Hi everyone,
This is repost of my post in the BU thread - I’m reposting because I wanted both sides’ opinions, so please don’t kill me for reposting. I’m a high school senior planning to major in finance/business. I was accepted to BU’s Questrom School of Business and Oxford College at Emory (WL at main campus), and I’m currently torn between schools.
I do like BU; I don’t mind the huge size of the school, and really like the urban setting of BU. However I’ve heard some not-so-good things about BU, mainly grade deflation and the b-school’s relative lack of prestige/rank in the northeast (just in the Boston area, it’s competing with 4-6 other schools that are ranked higher).
Emory has a much better business school, but I was placed into Oxford College and I’m not sure what the acceptance rate is to Goizueta from Oxford. Also Oxford’s location is not ideal (45 min from Atlanta). I know I shouldn’t be going solely by rankings/prestige, but I do want a program that will help me get break into my field the most. I like BU, and Boston has the advantage in location, but everyone says Emory is better academically and for later job prospects.I also want a high paying job after graduation because I’m borrowing a LOT of money to go to college, and Goizueta (Emory) seems to hold a significant advantage over Questrom (BU) in my area of study.
I’m also paying relatively the same amount (32k for BU, 33k for Oxford Emory), but I have a $20k merit scholarship for BU while Emory is all need-based.
I’m in a bit of pinch here, with less than a week to make a decision. Can anyone help me out??
Go to BU if you want to major in business so badly. Oxford will make it more challenging to transition into that. Only consider Oxford if you actually value the liberal arts or exploring before you go. Also, if BU is cheaper (as in if Emory is mostly loans and no grants), then it makes no sense coming to Emory. You pay more and risk your transition to the b-school. Emory/Oxford should only become possible if you have lots of AP credit such that you can maybe leave Oxford early…
@mngo9000
Here’s a link to some information about moving on to Emory’s business school after Oxford College:
http://oxford.emory.edu/academics/student-services/pre-professional-advising/pre-business-information/
As you can see, being able to take all the prerequisites at Oxford in your two years there will not be a problem.
The business school admissions process is competitive for both Oxford and Emory main campus continuees. I’m not sure about admissions rates from Oxford applicants. You can probably ask the Oxford admissions office or the business school admissions office for this kind of information.
The education you would get at Oxford College is excellent. The class sizes are small and there is an emphasis on teaching on the Oxford College campus.
If you intend to compete for competitive jobs after college (management consulting, investment banking, private equity, etc.), then the prestige of your undergraduate program will matter. The same is true if you intend to apply to a competitive MBA program somewhere down the road.
Have you asked Oxford to increase your aid and/or give you a better mix of grants v. loans?
I was at a recent Oxford revisit day with my daughter and the Oxford rep said that 70+% of the Oxford students who apply are accepted into the business program once they get to Emory. You have to submit a separate application but the vast majority of students who maintain a B average and contribute in some way while at Oxford are accepted into Emory’s business program. For nursing, Oxford students are automatically admitted into the nursing program at Emory. If you are not accepted into the business program, you can still continue on to Emory and major in economics etc.
I’ve posted this link before, but it’s a very informative one, so here goes again:
https://community.bus.emory.edu/program/PreBBA/Shared%20Documents/BBA%20Admission%20Guidelines%20Spring%202016.pdf
The bottom line is that if you do well in your courses, esp the business pre-reqs, and as noted in the prior note contribute somehow to campus life you’ll get in. The required GPA is very do-able. I think that you even have an advantage at Oxford, in that getting a good LOR from a professor will be easier given the smaller class size.
I can’t compare the two schools, but you shouldn’t let admission to Goizueta worry you when you’re making the decision.
Thank you for all the replies!
@MyOdyssey I have asked, especially since my financial offer doesn’t seem to be matching their 100% demonstrated need policy as displayed on my student portal, but the financial aid office has been very unhelpful. I do like the small classes and such, but I’m worried that being at Oxford hinder things like research opportunities (lack of continuity at a campus).
@bernie12 For what it’s worth, I’ve received all grants from Emory. I didn’t factor in federal loans since I’d still need to pay it back, but if I subtract my loans I’d be paying $24,500 for BU and $33k (No change) from Emory. I do have a bit of AP credit (8-12 scores, depending on how I do this year), but I don’t know if that’s enough to leave early. Do many people actually leave Oxford and apply for Goizueta early though? I’ve not heard of many people doing this…
@mngo9000
The Oxford campus is about a 45 minute drive or so from the Atlanta main campus. By shuttle bus, it’s more like an hour and fifteen minutes. Oxford students do travel to the Atlanta campus to participate in extracurriculars. If you wanted to do research with a business school professor, I think the main barriers, as an Oxford student, would be (1) not having the requisite academic background compared to a more advanced sophomore, junior, or senior student and (2) the travel time.
Oxford College does offer research opportunities to its students. There’s an Oxford program in which sophomores do research under an advisor for a course grade and credit, which culminates in a presentation on campus in April of the student’s sophomore year. Here’s a list of research topics and advisors from April 2016:
http://oxford.emory.edu/news/symposium-to-present-results-of-student-research/
You might also want to look into research opportunities available to work study students. Some professors have such openings.
The business school offers both fall and spring admissions. Oxford continuees are eligible after 3 semesters if they’re able to complete all the distribution requirements in 3 semesters, which many students are able to do, especially if they did very well on AP exams.
http://goizueta.emory.edu/degree/undergraduate/admissions/application_process.html
@mngo9000 : Yes, many will attempt to leave early especially if they have a stringent or competitive major on main. They exploit their AP credits to fulfill some requirements.