Truth About Emory

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I was accepted to Emory, but I had a couple of questions and I was hoping some people could clarify some of them. I heard that academically Emory was one of the best schools in the nation and on par with the Ivies. I?ve also heard that Emory is extremely underrated when it comes to recruiters for the undergrad program. I was wondering if these two statements are true and I was also wondering how people in the real word view Emory. It is important to mention that I am going for business, so if any know anything on how the Business school is viewed that would be really helpful. Also does anyone know were Business grads from that school generally go to work (region in the country) and would it be out of the question to get a job in the west or east cost out of this school.</p>

<p>thanks</p>

2

<p>i dont really think its underrated (especially its US News rank, which is pretty fair). Some Emory students overrate it, calling it the Harvard of the South (that would def be Duke:-) ).</p>

3

<p>Their undergraduate business program was rated #5 in the nation by business week, and it recently moved up to #4. Definitely a good school for business.</p>

<p>My mother went there ~30 years ago as a National Merit Scholar, and loved it. I'm sure a lot has changed since then, but probably only for the better.</p>

<ul>
<li>Atlanta = amazing if you like the southeast</li>
</ul>

4

<p>I know it's rated very well in the Academic arena, but I was wondering how its name recognition was in the real world. I mean when I went there to visit it, I defiantly felt that it was on par with any of the ivies. but I mean if you say Emory would a lot of people in the real world connect with it as if you said USC or Berkeley or for that matter the HYP's.</p>

5

<p>college123456789,</p>

<p>You want the truth, but I think you know that "truth" is relative... it depends on the context. </p>

<p>My daughter attends Emory presently as a freshman. She's from Northern California, and although I am in the business world, I don't think she will apply to Goizueta B-School for her upper division years, though she could surprise me. Clearly, the B-School is a rising asset at Emory, and the undergraduate business program has commanded a lot of attention, all for excellent reasons, in my estimation. If that is your emphasis, then I think you'll find the opportunities to be terrific, both academically and otherwise.</p>

<p>Now, what about after graduation, you might wonder. Here in the SF Bay Area, the general consensus is that there are two excellent universities in the area -- UCB and Stanford. Those are the immediately recognizable ones; however, all excellent schools are known in the "real world" to those who must know. I work with organizations who are focused on human capital, and there's not a client I've worked with who doesn't know Emory's reputation for their academic stature. When I've made mention that it is where my daughter attends college, it never goes without remark about what a fine school it is, because that's the truth. Most recently, I was speaking with a small group of people at a client (whose first initial begins with a "G", ends with an "e", and whose stock closed at about 467.39 today). They hire people almost strictly from "elite" schools, and they "ooh-ed" and "ah-ed" about what a fine school Emory is. On the other hand, there is a certain part of the population here in CA who don't know Emory very well. Often, these are people whose interests reside with sports teams. If you want to impress these people, don't consider Emory because they'll wonder why they've never heard of the football team (and of course, Emory doesn't have a football team). If you are somebody who needs to live vicariously through affiliation with a top-ranked college football program, that's another good reason to not attend Emory.</p>

<p>If you want to impress others, whether they be Wall Street I-banking firms or the tier-one consulting firms, I can assure you that Emory is known to this segment of the "real world". Goldman Sachs has recently made Emory a "targeted school" for recruitment purposes for their BBA graduates. As well there are other firms who make on-campus recruitment trips. Although Emory is seemingly better known back East, it is increasingly getting improved recognition out here on the West Coast also. Visibility in the business world is only increasing as graduates disperse beyond the East Coast and Southeast. Here in the Bay Area, every Emory graduate I know seems to be successful. One friend here in my community is a COO at a small biomedical firm, and he continues to rave about his time at Emory, even though he is now in his early 30's. He also met his wife at Emory, and even though he has both his MBA and MD from Cornell, he will tell you straight away that the best days of his life were experienced during his undergraduate years at Emory. You can bet that made a great impression on me.</p>

6

<p>thank you, that answered a lot of my questions. so i guess my decision now is more complex than when i started. I'm between Berkeley, Emory, USC (MArshall), and Michigan, i know these are all top schools but in your opinions which do you think has the biggest "wow" factor when you walk into a room as a internist, job applicant, and a s a consultant 10-15 years down the road.</p>

7

<p>probably berkeley, but truthfully you just can't go wrong between the two. The people NorCalDad mentioned that did not recognize Emory's name are most likely amateurs in the recruiting business... Emory is a nationally recognized institution and you will receive a great education there.</p>

8

<p>ok, thanks. in your opinion would you consider USC (Marshall) inferior to the other schools and thus a mistake to decline admission at the other univeristies.</p>

9

<p>college123456789,</p>

<p>You've got a great selection of schools to choose from, and of that list, I would, as a personal preference, put USC/Marshall on the bottom of the list. Part of the reason is purely "bang for the buck". I think Berkeley/Haas is much better and has more of that "wow" factor you think might be important; however, it costs half as much in cost of attendance (assuming you are a CA resident). It's a beautiful campus, and it's a great school/program, but if you're comparing against the other 3 programs, it falls precipitously in more than one respect. The one difference for Marshall is that it's a 4-year program (vs. 2-year for Haas and Goizueta, and 3-year for Ross). Note that I don't think the 4-year program is necessarily an advantage.</p>

