<p>Please help me decide. I have been accepted into USC Marshall and Cornell U.-College of Agriculture and Life Sciences' Applied Econ and Management ( Cornell's version of the traditional business program).
I am interested in Marketing and management. I am only above average in math so I don't think I will be very good in IB. I would like to be able to get some interesting jobs after UG so to set me up for a top tier MBA program, such as Tucks, Wharton, Stanford et. al.
I am also interested in global business opportunities. With the considerations of global reputation, academic standard, competitiveness of fellow students, network and job placement potentials, which one of these would prepare me better for future success?</p>
<p>I think the obvious questions you should ask yourself are:</p>
<p>would you rather go to school in a big city, or small town?
would you rather live on the east or west coast after graduation?</p>
<p>Generally, Cornell has more prestige than USC, however the school is certainly not known for its business program. USC however, is very well known (especially on the west coast) for its undergrad business program.</p>
<p>For business it's USC all the way. Part of the appeal of a school like USC is the career opportunities it will open for you, especially in Los Angeles. Cornell, though prestigious due to its Ivy status, is in no way known for business, and it's econ program is shabby in comparison to Harvard or Penn's. It seems like an employer would rather see someone with a degree from a great business school at an elite and respected school (USC) vs. an applied econ degree from a decent program at a highly elite and pretigious school. </p>
<p>LA also=cooler than Ithaca.</p>
<p>And USC will set you up very well for top tier MBAs, i.e. Wharton, Northwestern, and ESPECIALLY Stanford.</p>
<p>So for whatever my opinion may be worth (seeing as you don't know me), USC sounds like the way to go.</p>
<p>I think it really depends on your preference. In addition to bicoastal07's list, you should consider if you like sports environment at USC, warm weather, etc.</p>
<p>A Cornell undergraduate degree should carry considerable weight when applying for an MBA down the line. USC is a great school, too, though. Congrats on having these kinds of choices!</p>
<p>omg!! thanks for making this thread!!! I am in almost the same boat except for the fact that I am majoring in communication at Cornell, and broadcast journalism at USC!!
I don't know what to do.
I'm weighing Cornell's bad weather, but more academic environment, and unique textile and apparel management program that I might potentially minor/double major in with communications, against USC's amazing alum connections, awesome weather, and strong broadcast journalism program and the huge scholarship i got.
It pretty much evens out and I can't decide.</p>
<p>I'm in the same boat too, but deciding between Cornell ILR and USC Marshall.</p>
<p>I didn't apply to Cornell AEM, but I thought this was interesting: (came across it while comparing Marshall, Stern, and ILR)
<a href="http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/07/undergrad/index.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/07/undergrad/index.html</a></p>
<p>I still like USC Marshall.</p>
<p>I'm not sure how Cornell ranks so highly in the BW rankings (though Marshall ranks higher in USNWR). AEM seems to be one of Cornell's less selective programs (USC Marshall has higher SATs and selectivity than Cornell AEM), and academically it seems to be very limited in scope.</p>
<p>Take a look at the course offerings:
<a href="http://business.aem.cornell.edu/academics/courses.htm%5B/url%5D">http://business.aem.cornell.edu/academics/courses.htm</a></p>
<p>They have ~ 60 courses in the AEM department, and none of the disciplines (other than Agribusiness) offer nearly as in-depth coursework as USC Marshall, which has roughly 150 courses (including Leventhal school of Accounting). For example, it looks as if Cornell offers 8 upper-division finance courses. Marshall offers 29 different upper-division finance courses for undergraduates, spanning 5 different undergraduate finance concentrations.</p>
<p>Take a look at Marshall's course catalogue:
<a href="http://www.usc.edu/dept/publications/cat2006/schools/business/concentration/finance.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.usc.edu/dept/publications/cat2006/schools/business/concentration/finance.html</a></p>
<p>Marshall has considerably more depth in every one of it's departments, including finance, entreprenurship, business communication, management, marketing, operations, and accounting. </p>
<p>As far as i can tell, the only subject in which Cornell has stronger course offerings is Agri-Business (ie, Farm Management).</p>
<p>Diehldun, Congrat on the GT at Cornell. From the Cornell site, you sound like planning for the transfer for sure. What changed your mind here?
Bicoastal, great post. I was wondering the same. Especially Cornell AEM being #1 MBA feeder. Does that mean it is much better respected?
I live in the bay area and plan to eventually move back here.But I don't mind leaving the state for academic and working experience. All I care is to get a good resume for top MBA application later.
