<p>I got into all three schools with substantial financial aid so they are all extremely viable options. I realize that of the three, Northwestern is the only one without an undergrad business administration program, but all three options are all located within or close to big cities that would be able to provide a lot of access and opportunities</p>
<p>USC - I got into Marshall, and I'm also in the global leadership program which is offered to like the top 10% of admitted students. The best part is the sense of security, because unlike Berkeley and Northwestern where I'd have to apply into the majors/programs in my junior year, I am already in the program at Marshall so I don't have to stress about it and I would have better internship opportunities earlier on. Plus it's a private school so the alumni network is amazing, and they gave me the most money (virtually free). I feel the school is less prestigious than the other two though</p>
<p>Berkeley - I'm currently undecided but I'd want to apply to Haas in my junior year. However, it's a really competitive program and I'm afraid I won't get in and be screwed over. It's kinda my dream school though, and if I knew right now that I would be able to get into Haas then I wouldn't hesitate. It's a public school so the lack of guidance and the overwhelming student body size is kinda daunting though.</p>
<p>Northwestern - Since there's no undergrad business program, I would try to double major in econ and communications, and try to get into the Kellogg certificate program in my junior year. I like that its a private school, but I don't like the lack of certainty</p>
<p>So if you were in my position, where would you go?</p>
<p>Even if you don't get into Hass, I am pretty sure an econ degree from Berkeley/NU will still give you better job prospect than a degree from Marshall. Check out the 2006 employment report for Marshall: <a href="http://www2.marshall.usc.edu/emplibrary/2006%20Placement%20Report.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www2.marshall.usc.edu/emplibrary/2006%20Placement%20Report.pdf</a>
only 230 out of 710 (845-45-90) job-seeking seniors received/accepted a job offer by April, one month before graduation. I wonder if the "alumni network" is more a myth because apparently high percentage of them had trouble landing an offer.</p>
<p>I assume NU is going to cost you considerably more than Berkeley. I'd pick Berkeley because of this and because you said it's kinda your dream school.</p>
<p>If Berkeley is your dream school, then go to Berkeley. Just work your butt of to get into Haas.</p>
<p>If I were in that situation, and my #1 goal and academic interest is to be a business major, I'd go with USC. If it were a situation where USC would cost more than Berkeley, I'd go with Berkeley, but since it's virtually free for you to attend USC, why not go for USC? You're already guaranteed a spot at Marshall, it's not like Berkeley where you would have to wait and then apply once you're there.</p>
<p>I heard from my relative who works with a lot of alumni from USC Leventhal school of accounting and she confirmed that what I've heard about the USC alumni network is true. Lots of director graduated from Leventhal hire students from USC(3 levels above her rank came from USC). I also heard a lot about the USC alumni network from non-USC people, people who have relatives graduate from UCLA/UCB for example. I personally don't believe too much into this networking but looking at the USC endowment fund I have to agree. USC uses to admit 70% and now only admit 21%. Do you think this would happen without the contributions from succesful USC alumni?</p>
<p>USC endowment isn't too impressive considering Berkeley...a public university with no tradition of alumni giving is not to far behind and may actually be larger now since I read a about 6 months ago Berkeley had raised 1.1 Billion halfway through the silent phase of its endowment campaign.</p>
<p>!) Berkeley, 2) Northwestern and a distant 3 academically USC. That being said, if you have to pay more than 20K for Berkeley or NU for all 4 yrs then go to USC. If you can get away with borrowing less than 20K for all 4 yrs for Cal or NU go to Cal first then NU. By the way if you are afraid to compete then you don't belong in a business program. One more thing, it isn't about where you get your BA in Business or Econ it is about where you get your MBA. A B.A. in econ makes you a low level errand boy/girl for the MBA's. NOW an MBA program at a top flight school would be easier to get to if you are a big fish in a big pond (BERKELEY) vs a big fish in a small pond (USC). Cal might competitive but MBA programs know that and a lower GPA at Cal would be ok. At USC there is no margin for error.</p>
<p>Columbia_Student,</p>
