Hey guys, I’ve just finished the whole college application ride and finished with some pretty decent selection. I’ve been struggling to come to a conclusion and I have narrowed my acceptance choices into six schools: Northwestern (Weinberg), NYU Stern, Carnegie Mellon (Tepper), Vanderbilt (CAS), UCLA, and UW Seattle (Foster Direct) (my state flagship). Depending upon the availability of a business school, I was planning on majoring in Business Administration with a potential concentration in finance/accounting, since I plan on working in either consulting or investment banking. At schools without a dedicated undergraduate business schools (NU,UCLA,Vandy), I was planning on majoring on some sort of combination of econ/math. That being said, an undergraduate business school is definitely a plus since it makes a MBA optional. Financial aid is a plus, but not mandatory (I’m low income, but can afford to spend). I’ve already begun forming opinions, and would appreciate any input.
Northwestern: Northwestern was my original top choice, with a decent college community (Big 10) and a real college social scene. Combined with its prestigious reputation and proximity to Chicago, I thought it would be the best decision. However, the lack of a dedicated business school for undergrads and my specific major have my parents thinking that NU might not be the best decision for my professional career. While I know Kellogg has an undergraduate business certificate and NU economics is one of the best in the nation, I’m not sure if that program would be a suitable replacement for i-banking for.
Weather wouldn’t be a problem; I’m used to the cold. In terms of financial aid, Northwestern was quite generous with around 50k a year, leaving me to pay around 20k a year
Carnegie Mellon: In terms of a professional/career focused environment, I don’t think Carnegie Mellon can be surpassed. Their business program is decent and CMU’s overall reputation on Wall Street is solid, with high starting salaries. However, I’m a little apprehensive about the rumors of CMU being a factory of sadness within a dreary Pittsburgh. I’m not super social, but I would appreciate some school spirit. But in terms of finance and my career, my parents think that CMU might be the best option, especially if I wanted to pick up some CS skills/minor. Financial Aid was awesome, 60k a year, 8k left out of pocket.
NYU Stern: My parents have been pushing for me to select NYU Stern, due to its elite undergraduate business program and great placement into Wall Street and i-banking. I’m neutral on living in a big city, and I’m not a big fan of the lack of a cohesive student body/campus. However, in terms of curriculum and career goals, Stern would be the best fit, as I want to focus on finance. However, I’ve heard that Stern is extremely competitive and cutthroat, with the curve hurting a lot of students. Also, rent in NYC is a nightmare and while I want to work in finance, I’d like to have options as well. Financial Aid with NYU Stern wasn’t stellar either, with only a 30k scholarship, with around 40k+ out of pocket… My parents have volunteered to pay because they think its a prudent investment to study near Wall Street, with the expectation that I pay them back in the future.
Vandy: Vandy was another school that I was pleased to get into, due to their excellent undergraduate focus and happy student body. However, I am worried that I wouldn’t fit in well. While I appreciate a moderately social scene, I’m not big on rushing or a student body revolving around Greek Culture. Also, I’m an Asian from Seattle WA, so I’m not sure that I would fit in at Vandy or Nashville. In terms of academics, I feel that I would like the less competitive nature, but the lack of a undergraduate business program is a con. Vandy economics/math is decent though. Financial Aid from Vandy was also awesome at 61k a year.
UW Foster: UW is my state flagship and I was directly admitted into Foster, and I’d love to stay at home since I love Seattle and keep the relationships that I’ve built. I’ve always said that if UW Foster continued to improve to around the level of ar UCB Haas, then I would go without a second choice. However while UW Engineering and Science Departments are elite, Foster still lags behind elite levels in terms of quality, prestige, and placement. I love the culture though, and still would get a decent education in the major I wanted. The instate cost is the cheapest (about 6k a year after scholarships/grants), but not by much compared to Vandy or CMU.
UCLA: UCLA would be an awesome place with an awesome student culture and location. However, Anderson doesn’t have any undergraduate offerings, and I wasn’t given a lot of financial aid, earning a 25k scholarship, leaving 35k left out of pocket.