts education overall or provide the same training in technology that Bentley provides. I can tell you that if money wasn't that much of a problem, I would have sent my son to Bentley as an undergrad over our local state university knowing what I know now.</p>

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<p>taxguy,</p>

<p>you sure sound like someone who works for bentley.</p>

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<p>Krazyk,nope, I have no affiliation with the school other than having my son attend there for grad school. I was able to compare two different schools, Public state university vs. private school (Bentley) based on my son's experience.. and from the experience of my other children. There were definitely developments at the state school that I REALLT didn't like,but I must say I LOVED the tuition savings.Thus, I have a better view of the advantages and disadvantages of each school that you probably didn't get.</p>

<p>People criticize many things about a school without looking at comparisons. For example, it is easy to say that food at a particular college is bad. However, if truth be known, food at most colleges is bad. Thus, you need a comparison to make a proper evaluation of how one school compares to others.</p>

<p>Frankly, state schools might be the way to go for the money. However , after seeing the way state vs. some private schools educate their kids and operate, private schools probably offer a better overall education. They might not offer a better value for the money though. I can tell you that I have NEVER gotten the "warm furries" at any of the state schools that my kids have attended that I did get at the private schools that they attended.</p>

<p>Consider this analogy: private high schools, based on most objective standards, are better than that of most public high schools. I don't think that most folks would disagree with that. However, are they that much better to warrant spending $15,000+ a year more?</p>

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<p>krazyk, you said</p>

<p>"But the argument will go that accounting is such a big and booming field (has been since Sarbanes-Oxley), that you could graduate from a state college with a good GPA and still get the same accounting job as someone from Bentley."</p>

<p>I think you should compare the placement stats of UNH to Bentley.</p>

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<p>prospective students,</p>

<p>to sum things up before this topic gets beaten to death, all i'd like to say is that bentley is not for everyone. before you come here make sure you take a tour of the school and really get to know the college past all of its sugarcoating. make sure it is right for you so as not to regret the decision later on. ask me, ask other students who have attended bentley for their opinions. i will be as objective as i can from my own experiences.</p>

<p>with that said, high school students go to different colleges for a reason. each individual has a certain intellectual capacity and drive. if you can get into nyu or usc, by all means attend there. if you were competitive enough to get in, why shoot for less? most students come to bentley because it was the best they could do. that's fine. but in my honest opinion, if you can get in to a better school, take that chance by all means.</p>

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<p>Krazyk, sigh. Bentley offers a very different culture than schools like NYU or USC. Did you consider that? NYU and USC are both city schools and are very, very, large. Not all kids can thrive in such an environment. Some need and want a more personalized, nurturing approach that Bentley provides and NYU and USC doesn't! In addition, frankly, I have seen both NYU and USC. None of them have a trading room like Bentleys. I even like Bentley's library better. </p>

<p>Moreover, if someone gets a good scholarship at Bentley vs. little money at NYU or USC, I am not sure it is worth spending an extra $10,000-$15,000 per year at those places. They may be very decent schools,but they aren't Wharton or CMU.</p>

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<p>bentley does indeed offer a very different culture than other schools. nyu, usc, etc. arguably offer a much more comprehensive and diverse culture than bentley. this is something i have experienced by visiting friends who attend those institutions. they may be large, but only when compared to bentley. who's to say that usc and nyu don't offer a personalized approach? they are both private schools, and with them being larger, they have more resources at their disposal.</p>

<p>as mentioned, NYU and USC do not have a trading room like bentley's. neither does ANY of the ivy league or target schools i know of (if i am mistaken please correct me). there is a reason for this. i do see trading rooms at lesser-known schools like bentley, bryant, rivier college, siena college, belmont...do you see a pattern developing here? these lesser-known schools are essentially looking to create for themselves a marketing tool, a competitive advantage with which they can sell to prospective students. it's why schools with nothing much to offer are using a large portion of their financials to create eye-catching facilities such as "trading rooms".</p>

<p>i am not down-putting trading rooms, they have wonderful practicality at times. but there is a reason why harvard, stanford, usc, even wharton, all with incredibly large endowments, have not jumped on the bandwagon of building a trading room - something they can do with ease. they're not entirely necessary to the learning of financial markets. much of the information found in the trading rooms can also be found on the information superhighway we have known as the internet, e.g., google finance, forbes, etc. even online databases such as factiva or infotrac, which every college worth their salt will have, has similar information. the internet has truly changed the flow of information, and a trading room, though very nice-looking, offers the same info that a 12-year old in alburquque can find in his family room.</p>

