My son has acceptances from Carlson, Smeal, Kannert, Lindner (direct admits) and acceptances from IU bloomington and Wisconsin. Waitlisted in UIUC. Needless to say, he is Class of 2020, entering Fall of 2016.
He is interested in Finance and Economics.
Looking at a holistic approach to education and of course job placement at the end of it. Whether he pursues his masters and PhD is debatable right now.
Can you help us to decide which college to choose from? Also, is interdisciplinary course better than an honors programme? If so, what options does he have?
I suggest that your S first do some research to understand the difference between being a finance and an economics major. Many people lump them together, but in reality they are very different paths.
Economics is a liberal arts course of study and gets very theoretical at the upper levels. Finance would be a major in a business school. If he were to attend a b-school your S would take a variety of introductory courses in various busienss disciplines (ex. accounting, finance, IT, management) and he would major in finance (as you project) or another business course of study. I strongly suggest that he look at the different curriculums (can be found online I’d imagine) for an economics and a finance major and decide which route is preferable/more interesting to him. If he decides that he wants finance, I’d go to one of the schools where he has a direct admit to the b-school.
Actually, a significant number of students treat economics as a pseudo-business major, and a significant number of colleges cater to those students by offering less-math versions of economics courses (e.g. Penn State, Florida State intermediate economics courses that do not even require calculus) and/or offer courses like managerial economics.
Yes, students preparing for PhD study in economics need to take substantial advanced math and statistics courses as well as the most mathematically-oriented intermediate economics and econometrics courses available.
@ucbalumnus I understand that econ is often considered pseudo-business but you took my quote a bit out of context. My point was about the different core curriculum one has as an economics major and a busienss major. An econ major will not take a busienss core curriculum so will likely not be exposed any classes in disciplines like finance, accounting, management, IT, marketing etc. In contrast a b-school student will take a minimum of two economics classes. IMO getting that background in a variety of business disciplines is a major difference between being an econ major in a liberal arts school and a finance major in a b-school.
Do not consider being a direct admit to business as the only or best option. He may choose economics over business once exposed to college courses. I presume those names are given to Business schools at various U’s. Taking business prerequisites and economics before admission to a business school works well, too. Also- if he should be in business he should have no trouble getting admitted to it based on his college record.
Look at the overall college experience. Every student is much more than his/her major. Which campus culture most appeals to him?
Look at the economics departments as well as at the B schools. Look at required and available courses. Look at the flexibility of changing one’s major. What if he decides a business undergrad major is not for him? How easily can he switch? btw- business grad schools usually expect at least two years of work first so do not expect a continuum from undergrad to grad work.
And- this is HIS homework. You can also look at things but HE must make his decision. You can help him by telling him how to make lists of pros and cons and priorities. This will include academics as well as a host of other factors. Since he likes music he may want to consider classes and other options available to nonmusic majors. I know UW has an orchestra class for those not in music- an excuse to play one’s instrument. He may decide on a school simply for these extras. Bloomington may have a top music department but he should look at what he can do as a nonmajor. Likewise with the other schools. City size is a choice as well. So is the influence of Greek life on campus.
It will be interesting for you to follow his logic and see where he chooses.
If he is planning on getting an MBA, he doesn’t need an undergrad business degree. Indeed, many would argue that competitive MBA programs don’t like students with BBAs and prefer those with undergrad liberal arts degrees. If he loves music, why not major in it then get an MBA?
@brantly The top tier MBA programs typically require between 2-5 years of significant work experience before an applicant would be considered. So if the OP wants to spend those years working in finance, then that would still be a useful major. Yes, one can get into top MBA programs with a music major (one woman in my H’s MBA class at Wharton was an opera singer) ,but it would be necessary to find a meaningful job after undergrad years.
However, check whether there is a secondary admission process that requires a high GPA or high level of competition to get into the desired major. This may be more common for business majors that are considered “elite” enough to attract “elite” recruiters, but are hosted at schools that otherwise may not attract such recruiting attention. Note that economics is sometimes a popular enough major that entrance is not open.
@happy1 I know. But many, many people working in finance were liberal arts majors. I think a LA major has a better chance at getting a finance job if he/she goes to a school that does not have an undergrad business major. That has been my observation. For example, if you go to University of Michigan or Indiana, all the recruiting for these types of jobs is going to be in Ross and Kelley. But if you go to Colgate or Hobart and major in art history or anthropology or physics, you can get a job at a big bank. This has been my observation. What do you think?
All are business schools within large state schools. All will have good job placement out of the business schools. If economics is in the business school, then I would expect good job placement. If it is in the Liberal Arts school, then I would expect the job placement to be less robust than what will go on in the business school.
I agree wholeheartedly with the recommendation above- if the school offers direct placement into the business school and he did not get into the business school, find out how difficult it is to transfer in. If it requires more than a 3.5, he needs to understand that he may not get into his desired major. Since you named the business schools instead of the university name, I assume he got direct placement.
Where he wants to live after school is a factor. Job placement will be better for graduates in that region where employers are familiar with the program.
Not sure what you mean by interdisciplinary versus honors programs? Honors programs can be business specific which usually means a small group of honors students go through smaller classes sometimes as a cohort. Curriculum isn’t too different from the other business classes but may be taught differently. Or they can be university wide and have requirements like a research project and certain seminars. Usually they have separate admission requirements.
@brantly My experience tells me otherwise so I guess we will have to respectfully agree to disagree. I’m not saying it is impossible, but I don’t think it is as easy to get a job in finance with a purely liberal arts background as it is with a business degree. Many of the kids I know who do get a finance type of job with a purely liberal arts degree get in the door from family connections rather than campus recruiting. Don’t get me wrong – I am all for a liberal arts education (my D is a senior at a LAC and her experience has been great) but I just don’t think it is the best/easiest pathway for getting a job in a bank or a financial institution.
But alas…I think we’re straying far off of the OP’s question.
Ditto. Economics comes in different favors. Many schools offer economics from the college of business that is more quantitative or applied while offering a degree B.A in Econ that is more theoretical.