OK this is actually a serious question because I think a lot of you misinformed. I am currently a Junior at my University, and I was also really into the whole college admissions etc when I was your age. However, since then, I have realized that just because someone ends at top undegrad school, sure as hell doesn’t mean they will be rich or have high-paying jobs. In fact, most students who graduate from top schools (say Notre Dame, Emory) actually have the same starting salaries and job prospects as those graduating from much lower ranked schools.
I am not joking - just look at the stats and start talking to graduates. I think this is one of the biggest misconceptions out there today - that just because someone goes to a top school, they will get a good job. Unfortunately, THAT is nowhere near the case. SO really if you are just planning to get your bachelor’s degree and go straight to work, it REALLY does not matter what college you go to in terms of your probable salary. Of course I am not referring to Ivy League schools (which do have graduates getting top jobs) - but this does apply to schoos like Emory, UCLA, USC etc.
Most high-paying jobs in the market today require at least a Master’s degree and so essentially, your Undegrad school will not make a difference AT ALL if you do attend a Graduate school. If you decide you just want to get a BA and go straight to work, no matter if you you get bad or good grades at a small little state school, you will be in the same position in terms of starting jobs and salaries as someone graduating from UCLA!
Anyway, I was also shocked by this when I first started researching it back when I was your age. When you get to the job market, you will soon realize that all this college admissions stuff to top schools is crap, especially if you’re not going to get you Master’s.
To sum up:
Your graduate school is what is most important - and a BA from a great University won’t get you ****.