<p>Just a general question I'm curious about. Some people tell me it's better to go to a public school, spend less money on undergrad, get great grades (because supposedly in general public schools are easy than private) = better success with graduate studies, as opposed to attending a prestigious private school, spending much more money, and getting average grades.</p>
<p>For example, in your opinion, is it better to go to U of I, maintain a 3.7-.8/4 GPA, spend 15k on tuition, or go to Northwestern, maintain a 3.0 GPA, and spend 50k tuition if you plan on getting an MBA in the future.</p>
<p>I know you can get great GPAs at top private schools, but the workload is substantially more than a comparable state flagship.</p>
<p>Curious on your thoughts, thanks for any input :)</p>
<p>Depends on what your future goals are. Since you’re considering grad school, going to a public university will save you money and help you grow academically. When you enter the job market, most employers look at the highest degree you’ve earned. To most employers, an undergrad (non-prestigious) + grad degree (prestigious) looks a whole lot better than just a prestigious undergrad like Northwestern. While classes at most public universities don’t assign as much “homework,” this doesn’t make it any more/less difficult than a private university. The material is the same but the teaching methods of the class/types of assignments may be different. Ultimately, college is what you make of it. You can go to Harvard and party your way to a degree and end up unemployed. Or you can go to U of I, work hard, and end up at the top of your class. The choice is yours.</p>
<p>There’s no way the difficulty would be so much different that you would be able to get a 3.8 at one school and only a 3.0 at another. People that go to elite schools are still HUMAN and can only learn so much in a given amount of time, and the grade inflation is generally a lot higher at the elites too.</p>
<p>Just keep in mind that public school ≠ easy grades all the time…</p>