<p>i think students looking to have a well-rounded, socially + intellectually diverse college experience should look elsewhere. business is bentley's name, and there is really no room for those students into creative/fine/liberal arts, or anyone with an ounce of creativity. it is simply a conformist school and anyone who cannot conform will have an uncomfortable time here. do some research and please make an informed decision.</p>

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<p>Krazyk notes,"but there is a reason why harvard, stanford, usc, even wharton, all with incredibly large endowments, have not jumped on the bandwagon of building a trading room "</p>

<p>Response: Krazyk, I have had friends at both Harvard and Yale and other top schools. They have reiterated to me many times that these top schools tend to rely on their name cache. If they can avoid giving things to kids or spending money, they will. In fact, most felt that these top schools weren't that great for undergraduate education. Most felt that they put most of their resources into gradute students and research. This is NOT the problem for Bentley. My feeling is that you don't appreciate what you have because you really don't know what goes on at a lot of other top institutions.</p>

<p>You keep mentioning NYU. I lived near NYU. I knew a LOT of kids who went there. It definitely has its problems and is NOT for everyone. It is far from a nurturing environment despite being a private school. It does NOT have the fabulous business reputation that people ascribe to it when compared to schools like Wharton, Michigan, CMU and Berkley. It just doesn't! Moreover, it is prohibitively expensive to attend NYU and to live in New York City. It can easily cost $55,000 per year for all expenses (other than books) without any aid. What are you paying at Bentley for tuition, fees, room and board? I bet it is a LOT less. In fact, you would probably buy both a house and a car with the cost savings vs. that of NYU!</p>

<p>Bentley also has more than just the trading room. They have the ACELAB,which is NOT found in most schools. In fact, I have met many accounting majors, such as my son, who never saw a tax return during his undergrad years and didn't work with any accounting software. This is NOT true for Bentley grads.</p>

<p>Bentley has a fabulous, improved library that really is a great place to work and study. NYU's library may have a lot of volumes of books but isn't as good for studying. It is much too sterile at NYU in my opinion. </p>

<p>It is also much safer at Bentley than at NYU. Trust me: Whle Washington Square may be a fun place, it is deceptively dangerous.</p>

<p>All I can say is that the grass isn't necessarily greener elsewhere.
Bottom line: Schools are about fit! People have said this in these forums for years. That is the one abiding truth. It is MUCH better to attend a school that fits your personality and "chemistry" than to attend a name school that makes you unhappy. Bentley offers some unique things that schools like NYU don't offer ( whether students appreciate them or not is up to each student) and NYU has its advantages too such as a larger, more diverse student body and a LOT more majors to choose from. Frankly, having seen both, I like both schools for different reasons.</p>

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<p>fit is absolutely critical in choosing a college. bentley simply cannot offer that fit to many high school students. it will be a fit for few, but those that think bentley is the right school for them do come here. unfortunately i've seen a lot of students come here and second-guess their decision. better-known schools, and i will bring up the NYUs and USCs once more, are those that can offer "fit" to a much wider range of high school students. look at those schools first, decide if they're right for you, and if you can't make it in and bentley is the best you can do, then maybe you should come here.</p>

<p>just try not to settle for less.</p>

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<p>hello....i got admitted in bentley with1/2 scholarship & honor program.
SAT: CR 620 MA 790 WR 650
i am an international student and would like to know more.
is bentley's accouting good?</p>

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<p>lilyhoho, Bentley started as a school for accounting and finance. Whatever negatives may be said about Bentley, one thing that most folks agree on is that they have a very strong accounting program.</p>

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<p>thank you, taxguy. i've heard of Bentley's ruputation on accounting.
however, do they offer financial aid to international students?
i only received scholarship, and i don't think it's enough for me to go there.</p>

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<p>sent you a pm lilyhoho. your SATs are quite strong. what other schools have you applied to?</p>

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<p>i applied several colleges like hampshire, lake forest, u miami and ut austin.
this year is really competitive for international students like me.</p>

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<p>you may have a tough time finding finaid from state schools. i would suggest doing an independent scholarship search for int'l students.</p>

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<p>really? how ?</p>