So I’ve narrowed my college acceptances down to two choices: Notre Dame or USC.
I intend on studying finance, potentially with a double-major/minor with maths or Econ.
I’m looking to eventually work in investment banking and as I’m from Europe, a global reputation is preferred.
I’m looking for a reasonable party scene and cost is not an issue.
Thanks in advance for the input 
I don’t know what the finance rankings are, but US News has Notre Dame and USC tied at #10 for undergraduate business. My impression is that west coast business schools, including USC, tend to be more focused on entrepreneurship than investment banking.
I went to USC and don’t really think of it as a place for investment banking.
ND is the better recognized school for finance/biz in the U.S.
But USC is perhaps more well known outside the US. It also has the better party scene. And SoCal weather!
If you were American planning to work in the US, I’d say ND. But given your situation, USC might be the better fit.
Alright much appreciated.
@insanedreamer I was under the impression that USC’s reputation was more limited to the west coast and Asia whereas Notre Dame has more of a reputation in Europe but I could be mistaken.
@simba9 is there anywhere else that I find those US News Rankings? It shows them as locked to unregistered members on the website
Anyone know what the Notre Dame party scene is like?
@NHB123 USC’s reputation is nationwide in the US, but you’re right that it might be better known in Asia (which is where I presently live) than Europe - I can’t say for sure.
However, the Times (UK) ranks the top 100 universities by reputation. USC is in the 60s. ND does not appear on the list. So at least according to the Times, USC is more well known abroad.
You’ll find student comments on ND’s social life here: http://www.studentsreview.com/specific_detail.php3?uid=487&f=Social&d_short=UND&d_school=University%20of%20Notre%20Dame
and here: https://colleges.niche.com/university-of-notre-dame/
(Niche is not useful for overall rankings but is useful for comments/ratings on specific aspects like party life, food, etc.)
Where to find the US News rankings, reposted http://m.university-list.net/us/rank/univ-0001.htm#zy
ND is #16 and USC is #25, but that difference is small enough to be irrelevant in terms of reputation.
According to Bloomberg, ND has the #1 undergraduate biz school in the country (Mendoza) but that’s specifically the B-school. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/photo-essays/2014-04-03/best-undergraduate-business-schools-2014
On the other hand, US News put USC a few spots higher than ND for undergraduate finance.
Rankings are always subjective, so use them as ballpark indicators. In other words, USC == ND, in the US at least.
If it were me, looking to work in investment banking in the US, I would pick ND - amazing alumni network and business connections.
But if you’re going back to Europe, then maybe USC (arguably a nicer place to spend 4 years).
Either way you’ll get a great education.
@insanedreamer thanks so much for putting in the time to write this!
The link didn’t appear properly for the social scene (I think a moderator edited it) so could you PM me it?
it’s a bot
replace *** with “students review” removing the space (and no quote marks)
ND football games are storied for the atmosphere on campus (of course, the ND USC rivalry is pretty big too).
If you are coming from Europe, you might want to research the social rules at ND campus which stem from its Catholic character. All dorms are single sex, students of the opposite sex are not allowed in dorm rooms after certain hours, and having sex is against the student code of conduct (my kid has a bunch of friends at ND, and hears that while the ban on sex is not strictly enforced, it does lead to sneaking around so as not to get caught).
Academically, I would think the rankings are not a significant grounds for choosing – networking and career services more important.
That’s slightly out of date. The latest US News ranking for universities has ND at #18 and USC at #23 overall. But yeah, the difference is irrelevant.
http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/data
Here is the link that referenced undergraduate business specifically. It only shows the top 10, but both ND and USC are there at #10.
http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/rankings/business-overall/data
The schools are pretty much peers. In the US, both schools are known more for athletics than academics. My wife is from Taiwan and says USC is well known there. I’m not sure how well either school is known in Europe.
@simba9 Was your last comment a serious one? 75% of ND students are in the top 5% of their class. AVG ACT is a 33.
About the schools being peers? According to the multitude of rankings they are.
You can always cherry-pick particular statistics to make something look better or worse than it really is. Heck, maybe the high schools the ND students went to weren’t very good.
@simba9 In no way are ND and USC peers academically.
First, USC is mostly graduate students. ND is the opposite.
I don’t think you are well informed.
Middle 50% in the ACT at ND is 32-34 with 91% of attending students scoring above 30. At Brown, for example that number is 77%.
I was responding to your comment that both schools are not known for academics. That is simply not true.
I said both schools were better known for athletics than academics - not that they are not known for academics.
Didn’t we have this discussion once before, and you claimed ND was a peer of Harvard and Stanford? LOL.
Are you in the b-schools for both schools (pre-admit to Mendoza?). If so I"d lean towards ND but if you prefer the West Coast USC is a fine choice as well.
They’re peer schools for both academics and professional opportunities, but have a different atmosphere.
Notre Dame is definitely a Catholic school. 80% students are Catholic and, while not all are practicing and observant, you won’t find many atheists and agnostics. There’s a strong core curriculum; you’ll have to take 2 each of Religion/Theology, Philosophy, Mathematics, Science, and physical education, plus one History, one social science, and one either art or literature (13). Overall, the students are both involved in spectator sports (expect far-reaching enthusiasm for the football team) and practice sports themselves, often being former high school varsity athletes. Politically, the campus is conservative as far as colleges go and is considered the most conservative of the “big” Catholic colleges (with BC, Georgetown, and Holy Cross), although not “conservative catholic” doctrinally. THe alumni network is very strong in the Midwest and on the East Coast. It’s in a rural location but there’s plenty going on on campus so you shouldn’t fear getting bored! Weather-wise, the winters are rather cold and snowy but you have four distinct seasons.
USC has a very different atmosphere. It’s definitely SoCal in vibe. There’s a bit more variety for top majors: Students are aspiring journalists, film-makers, script-writers, as well as engineers and entrepreneurs. It’s in LA and the neighborhood isn’t good, although the school employs lots of people to ensure the students are safe on campus and off campus in a roughly 2-mile radius. But at the same time, you have LA at your fingertips! Politically it’s more liberal than Notre Dame, and it’s not religious. As for the requirements, you don’t have history, philosophy, or religion required; you have to take one class on Western Civ, one class on Global Cultures, one each of Scientific Inquiry, Scientific approaches, writing, Diversity, social issues, and arts/letters (8). You won’t have seasons - pretty much it’ll either be warm and sunny, or hot and sunny.
@happy1 I was pre approved for both Mendoza and Marshall
So from reading student reviews here and there it appears that the most common opinion is that Notre Dame’s social scene is snooty, women are heinous, and parties are abysmal. 
Anyone have any insight as to this?
I do not believe that is the case at all at ND…but if you feel that way go to USC.
It’s not my opinion, but it’s been made pretty apparent that some students feel this way. That’s a big part of what’s making me unsure…
The social and party atmosphere at ND is quite active but much of the ND experience has to do with the residential system, participating in sports and enjoying the school spirit. Not just getting drunk. The school is too demanding for that.
ND is a true undergraduate residential campus while USC is certainly not that. 67% of USC students live off campus. Only 33% are in USC college housing. Almost all ND students affilliate with their residence all 4 years. One or two are actually called colleges.
The other difference is endowment. ND has roughly $1 million per student while USC has roughly $100,000. If you visit the campuses you can tell the difference.
It would be impossible to say they are peer schools. USC has 45,000 students, 45% undergraduate. ND has 11,000, 72% undergraduate.
I’m not sure where you are looking but if you are on blogs like college prow*er I would not trust that at all. Try posting your questions about the social scene on the ND page here, visit the school if you can, etc.