<p>I am most familiar with Haas and Emory's Goizueta, and I think the preparation would be very solid. This said, there's no denying the strength of UM/Ross. Each has its own advantages/disadvantages. Simply getting into a pre-req Econ class at Berkeley, along with the 700 other students, is a challenge in itself. Also, it's a bit more competitive to get into the Haas 2-year undergraduate program, only to find faculty resources to be less than ideal. But still, it's Berkeley/Haas, and you'll find that it has tremendous stature. Comparatively, Emory/Goizueta's 2-year program is easier to gain admittance for your junior year, and it is tremendously enabling, so long as you are willing to put out the effort. Recruiting at Goizueta has been rising in recent years. I like Berkeley for its access to many Bay Area companies, and I like Goizueta for its access to Atlanta's prominence as the hub of the Southeast. I think UM has a great tradition as a school, but for me, I dislike the cold weather, and I think it has a disadvantage in its proximity to vibrant companies nearby. Most of the companies that might offer joint academic/industry programs during the school year are largely manufacturing companies, and there is certainly not the diversity of either the Bay Area (financial services, high tech/software, biotechnology, consumer electronics) or Atlanta (manufacturing, banking, transportation, telecommunications, consumer goods). Also, consider that many students who attend a school may possibly choose to stay in the area. Here's where Berkeley/Haas has a distinct advantage in being situated in the SF Bay Area, but again I'll admit to bias since I live here. </p>

<p>Notwithstanding what I've said, let me say that my ultimate bias is that I don't necessarily believe in a BBA. I'm more likely to be impressed by an Economics major with a breadth of knowledge and smarts in knowing how to think critically and being able to quickly size up a problem and solve it. In assessing candidates for professional to senior-level management positions (including C-level executive roles), beyond a glance at the school (and yes, I give points to Haas vs. Podunk State U.), I'm more interested in the person and the demonstrated abilities/experience. If you build a foundation of breadth by expanding your scope of knowledge, it will help you to "see" opportunities that others may be ignoring. Knowing the infrastructure of how business is conducted is fine, but more importantly is that you will have to immerse yourself in specific business/industry content to be truly effective. For instance, just understanding the regulatory impact in the healthcare industry is a full-time job in itself.</p>

<p>Coming out of school, you will need to convey promise and potential. Here it helps to know that the business school has a prominent recruiting presence, and all of your schools have that. It gets your foot in the door easier, but that's it. Don't depend on the reputation of ANY school as an an avenue of entitlement. You'll be sorely disappointed. Inside of 5 years in the professional world, most hiring authorities will look for established directions and emphasis/focus in segments of interest. It's a big world out there, and with increasing specialization in all industries/fields, you can't be all things to all people. Better to know that you've developed good practices and are applying yourself to make contributions that are measurable, value-added and have impact within your organization. In 10-15 years time, as you've entered into middle (perhaps senior) management roles, you will be evaluated on business judgment, leadership, interpersonal communications and organizational effectiveness. All of these attributes are gained by experience (none are genetically built-in), which in turn come about through taking advantage of opportunities as they come during one's career. </p>

<p>What's the bottom line? The bottom line is don't worry about the specific school. Go where you will be happy (because if you're not, your academics will suffer). Go where you feel there is the best fit for exploiting the academic, internship and interactive/joint program opportunities that will feed your motivation. It's only the beginning, and you will find that when you're about 28 years old (median age of MBA students), you may have discovered enough interest to enroll in a full-time MBA program to fully leverage the direction you want to invest in for the next phase of your career. By then, perhaps you'll know that you really do enjoy finance, and consider Wharton; or you really like marketing and consumer goods, in which case you might apply to Northwestern's Kellogg School; or you love the blend of Internet, high-tech and entrepreneurship, and decide to apply to Stanford's MBA program. You're at a starting point, and there's a long ways to go in the journey. Have a map, but don't be afraid of taking some side roads to explore. Develop and set value goals. Find the happy balance in mind, heart and soul. Know that the only constant will be change, perhaps more than you can imagine. Good luck!</p>

10

<p>thanks, that gave a me a perspective that i really forgot to notice before now.</p>

11

<p>Intercollegiate Studies Institute's review of Emory from their book, Choosing the Right College 2008-9: The Whole Truth about America's Top Schools. <a href="http://www.isi.org/college_guide/sample/2008/emory.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.isi.org/college_guide/sample/2008/emory.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

12

<p>NorCalDad, check your Private Messages por favor!</p>

13

<p>If you want the unadulterated truth about Emory, you might want to look it up at UrbanDictionary.com. </p>

<p>That website's not for the mild-mannered, but it'll definitely tell you some things that no college guide will...</p>

14

<p>^^^^^^</p>

<p>Ditto, of course it is not completely accurate, but it does have an accurate reflection of the school's reputation/general feel.</p>

15

<p>NorCalDad,
Thanks for your comments about how the work world really works. I completely agree with nearly everything you have written and believe it should be required reading for people frequenting the CC site and posting opinions about postgraduate opportunities and life. </p>

<p>Glad that your daughter is having a good experience in Atlanta. IMO, in the universe of top colleges, Emory is an underappreciated gem that produces excellent graduates who can hold their (and then some) with graduates from more heralded colleges.</p>