Hey guys, I absolutely loved Colgate when I visited and I love the small town atmosphere, and honestly it is just where I want to be for the next four years of my life. The only issue is that I am 99.9% sure that I want to go into real estate, so it is hard to be considering Colgate with a liberal arts education when comparing it to a top undergraduate real estate program with extensive resources. I know Colgate has tons of alumni in real estate since they have a real estate professional council which is great, but I am just not sure if Colgate is worth attending if they really do not have any academic offerings or extracurricular activities for real estate. Also, my parents are very against me going to Colgate because of this and they say that they are not willing to pay 75k a year for me to not even get a strong business and real estate background, they are pushing me towards schools with great real estate programs like Villanova and Penn. WWYD? I am only an incoming senior but my parents donât even want me to apply to Colgate. Would Colgate be just as valuable as a top undergraduate business school for what I want to do? If so, how could I convince my parents that it is worth me attending? Thanks in advance! All insight is welcome
itâs hard for me to imagine a school like Colgate holding you back in any way, especially if they have a real estate professional council.
BUTâŠif schools like Penn and Nova have dedicated real estate programs, I would make sure to visit them. you might love them nearly as much as Colgate- probably similar in a lot of ways (except for Penn being urban). You donât want one good visit to Colgate to override a smarter decision.
Your current real estate business interest governs and overrides your instinctive thirst for a premier liberal arts education at Colgate?
And your parents purportedly donât even want you to apply (and yet YOU are pursuing higher education and they are not)?
You have some difficult issues and choices to navigate and settle. Personally, I maintain there is no education for a rising high school senior
more compelling and ultimately rewarding than the type of experience Colgate affords for your life- with or without a real estate component.
Best of luck to you!
Go âgate!
It sounds as if your parents have a vocational view of third level education (vs a liberal arts / education for life approach), and for a real estate career I am hard pressed to say that they are wrong.
But the real question is money, particularly whose money is paying for college? Colgate is 2x the cost of Penn State, and half again as much as Villanova. The only reason you give for preferring Colgate to the other 2 is that you loved the experience of visiting and the look of the place. When you add up the cost difference, your career goals and what looks like rather generic reasons for preferring the expensive option. your parents argument looks pretty reasonable.
We can all picture ourselves tooling around in a fancy sports car, but most of us end up making more practical choices.
I cannot imagine how a degree from Colgate could hold you back. And if at some point, you want to pivot in your career, it could be helpful to have a more general degree than one in real estate. With that said, I really like @joecollege44 's advice to visit the real estate programs at the other schools. You might end up liking them enough that itâs not worth the fight with your family.
In the end, if you are relying on your parents to pay, they will need to be persuaded. Colgate is definitely a more preprofessional school than some others, so this should work in your favor.
I understand the attraction to Colgate University and to Hamilton, New York, but if your parents are paying for your education and you are certain that you want a career in real estate, then it might be wise to consider universities which offer your intended major.
The reality is that college is expensive as are graduate business schools which offer a concentration in real estate.
Consider generating a list of 10 to 12 universities which offer your preferred major.
P.S. Internships are important in todayâs job market. Wouldnât real estate firms be more receptive to accepting an intern who is actually studying real estate ?
College ultimately is about the academics. IMO, if a school doesnât have your major, it shouldnât be on your list.
Regarding Colgate in general, your parents may appreciate that it appears in a Forbes article, â10 Expensive Colleges Worth Every Pennyâ: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nataliesportelli/2017/04/26/10-expensive-colleges-worth-every-penny-2017/.
The above noted, itâs important to align your academic interests with those of a prospective college. If youâd feel distracted during your time at Colgate by the untapped opportunities elsewhere for the immediate study of real estate, then that would be less than ideal. However, if youâd sincerely like to immerse yourself in Colgateâs range of diverse courses â in fields such as mathematical economics, English literature, classics and geosciences â then I can see the benefit to you of a liberal arts education, both during your time at Colgate and beyond.
With respect to the direct and foundational study of business, note that Colgate is among the group of collaborating colleges in a Harvard Business School online program.
There are many routes to a career in Real Estate. What Colgate offers is a premier liberal arts education that will prepare you to look at the world through many lenses. A supportive alumni body will provide you with real-world opportunities in career fields. While a Colgate education will prepare you for a career, it is not a career-focused education.
gate84 nails it. ^^
However, if your parents will only pay for a technical training degree, then you are going to have to go where they will foot the bill. âHe who pays the piper calls the tune.â
It is difficult to educate parents so inclined to favor technical training over a liberal arts education, especially if they have not themselves experienced such an education.
One way out is to go to Wharton (Penn). While the degree is ostensibly a business degree, itâs actually an economics degree with many of the bells and whistles of a liberal arts program. Itâs a great program, though extremely competitive to gain admission to.