<p>Menloparkmom…one example does not make the case. See the hundreds of no name law schools like pace or southwestern school of law attended by harvard graduates. The room for error is small graduating from usc should you want to go go harvard math (a ridiculously hard program to get into).</p>
<p>. “See the hundreds of no name law schools like pace or southwestern school of law attended by harvard graduates.”
And that shows that graduating at the TOP of your class, which Trustee Scholars at USC do a lot- can give smart students a better “leg up” on grad school admission than graduating at the bottom of the class at Harvard . </p>
<p>Wow, thanks for all the responses. Sorry I haven’t been able to reply sooner.
Things I need to clarify:
No, I am not dead-set on being an engineer. Yes, engineering is great, yes, materials science is lovely, but I’m not totally sealed into the engineering path. I’m going to be honest: I definitely don’t have my future all planned out yet.
In terms of math, I’m not a “genius”, but I’ve made USAMO.
I’m definitely not going to Harvard just for the prestige. However, I want to know what kinds of benefits Harvard will confer. So far, I’ve just heard “oh, Harvard will help you in grad school/career”. Is this implying that USC won’t? Is there no other reason to go to Harvard?</p>
<p>It is “HARVARD”, and if your parents do not mind paying for it, then I think it will serve you well. Turning-down Harvard for USC and then reapplying for Grad school is definitely not a guarantee.
If money was an issue, we would be talking about a different scenario here.
You also listed other IVY’s , what are they and how much aid was given to you. I would assume that “H” did give you some award letter.
Best of luck to you.</p>
<p>If paying for Harvard truly is “no big deal”, and if you like Harvard, I would go for it. It is such a unique experience. But if money is tight, I would take USC and save my money for future purposes.</p>