Hello Everyone,
I was curious to know which Ivy League would be most ideal to apply to if I have a strong foundation in business and entrepreneurship. At age 18 I have become CEO of Sea Blue Company Incorporated, a start up formed at a business accelerator.
I did some research, but wasn’t able to find any clear answers. Some additional information to note is that I won patenting services for a research project in the State Science Fair, and I will create another business out of it if I secure the patent. I would pursue this endeavor during my undergraduate degree, and would make it clear in my essays.
My last question is whether or not being CEO of a corporation holds more weight in the application of one Ivy League School versus another.
Not an ivy, but Stanford comes to mind as a high reach.
Being the CEO of a corporation is impressive at any school, IMO. I mean, you’re just out of high school and you’re already the CEO of a corporation? Wow. But anyways- I think, IMO, the best Ivies for business are going to be UPenn because of Wharton, and perhaps Columbia and Harvard? Brown and Dartmouth are a little more learning-activism-environmental-y, totally a cool vibe but I’m guessing you want more of a business vibe?
If you’re interested in a Business degree, as opposed to economics, that limits your search to Cornell (Dyson) and Penn (Wharton).
I agree with @nw2this - I stand behind Stanford being the most entreprenurial and prestigious school. Other schools I would also look at are UC Berkeley (if you are in-state or if you are able to afford it) and Michigan. Do not get caught up in just Ivies. Some Ivies which probably fit the bill are Harvard and Penn.
Wharton and MIT Sloan School of Management.
@nw2this @yikesyikesyikes thank you for the reccomendations. I have my eyes on Stanford and the UCs as more of a graduate school. Unfortunatelly, being a CEO and living on the East Coast I have to stay nearby.
Right now we are in a start up phase (get the company up and running). Once we are established and have a prominent presence in our community we will expand on a regional level (new england). I anticipate that we will be regionally expanding during my undergraduate years.
Once this has been completed, we will hopefully build a presence on the west coast. I would benefit moving out west during my graduate years.
@yonceonhismouth @usualhopeful Thank You! I try my best to pursue fulfilling endeavors while making a positive impact at the same time. I have a MAJOR philanthropic idea, but unfortunatelly college applications will most likely roll around before I can launch that idea.
Thank you for the information as well, Cornell looks like an interesting school to me. They have a major specializing in environmental/sustainable economics, which is what my business ideas portray heavily to. I’ll take a look at UPenn as well.
@Ballerina016 @10s4life MIT would be a dream school. My SATs come back in less than a week and I’m praying I did well on the Math, since statistically they accept pretty much only accept 750+. The engineering aspect is appealing as well! I have a love for inventing technologies as well.
Your start-up was funded by the business accelerator? Was it a significant amount?
Someone can be a “CEO” of a company with no staff and no revenues.
So i guess it depends on what stage your company is in.
Probably the best regarded school for entrepreneurs is Babson.
@yikesyikesyikes I met a business partner at the Start Up accelerator who really liked the company idea, and jumped on. She is now the CFO of the company. She has invested a lot of money (in the thousands) and I have invested $500.00 into it as well. In addition to that we have recieved discounted services from various people, lawyers, web designers, etc for having connection to the event.
@ClarinetDad16 right now we are in the start up phase and have our website almost built. Soon we will be generating revenue once we get clients to post on the website. I don’t have any direct staff except for my business partner who is the CFO, but we do hire people who run their own private enterprise for specific services.
Stanford is a great school to develop the entrepreneurial spirit and experience, idea-share and network with other bright, driven kids. I know a young recent grad who worked for various start-up and established venture groups, every year while there. But getting in as a UG isn’t about wanting to be an entrepreneur or having that experience. It’s a slightly different expectation.
“CEO,” itself, isn’t any tip, for top schools, nor founding a corp or non-profit. They’re looking for the attributes relevant to their community, during the four years. You have to know what they are and how to show them. Eg, it comes up often about Wharton ("I earned $X, will they be impressed?) Adcoms still expect the rest of the story, the rest of the pieces.
OP, do you want to say where you live?
Harvard has the Innovation Lab, Brown has the BEO concentration, Wharton has studies in Entrepreneurship and Innovation (under the UG Management concentration,) but you need to take a look at how each operates or what courses they offer, see if it fits.
Hope your concept evolves into a business. I don’t see it being a hook in admissions as you have no staff or revenues.