Also, do you think one can stand out easier at USC?</p>
<p>Wow I'm surprised so many people have little respect for AEM. Far from being one of the "less-selective programs at Cornell," AEM is one of the harder programs to get into; last year, the acceptance rate was 16%. As far as comparing AEM to Marshall, the difference is not profound. Marshall will certainly win in the alum-network and if you want to work on the west coast, the choice is clear. However, Cornell AEM is quickly gaining prestige. In its first year (2003?) it was ranked #13 and this past year it was ranked #10 compared to Marshall, which is currently #19. </p>
<p>As one of the only 2 undergraduate business schools within the ivy league, AEM has nowhere to go but up. I am shocked at the amount of people saying that USC is the clear choice. There is obviously a bias here. :rolleyes:</p>
<p>bioeng, tough to say if you will be able to "stand out easier" at USC. Both schools have comparable student bodies, so i would assume you would be facing a comparable level of competition in each program.</p>
<p>brand_182: I fully admit I'm biased towards Marshall, but that's why I attempted to provide objective support from my opinion. Cornell's AEM course-offerings look quite unimpressive in comparison to Marshall's, and I certainly believe that could be representative of the program's overall quality. First of all, AEM doesn't even have it's own school, and secondly, merely being in the Ivy League does not guarantee that "AEM has nowhere to go but up". AEM isn't comparable in anyway to Wharton, and trying to associate the two schools is ridiculous.</p>
<p>bioeng (thought it was boeing lol), I'm planning on using the GT at Cornell, but have been hearing really good stuff about USC Marshall; so I think I'll transfer from USC to Cornell. But you know, maybe I'll end up loving USC once I'm there...</p>
<p>
[quote]
being in the Ivy League does not guarantee that "AEM has nowhere to go but up"
[/quote]
</p>
<p>No, there is much more to it than that. AEM has been gaining ground since it started and is a very recent development. With the fascination and obsession people have with the ivy league and the large number of students wanting to study business undergrad, Cornell is the only other option to Wharton. It is definitely no Wharton, but that's not to say it's no Marshall, and in fact many people will argue that the schools are on par or that AEM is better.</p>
<p>
[quote]
It is definitely no Wharton, but that's not to say it's no Marshall, and in fact many people will argue that the schools are on par or that AEM is better.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Thats what i'm trying to get at: what arguments are there to support AEM >= Marshall?</p>
<p>I'm honestly curious, and not trying to flame AEM. I presented arguments above in support of Marshall (regarding selectivity and depth of courses), and would be interested to hear real arguments in support of AEM.</p>
<p>The BW says that Marshall's curve is unfairly harsh. Is it due to the students caliber, cut-throatness or general teaching quality or difficulty of subjects? How does that translate to job placement in the top firms. Is that why it's MBA feeder ranking is so low?</p>
<p>So far, it seems the argument for Cornell is mainly " it's Ivy League" though. Yes, it ranks #10, but what support that? Marshall is ranked #9 in another survey, what supports that?</p>
<p>These are answers I need to find out.</p>
<p>
[quote]
what arguments are there to support AEM >= Marshall
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Well, I actually don't think that's clear, although I have the gut feeling that AEM is better than Marshall and would choose it if I had to pick one or the other. But what I was seeing here - that Marshall is the clear choice - was making me laugh and I had to speak up. </p>
<p>I really don't know much as far as AEM or Marshall's resources and advantages as I'm not a business student (anymore). I've heard the classes are large at AEM and I've heard the Marshall curve is awful.</p>
<p>The curve at Marshall had been unfairly harsh for a long time, however it was raised last December (takes effect for the current semester). The curve for core business classes was raised from 2.85 to 3.0, and the curve for business electives (including concentration classes) was raised from 3.15 to 3.3. I don't think this was taken into account for the BW article/rankings.</p>
<p>Personally, I think the curve is pretty fair now. It certainly makes the core classes more competitive, but I think that is good for the school. And the 3.3 (B+) curve for electives and concentration classes is certainly fair.</p>
<p>Well that's good to hear. I remember when I was looking into business being scared of applying to Marshall for that very reason. No offense to USC students, but the idea is similar to that of Boston University: students complain about the difficulty of the school and nobody cares except for those within the school; employers/grad schools seem to only account for the difficulty of schools like UChi, Swat, Reed, and even then that's not by much, so people at schools like Marshall/BU always seemed like they felt cheated when I talked to them. USC will do well to start inflating that GPA up so all the ivy kids with 3.8's don't take all the good jobs.</p>