Basically I got pulled off the wait list from Rice JUST as I was getting ready to take on USC. I was going to major in Accounting and Business Administration at USC’s Leventhal and Marshall. If I go to Rice, I’ll probably major in Mathematical Economic Analysis and minor in Business. Maybe I’ll try out engineering (LOL). But the thing is, I don’t have a clear idea of what I want to do in the future. All I know for sure is that I wish to pursue an MBA degree in New York and work under great firms. I’m definitely not into humanitarian subjects, with more emphasis on maths/sciences/economics/business.
–RICE–
Pros :
Smaller and ‘better fit’ community
Closer relationship with professors from smaller classes, could really help me with recommendations and job opportunities
CHEAPER (Cost of attendance is 58K, while USC is 67k. My financial aid status didn’t come out for Rice yet, but my aid for USC was pretty disappointing, putting me at risk of about 50k debt after graduation. I have a feeling Rice will help me out a bit more than USC).
Excellent College Residential system, I would be really happy there
Prestige, name value
More about academic exploration
Houston
Cons :
Horrible economics department, or so I’ve heard (Correct me if I’m wrong haha)
Little emphasis in Business, no Accounting major
I’m assuming I would have more trouble getting good GPA
Cannot provide me with the job opportunities that Marshall could under the Trojan network
–USC–
Pros :
Excellent alumni network
Very specific pathway to Accounting and Business
Better chance when pursuing MBA degrees
Easier to get GPA, I assume. My feeling is that USC is more centered around practicality and is about networking/job opportunities
Downtown LA
Cons :
Expensive (as mentioned above)
Less space for academic exploration as I will straight up pursue accounting and business
Name value < Rice
I’m in a tough position as now I have a week to decide on my future – please help? Any feedback is greatly appreciated.
@txstella My parents can barely cover the EFC for USC, and the rest are student loans that I was planning to pay myself after graduation. I was offered loan of about 12k a year, so that leaves me with about 50k debt after graduation. Ahh i AM in a really tough position. Do you think the changes to Rice economics will be great by the time I graduate?
As far as ranks in general both schools are highly competitive. Geographically many people would prefer California over Taxes. I would think that major and finance should be a deciding factor.
I know a guy majoring in EE at Rice then going to Cornell for MBA and working in a big investment firm in NYC. This was a long time ago.
My relatives and friends in Texas think Rice is Harvard for the Texans.
I live in California and I don’t hear much about the dream for USC like the Texans who dream for Rice.
From the financial point, you save at least 9K a year at Rice.
Just a thought. Go run the NPC on the Rice U website. This should give you an idea of how much Rice will cost. Rice is very generous to familes within certain income brackets but not generous to familes with higher incomes when it comes to financial aid. Because you were pulled off the wait list, it is doubtful you will receive a merit award from Rice as those seem to go to their top % of applicants.
I worry about the $50k debt. Are your parents taking out these loans for you? As a young person, it is very hard to really understand what it means to struggle to pay off loans. Do you have a more affordable option? You likely could have recieved large merit scholarships to other universities.
Everyone in California dream about Stanford. California has many great schools and USC is one of them. USC has a very good accounting program and a great alumni network.
@txstella so I tried the NPC and it said the EFC is very good, but I’m not sure how accurate that is. I remember i tried the NPC on USC before and I ended up getting the EFC as +10k more. So far for Rice, though, I’m expected to pay less than half as much as I would pay for USC.
It sounds like you prefer USC overall. However, if Rice is significantly less expensive, you might decide to go to Rice. Try calling Rice in the morning about your financial aid award. It wouldn’t hurt to ask for more money from USC once you know your status at Rice. Both schools are well respected. I wouldn’t get too caught up in the prestige of one versus the other. If you can go to Rice with a lot less in loans, then talk to your parents about money. Starting your career without a lot of debt would be terrific.
If you want to focus in math/sciences/economics/business in the undergraduate level then apply to a different school for MBA and to work in a big firm in NYC then either Rice or USC is fine. I would prefer Rice for its personal attention. Also an undergraduate degree in mathematical economic analysis is more appealing. A lot of people majoring in math, engineering go to MBA schools or go straight to NYC firms. They need analytic skills.
Hi Congrats! I think if you are still unsure that Rice would be a great choice because it is greater and have a greater liberal arts approach. Rice has an economic program, which according to US news is 48 (take it for what it’s worth). I think it comes down to whether you want to go straight into business, which USC would probably do a better job preparing you for, or if you want to have a liberal arts college experience, which could also bring a lot of benefits as well! I hope that helped, please comment on my situation in my thread thank you!!
Thank you everyone for your generous help! I am worried because my career choice lies closer to economics and business and Rice doesn’t seem to be strong in areas other than natural sciences and engineering. To add on, considering my MBA oriented goals, I’m unsure if I want to pursue a liberal arts education.
I have estimated the cost of attendance as less than half of what I would have to pay for USC (actual award still isn’t showing up, though). However the cost of attendance is still debatable considering the strong alumni network and career oriented education that USC provides - wouldn’t I have a better job with better salary through the USC education that will enable me to pay off the debt? Please provide me with more insight - feel free to correct me, please !
You really can’t predict that stuff. Given that both schools are strong and appealing to you, I’d go with lower debt. If you strongly prefer one over the other, and the cost difference isn’t significant, that’s another matter, but I don’t think you can predict future income/networking with any accuracy at this point.
The above reports indicate that both schools are regional schools. 78% USC MBA graduates work in the West. 89% Rice MBA graduates work in the Southwest.
So, if you want to work in NYC you need to save money to go to an MBA school in the East.
Furthermore average salary of Rice undergraduate business minor is comparable with salary of USC Marshall undergraduates.
