My S was offered a full ride to Fordham and liked the school very much. However, he was accepted to both Georgetown and Notre Dame business schools (with no scholarship) – and liked those schools/programs much more. Additionally, the Georgetown and Notre Dame business programs are ranked significantly higher than Fordham’s business program. We were prepared to pay full tuition for our S (as we did for our older children) – so we have the money set aside. We did tell our son, however, that if he attends Fordham, he could use the money we’ve already set aside to attend graduate school. He is really torn as he feels he should take the very generous Fordham offer (and it puts him in NYC which is exciting) but if he hadn’t been offered the scholarship he would definitely go to one of the other schools. Again – our older children chose their schools without regard to scholarships – so we’re torn on how to advise him. Any thoughts?
Wow. Tough choices. But I do not think the quality or reputation of a Fordham education is 280k less than ND or Gtown. Although both of the schools are considered more prestigious and bit more selective than Fordham. Will it open doors for him for certain careers. Yes most likely. But Fordham coupled with a graduate degree from a selective b school combo is very worthwhile. Many will point out the investment banking feeder advantage. True enough. But the number of students going IB versus all of the other industries and opportunities is minuscule by comparison.
One example Joe Quinlan, who’s regularly on CNBC , is chief global strategist for Merrill Lynch/Bank of America is a Fordham grad. FWIW.
If cost is not a matter, Georgetown is the best choice in my eyes. Better quality and reputation. Location should be no worse than Fordham.
Fordham has a good reputation, and a very strong alumni network - especially so in the NY area. Like the first poster, I don’t feel that Fordham’s rep is $200k+ less than that of ND or Georgetown.
Do you know what your son may want to do once he graduates college?
What is it about the other schools that makes it so he prefers them? Is there something he can adjust about his Fordham experience that might get it so he gets more of that Georgetown/ND feel?
We are from the midwest (a Chicago suburb) – so my son didn’t know much about Fordham going into the application process. He was more familiar with Notre Dame and Georgetown. He isn’t sure about what he wants to do after graduation – banking or consulting. He was really impressed with the Fordham program when he visited – but really liked the Notre Dame campus spirit along with the business school opportunities (especially the opportunity to double-major in finance and applied math) and he also liked the Georgetown international business opportunities.
There’s no denying he’ll have more opportunities from Georgetown or Notre Dame, especially for Consulting/IB (in those fields, Baruch places better than Fordham). However that’s a lot of money to forget about and in most fields he’ll have lots of opportunities from Fordham.
Assuming by “full ride” you mean tuition, fees room & board, then Fordham is the easy answer.
Yes…tuition and room/board…so it is a very difficult offer to turn down. We appreciate the comments/perspectives.
Btw, do you mind sharing his stats?
35 ACT, GPA 4.0/4.0 unweighted and 4.7/4.0 weighted, National Merit Finalist, AP Scholar with Distinction, a lot of ECs – particularly leadership roles in school and community, band/jazz band, varsity athlete. I think he is likely going to go with Fordham.
Georgetown
This isn’t Princeton at full price vs. Southwest Panhandle Tech for free. Unless you have bales of cash in the garage, Fordham is the right move.
If he has any interest in finance/consulting, going to a top school (not necessarily for business) is paramount. If money is not an issue, Georgetown seems to be the best option, and ND is not a bad option. I am not saying getting a top IB gig is impossible at Fordham, but it will be astronomically more difficult (and every thing needs to go perfectly) than if he had went to Georgetown.
When you say grad school for business, I assume you mean MBA. Selective business schools rarely admit students right out of undergrad, and MBAs usually have more value for those with work experience. Getting into a top MBA program requires impressive work experience, great GMAT, and other things to wow admissions - and even that is not enough for most people who apply. The OP’s son cannot bet on admission to a top MBA with such low acceptance rates.
Thanks. I went to Wharton out of a state flagship. But the point is everyone has IB and consulting as the holy grail of business options. P and g other large industrials. E commerce tech, start up and good old small business make up 99 percent of the jobs out there. And this obsession with rankings over pragmatism is misguided. In my opinion. But to each his own.
oops
Yes, people are obsessed with banking (and alternatives like PE) and consulting - but there is fair reason behind that. They are, by far, the most lucrative business options.
It’s great that you went to Wharton straight out of a state flagship, but that is very uncommon.
Thanks – more to think about! He really liked Georgetown and thought it would be great to live in DC. He is struggling so much with this decision (and my husband and I truly don’t know what to tell him). I think he will be fine no matter what he does – but UGH – this process is tough at the age of 18.
Ok. Tom. I went to a state flagship for undergraduate school. Then to penn for grad.
@privatebanker LOL I figured that out afterwards and deleted my post.
Privatebanker – I agree! You make great points as well. We’ve told him he can’t make a bad decision – they all are good options. May 1 is a few days away–so he has to figure it out. Thanks again for the input.