UChicago vs. NU vs. Ross

<p>Hey guys,</p>

<p>After all the college decisions, I am trying to decide which college to attend. Wharton had been my first choice, but I wasn't able to get in, so my decision is between these three schools.
Here's what I know so far:
UChicago (Econ degree): Probably the best econ program in the world. Huge grade deflation. (Dreary study environment?)</p>

<p>U of Michigan Ross Business School (BBA): Very strong business. Geared more towards management than IB. More full college experience.</p>

<p>Northwestern (Econ): Probably weakest in these three. But connection with Kellogg might help?</p>

<p>I really want to get into a top IB job in the future. My GPA will probably suffer in UChicago, and I think Ross gives a wider range of opportunities. But how does an Econ deg from Chicago compare with a BBA from Ross (especially for IB)? Which of these schools are true targets? Any input will be helpful thanks.</p>

<p>I’d go to Ross. It is the most represented on the Street from what I’ve seen. UoC is not very well represented and I think Ross is more of a target than NU. (Though honestly I don’t know as much about the recruiting differences between Northwestern and UoC)</p>

<p>So I’d say:</p>

<p>Ross > NU > UoC</p>

<p>I would say Northwestern, and definitely not Chicago, unless you want to get a PhD in econ.</p>

<p>Easier to stand out during recruiting at NU in my opinion. Lots of people don’t take the initiative to learn more about the industry and expect to just get in by dropping their resume online or something. And there’s a ton of interest in consulting at NU, so again, it makes competition a lot less stiff. On-campus recruiting is largely for Chicago offices, but there’s still a good number going to the NYC office.</p>

<p>Do Northwestern. Recruiting is very good. At Michigan, you are basically forced to commit to Business as your undergrad major (enroll in Ross) if you want to get noticed by recruiters. All else equal, an Econ degree is more worthwhile than a Business degree, particularly if you eventually want to get an MBA (in which case your graduate education will be redundant).</p>

<p>Social Scene: UM >> NU</p>

<p>Were you preadmitted to Ross?</p>

<p>Prestige: NU >= Ross > UM Econ</p>

<p>Yes, I was preadmitted to Ross, which makes the decision all the more difficult. Chicago isn’t getting much love, so I guess the decision is really between Michigan and Northwestern. I thought there would be more flexibility with a business degree (after graduation job-wise). So job placement-wise, Northwestern is the best?</p>

<p>In IBD I maintain I think Ross has more street cred than Northwestern.</p>

<p>Northwestern. U. of M is a state school no matter how you cut it. Doesn’t matter you went to the business school, it still has U of M name on it.</p>

<p>Cornell ILR or NYU Stern? Cornell ILR.</p>

<p>NU>=Ross>>>UChicago</p>

<p>So what if it’s a state school? Your point?</p>

<p>How many state schools are ranked top 20? None. Berkeley is 21 in 2010. NU is 12 and UofM is 27. In this country top privates still beat out top publics in terms of quality of education in general. There is a certain segment of population that would always believe private schools are better, right or wrong. Unfortunately IB is all about perception.</p>

<p>Don’t pay attention to those damn rankings. USNews is a load of crap. That’s not what it’s about. Wash U is 12, do they get any recruiting? No. It’s about the recruiting.</p>

<p>IB most definitely look at ranking and then beyond. IB use rankings to help them weed out candidates. It’s cheaper for them to have the schools select high academic performers first, then they look at “fit.” Comparing U Chicago with NU, they would prefer NU students because the kind of students they have. More NU students could walk and talk at the same time, and probably more suited for the front office. It is not to say GS research department wouldn’t want some quant guys from Chicago.</p>

<p>Look at Ross employment profile: [Employment</a> Profile - University of Michigan Business School](<a href=“http://www.bus.umich.edu/EmploymentProfile/TopHiringCompanies.htm?StudentType=BBAGrads]Employment”>http://www.bus.umich.edu/EmploymentProfile/TopHiringCompanies.htm?StudentType=BBAGrads)</p>

<p>They placed ~10% in IB. I do not see GS, DB, UBS, Barclay, BofA. If you look at their internship info, DB is there but MS is missing.</p>

<p>Too many people like to disregard ranking, but they are there to serve a purpose, a benchmark. Recruiters know calibre of students at those schools, but they also understand there’ll always be few stars at non-target schools, that’s why they’ll interview few outstanding candidates from those non-target schools (maybe through connections too). </p>

<p>A school becomes a target school because of number of alums at an IB, or you get a very senior person who is an alum at school X. Wash U has not broken into IB yet, whereas a school like Colgate has a big presence in the NE finance world.</p>

<p>^Those are just the top. I’m sure a couple have gone to MS.</p>

<p>Thank you for those employment figures. I realize that there is not a single person with a job or internship at GS. That’s a bad sign I’m guessing?</p>

<p>ryuename - Ross may have few people at GS, but not more than 5. If a school is a target then they would recruit for S&T, banking, asset management, wealth, PB…</p>

<p>I would suggest for you to visit each school’s career service center to ask for some stats - % of students found jobs through their career center, what firms recruit on campus, what kind of alumni network do they have. </p>

<p>As an example, Cornell career services in conjunction with the alumni network organize Cornell Days over the winter break at many BB firms. It’s invitation only and it allows senior management of each firm to meet potential applicants before scheduled campus visit.</p>

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<p>I personally know people from Michigan going, either for a full-time job or for an internship, to GS (SSG, mind you), MS, UBS, and Barclays this summer. There are definitely at least interns going to DB and BAML, although I do not know them personally.</p>

<p>Yes, and NU has people going to the NYC offices of GS, MS, Lazard, Greenhill, JPM, CS, etc. All IBD. Kellogg alumni are also very helpful to NU undergrads – don’t overlook that connection.</p>

<p>^Ross as well for all those offices, might I add.</p>

<p>In my opinion NU and it’s a pretty straightforward choice. </p>

<p>Private > Public (especially when the public is being backed by the blossoming economy of Michigan; look at what is happening at UC’s right now, and you’ll see what UMich will be next year and the coming years after that). </p>

<p>NU recruiting > UMich recruiting. </p>

<p>NU prestige > UMich prestige. </p>

<p>NU Econ Degree > UMich Ross BBA. </p>

<p>To me it’s not even really competitive haha.</p>