<p>If it's accounting, then it's probably more about lack of competition than "alumni network". In California, USC is the only school that offers decent accounting. The next one that offers a program in accounting in So Cal? Cal State LA. Look at the 2006 employment report again, I see that quite a few were hired by big4. Other than that, very few were hired by IB and MC, considering the large number of graduates. That only 1/3 of graduates got employed by April is alarming cos it's low even for graduates in humanities, let alone for a field that's supposed to get you a job.</p>
<p>^unless it's because most of them didn't look for jobs until the last min. it's possible.</p>
<p>Work hard and get into Haas...as a reward you can flash your Haas business card declaring that you are a "BS Business Administration Candidate". ;)</p>
<p>If not, econ at Berkeley is a fantastic backup.</p>
<p>Don't be seduced by the money the condoms are throwing at you...haha.</p>
<p><em>Seriously though, you won't go wrong with any of your choices...trust your gut feel for what fits you best</em></p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>
[quote]
USC endowment isn't too impressive considering Berkeley...a public university with no tradition of alumni giving is not to far behind and may actually be larger now since I read a about 6 months ago Berkeley had raised 1.1 Billion halfway through the silent phase of its endowment campaign.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>USC is trying to raise $5 billion. It was near bankruptcy in the 80s. So that is very impressive.</p>
<p>^for a school that touts how strong the USC network is the university endowment should be far greater. An endowment in the 3 billions for a private is not very good....especially a private with 33,000 students. How could the USC family allow USC to even be near bankruptcy in the 80s is something I don't understand. As for the five billion dollar goal, I'll believe it when they actually do it.</p>
<p>Compare to the school of its rank, $3.7 billion in 2007 is pretty impressive. Consider some of the Ivy league institutions like Cornell only has $5.7 billion, Dartmouth has $3.7 billion, Brown has $2.8 billion, and the whole of University of California(system wide) is $6.7 billion. However, that's the past, USC is moving fast under the new leadership of president Sample.</p>
<p>List</a> of U.S. colleges and universities by endowment - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</p>
<p>But USC has 33,000 students, while dartmouth has about 5000, brown has 14,000 and cornell has around 19,000. You're figures for the UC System are old. At the beginning of the year Berkeley had around 3.5 Billion and that's not including the billions they've collected since starting the silent phase of its campaign. Also since UC is state funded, for instance, Berkeley gets over 500 million from the state each year.....thats equivalent to a 10 billion dollar endowment. I'm not saying that USC's endowment is nothing, but for a school that touts its alumni network as much as it does, it should be much higher. Also how much of that USC's endowment is dedicated to the film school? I know at least 200 million of it was given by George Lucas to the film school. Again, USC is definately a university on the move but as a private school its endowment should be larger.</p>
<p>hmm i thought Northwestern is starting undergrad business next year.
maybe i'm wrong.
I'd go to USC solely b/c it has over-reaching alumni network.
but also b/c... OJ Mayo is in the house baby!</p>
<p>You should visit these schools before deciding, if you haven't already. If you have, go with your gut first choice and don't worry about getting into Haas. If you could get into NU, I am sure you have what it takes to get into Haas. Just work hard.</p>
<p>For me, it would be a toss-up between Berkeley and NU depending on certain factors. If, I were in your position and from SoCal, I probably would go to Berkeley. If you're from close to Berkeley, go to NU. It's a kick-ass school, very top notch (;) SL). If you know for sure you want to settle in SoCal, the USC network is good, particularly worth choosing if you got a really good feeling when you visited. But again, if I were leaving NorCal to go elsewhere, I'd go to NU, not USC. That's me personally.</p>
<p>But now that I've just gone back and re-read your post, I'd say go to USC. You're in that spiffy global leadership program. It sounds like you know you definitely want to study business undergrad and there's just no question about that. In particular, again, if you want to stay in the LA area after graduating, I'd really put away all doubt and go to USC. If you want to bust out and, for instance, go to NYC after graduating, I'd look at Haas and NU recruiting for NYC to see how they compare with USC and choose the one that fits all your criteria optimally.</p>
<p>I guess what I am saying is I don't think you can go wrong. Congrats.</p>