My son was accepted as a direct admit student at IU - Kelly as well as at U of I Champaign business schoo… He is an Illinois (Chicago Suburb) resident but the scholarship money from IU has made the tuition about equal. He was admitted to the Hutton Honors program at IU and James Scholar program at U of I. He is thinking of majoring in finance but will likely start undeclared.He has visited both schools and early on preferred IU-Kelly its campus and program all round, he was made to feel more wanted at IU. As decision time nears he is having a change of heart I believe because a large number of his high school classmates are attending U of I. He is now torn between the two schools and struggling to make up his mind and officially committ. I believe he now may be overlooking what he disliked about U of I ( campus a bit run down, Champaign being run down, poor sports teams, party school reputation) of his state school to follow friends. Am I making too much of Kelly’s higher business program rankings? Is U of I aThe all round better school? I want him to be happy but I am fearful he may be giving up an opportunity for what is more comfortable. My son is a pretty quiet kid, doesn’t party or go out much but loves participating in sports. My fear is him not having an instant network of friends at IU will make him unhappy. , His high school friends are not going to Champaign as business majors so I’m not sure how much he would see them anyway. Any feedback, experience or opinion on following friends, making friends, which school has better business programs and will help him get a great job and be happy while doing it is very much appreciated!
Fellow U of I business grad. Indiana has a prettier campus, no doubt. Kelly is rated a bit higher than U of I’s business, but only slightly (#8 v. #15 in USNWR). U of I is rated higher overall on most sites (#42 v. #76 at USNWR). You’ve already said that the $ is a push. U of I has better # in terms of SAT/ACT averages, students in the top 10% of their classes, graduation rates. As much as we tend to steer our children in certain directions, this seems like a perfect opportunity to let go and trust him to make the best decision for himself. He has two very good choices and you can come up with arguments for either school. With $ not being a critical factor here, you have to trust that he will have the better experience at the school that HE wants to go to. Back off and support his choice. Good luck.