<p>OP- I’m sorry for your situation. This can be very hard, and unfortunately, it tends to happen to a lot of people. Sometimes people go back on promises, and you just have to learn how to cope with it. You’ll feel better after even just sleeping on it. </p>
<p>The only advice I can give is to effectively and realistically blend the long term and short term. Which school will help you get a good job in the future? Which one can you see yourself excelling in? Which one won’t put you into overwhelming debt or poverty? Which will make your investment worth your while? </p>
<p>And also, here’s something else to think about: being a big fish in a small pond has networking advantages of its own. If you’re one of the top students at one of the non-“elite” colleges, your professors will seize you up and shower you with opportunities and attention you may not get at a “better” school, even more so if this other school is smaller. They’ll refer you to all the internships and set you up with important contacts, they’ll get you started with research and make sure you get the skills you need; they’ll adopt you into their academia if you truly show the worth and talent. Most students are deserving of these chances at more prestigious unis, but unfortunately, there are so many “great, motivated, brilliant, phenomenal” kids that the faculty are faced with a more competitive pool.</p>
<p>This may be a more selfish and arrogant way to look at it, but it’s true, and it definitely has it perks. Would you do well to have a degree from a good name or to have a degree from a decent name but with exceptional experiences and insight? It can work both ways, I think. </p>
<p>Just some more food for thought, and I’m sure you’ll figure out where you need to go and what you need to do. Good luck with everything :)</p>
<p>Old fort,
As for your friend’s H, to be able to retire in mid-forties, take up wonderful hobbies without fear of cost, and enjoy life while he is still young sounds like a great trade off for 16 hr days for 20 years.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the replies, they’ve provided me with a lot of useful insight.</p>
<p>Anyhow, the reason why I’m so interested in banking is because of money. I know that I’ve stated that my family is well-off and the such, however, my parents only got to where they were because of extremely hard work - they originated from basically the slums of China and it was only because of their extreme test scores that allowed them to leave their poor situation and be able to find a better life here. Over my life with them, I’ve just seen, literally, how important money is and, excuse me if I sound very extreme, but I literally value making money over, say personal happiness, committing to a family, committing to a relationship, etc. I also realize that this may be my ultimate downfalll and that I will regret my thinking later on, but my life has just been so influenced by the power of money that I just want to get out of this 2nd hand life hole. I want to be able to have financial security, to know I can do whatever I want, whenever I want, without having to worry about my finances; and I’m willing to achieve this at whatever the costs. That’s why I was so interested in ibanking, not because I liked the idea, but because of how lucrative it is if you’re good at it. </p>
<p>Anyhow, because of my family’s finances, I’m now basically going to pretend I never got accepted to Colby and consider my other two options, Willamette and SLU. Like you all said, with possible graduate studies, I agree that it would be wiser to save as much of my resources and ease my family’s strain as much as possible. It’s a shame that I worked much harder than my peers to get accepted to Colby, only to find out I might go to a school at the same level as theirs, but I guess this is where the term “life isn’t fair” is coined into play. </p>
<p>You know what? The education at Willamette is really excellent and it is in a beautiful part of the country, too. A place you might wish you could vacation for even two weeks, let alone live for four years.</p>
<p>You will get all sorts of opportunities to make your world a bigger place and your experience wider as a person if you go there, and if you still end up wanting to go into banking, there are plenty of opportunities to do this all over the country and not just in NYC or Boston. </p>
<p>At any rate, keep an open mind. That is the best way to get the best education. </p>
<p>That sounds like a smart plan, edladue. I hope that eventually the feeling of what could have been is replaced by happiness with your college pick.</p>
<p>Now some will probably flame you about the influence that money has on your life, but I totally understand it. Many have never been in the circumstance where they were truly down and out, and will never understand the depression and panic that having very little can bring to you. I am sure after you get to a point to where you are financially comfortable, you will be able to explore other options in your life. You sound very motivated. You might also consider a career in tech if you change your mind about finance, if you have any talent or interest in that area. CS grads are doing well, and are very employable.</p>
Late to the party, but is Colby even good enough for most banking jobs? Don’t you either have to be at the very top of your class, or go to Harvard?</p>
<p>Wouldn’t it be a better strategy to go to a super-elite business school? (That’s not rhetorical; do banks still recruit from Harvard, Wharton, Tuck, etc.?)</p>
<p>Well, so much for digging up an old topic, but I’ve decided to commit to Saint Louis University. Just wanted to thank everyone for their input/advice in helping me make this decision. I agree that Colby wouldn’t be the best choice for me financially, and I also agree that coming from, say Harvard with a MBA or such, would allow me to have a solid chance at top firm jobs. Again, thanks to all of you for your advice!</p>