<p>UVA has an ok reputation, and so does UIUC (urbana champaign). It seems that the publics that do get respect in California are the schools with good engineering/cs/math/science departments. But in general, UMichigan is tops outside of the west coast in the public schools. However, I personally have been impressed by some people from UT Austin...</p>
<p>But the fact is that many so called middle tier public schools capture that upper tier elite student that wants to stay close to home and also wants to attend a school that fits their personality better. Or maybe those engineers that have outstanding math/science skills on par with elite science schools, but did not as well in other areas. Engineering, science, math are very egalitarian subjects, and most west coast hiring managers should realize that.</p>
<p>Another reason why people would choose a public school over a prestigous private is because the public school in question has a MORE prestige than the private. Schools like Cal, Michigan, and UCLA are as prestigous as just about any school out there. No, I never said that they are the absolute most prestigous schools in the US but very few schools can be considered better than those mentioned.</p>
<p>"Schools like Cal, Michigan, and UCLA are as prestigous as just about any school out there. No, I never said that they are the absolute most prestigous schools in the US but very few schools can be considered better than those mentioned."</p>
<p>Hehe... when I first read your post it sounded like you were arguing with yourself.. (don't mind me, I know this way off topic but it was just kinda humorous)</p>
<p>Collegebound123, I think you to have ask yourself what collegiate aspects are important to you, and you'll basically answer your own question. How important are prestige, cost, social life, sports, school size, geographic location, etc.? Being a member of an alumni club that shares a clubhouse in NY w/ 2 Ivies, I come into contact w/ Ivy grads all the time. I don't see much of a difference between their grads and ones from top public schools in regards to post-collegiate success. </p>
<p>To be honest, these days undergrad degrees are a dime a dozen. What matters more is what you do w/ your degree. Yes, a degree from a certain school may open doors, but after you're in the door, what's more relevant is your performance, work ethic, etc. When you've been in an industry for a few years, people start to judge you from a different perspective. You're not judged by how well your college is ranked, but rather how well you're doing in your current job (or your previous one.) As they say in entertainment, "you're as good as your last film." Also, look at the country's CEOs, I believe most of them did not attend a Top 25 undergraduate university (Ivy League or otherwise).</p>
<p>I also realize that a prestigious undergraduate degree can definitely help you get into a prestigious grad program, but keep in mind there are Harvard graduate students who attended small, unheard-of schools as undergrads. As long as you kick butt in whatever school, you most likely will get into a great grad program. </p>
<p>Yes, I know that I'm the biggest cheerleader for UVa, but in the end, I believe you have to pick the right school for you. That school might be an Ivy League school, a public one, or a small private LAC in some random state that offers a program that absolutely stimulates you. Research and visit the schools and ask yourself the hard questions about what YOU want. It's 4 years of your life. Might as well go after a place that you'll love and will be right place for you. (Now, make sure you get in.) Good luck!</p>
<p>"I just wanted to say that University of Michigan has an extremely good reputation in California, Los Angeles, and San Francisco."</p>
<p>I live in San Francisco and I never heard of Michigan until the Supreme Court case regarding affirmative action. UMichigan has no name recognition down here. The only out of state colleges we are familiar about are Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and MIT. Everyone assuredly knows those four, and most people haven't really heard of any others.</p>
<p>In fact, I think the only schools that EVERYONE knows regardless of where they live are Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Princeton, and MIT. For those five schools, there is little regional bias because they are like "national" universities. Schools like Michigan, Berkeley, Virginia, etc are regional universities. Even the lower ivies are regional universities that cover the East Coast only.</p>
<p>I think the same thing. A lot of people will argue and say, "That's not true, everyone here has heard of Berkely and in fact in Asia everyone has..." etc. etc.</p>
<p>But really, I've never heard of Michigan or Virginia (I've heard of Berkeley but I do live on the west coast). While they are both VERY GOOD schools, it doesn't have as much name recognition.</p>
<p>It depends on who you talk to. I agree that the layman may have only heard of certain schools and that schools tend to have a lot of regional recognition. Likewise, the sports fan is more likely to have heard of schools with strong sports teams. For people who really understand colleges though, the major universities names are always recognized and respected.</p>
<p>Yeah, it does depend on who you talk to. And yes, it does depend on people who really understand colleges but in terms of just the general population, there are some schools that will not have as much recognition even if they are good schools. It's just important that no matter what the prestige-level of a school is, they should be going to school because they believe that it will help them in the future in terms of educational experiences, preparation for grad school or a job, etc. Prestige could be incorporated into this, but shouldn't be relied upon.</p>
<p>If you're talking about the masses then yes, many people don't know about Michigan. However, the masses are ...well you know, "donkeys." Good firms know which school are good schools, and they do recruit at Michigan/Berkeley/UCLA</p>
<p>Collegebound, you are speaking of the uneducated/unimportant masses of the world. But it is rare to find an academic, a high function professional or a corporate recruiter that would not include Cal and Michigan in her/his short list of universities. UVA, UCLA are up there too. In academic and professional circles, Michigan is generally regarded as one of the top 10-15 universities in the US. Cal has an even better reputation. UVA and UCLA are only slightly lower than Michigan.</p>
<p>Anyone who isn't aware of the quality of U/Michigan or U/Virginia has led a sheltered, provincial existence. Put UCLA and Berkeley with them and you can argue the top four all day long. And with Alexandre, I'd have to...because theyr'e so close and there are so many tradeoffs depending on what your interests and preferences are that it's a meaningless argument and there is no valid absolute ranking among the four.</p>
<p>U.Penn isn't a public university. The closest would be Cornell with a few of their schools being public land-grant entities while most of the university is private.</p>