<p>Hi all!</p>
<p>So I am torn between these two fine universities for the class of 2017 and I was wondering if any of you had input on which one might be the wiser choice.</p>
<p>I am interested in business/economics and I know both schools have strong backgrounds in those fields.</p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>One of many things to consider is where you would like to eventually work. I would imagine Notre Dame would have more alum contacts and networking in the midwest, while UVa is strong on the east coast. Those contacts don’t guarantee you success, but help you get internships and open doors to interviews.</p>
<p>bump bump.</p>
<p>I’m deciding the exact same thing, with a minor difference. I’m trying to major in econ, not business (big difference, I know, I know) and double major in arabic. I’m trying to get a job in Washington or abroad.</p>
<p>I haven’t toured ND yet (I’m typing this in the middle of a UVA tour) but I’d say that the ND program looks better. They have a separate school for business, so that means more resources. As well, they’re a private college and the ND endowment is legendary. They also don’t have the serious competition of a public university. Can’t say the tour guide is emphasizing how cutthroat UVA is, but since the most impacted majors at UVA are business, econ, finance, etc. I’m going to guess they’re competitive, especially when it comes to getting classes.</p>
<p>My 2 cents, for what it’s worth. If anyone else has any ACT[UAL information, please post!</p>
<p>To GGRace</p>
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<p>McIntire School of Commerce is its own separate ‘school’ at UVa. It is very well funded. </p>
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<p>UVa has a one of the top endowments of a public university per student.</p>
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You are much closer to DC being in C’ville as well as many more contacts for this geographic area for positions in the UVA database. </p>
<p>Just wanted to clarify some statements in your post so you can make a valid decision based on facts. Hope you enjoy your tour of UVa and by all means speak with students while you are there and ask them exactly what you are on CC. That is a much better place to get answers to your questions. </p>
<p>To OP and GG:
ND and UVa are excellent options. You can not go wrong with either choice. It will come down to fit. Best of luck to you both.</p>
<p>I agree with woosah–we toured both schools and really loved them both. The only downside to ND for us was the location-the town itself, the weather, and the long distance from our home. Everything else we really liked. A tough choice–good luck!</p>
<p>BeachMom: the three things you listed (town, weather, distance) are major players in the tie-breaking arena. If the schools’ academics are on par (ND and UVa I think are, UVa maybe edging out ND but one couldn’t go wrong at either) then it should come down to fit/feel, cost, and location.</p>
<p>Just food for thought…</p>
<p>Studies show that the two most important factors in making colleges choices are (i) cost and (ii) academic reputation. If you are an OOS student, cost between ND and UVA is probably pretty similar. Academic reputation is pretty even as well between these two. I think the shades of gray differences between the two undergrad B schools are not significant enough to drive a decision. So it comes down to look, feel, size and location differences, which are significant and obvious:</p>
<p>Do you like the midwest? Do you like the idea of attending a very Catholic university? Do you want to live on campus in a dorm all four years? Do you really like college football and big-time college sports? Do you want a smaller private school?</p>
<p>Do you like the south, warm weather, preppies? Do you want to be in a frat/soriority (which don’t exist at ND)? Do you want a larger school? Do you like history (especially as regards Mr. Jefferson)?</p>
<p>The relative sizes of the two schools, the absence of Greek Life at ND, and the preference that students live on campus at ND (80% of undergrads live in residence halls) make for very different school experiences.</p>
<p>Like the others have mentioned, UVa and Notre Dame are on par academically esp. when it comes to business/economics, but the student experiences are very different. Unless cost comes into play, your decision will really come down to fit. I think you definitely need to visit both schools…if you’re able to. Picking a school is really like having a relationship. To be honest, picking a college (esp. at the UVa/ND level) is not about 4 years. It really is about the rest of your life because the connections you make in college follow you forever. Colleges of a certain ilk take pride in its traditions (at UVa, it’s our Jeffersonian-speak, secret societies, obsession with honor, etc.), and those traditions become part of you. </p>
<p>Personally, I’ve found my alumni experience to be richer than when I was an undergrad at UVa. So, visit both schools if possible. Who wants to start a relationship without at least going on a first date?</p>
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<p>LOL. Great line, and very true.</p>
<p>Haha, thanks.</p>
<p>Hello, Globalist - was reading your reply UVA vs. ND with interest, as my son is choosing between UVA and UGA - Honors College. How does UVA compare? How important are the secret societies there? What is the attraction if you are an undecided liberal arts major who will require gainful employment subsequent to graduation to pay off this increasingly expensive school?</p>
<p>Hi Exeter7, </p>
<p>I don’t know much about UGA’s Honors Program. I perused through their website quickly, and what I found interesting about UGA’s program is that their students are required to take numerous honors classes. At UVa, all our classes are considered “honors” classes in the sense that everyone at UVa is smart enough to take them. Interestingly enough, when you’re an Echols Scholar at UVa, instead of being forced to take certain classes, you’re actually freed of all class requirements, except for those that go towards your major. Because UVa is all about “self-governance,” the emphasis is on giving students the freedom to devise their class schedules as well as their collegiate life in general. (Back when I was at UVa, Echols Scholars didn’t have to major in anything at all. You could just take any class you wanted for 4 years and graduate with an “Echols Scholar Interdisciplinary Major.”) The program has since changed that, which is a good thing.</p>
<p>Secret societies are a big deal at UVa, but they’re just one aspect of the school. As for post-graduate employment, UVa has a great [Student</a> Career Services](<a href=“http://www.career.virginia.edu/students/]Student”>http://www.career.virginia.edu/students/) Center that will help your son with internships, externships, job fairs, and interviews. While at UVa, I studied International Affairs and Economics. I was able to get an externship at the United Nations and a paid internship at a major TV network. Before I graduated, I was recruited to be an analyst in NYC. Right now however, I work in Media & Entertainment. UVa definitely has the resources to help your son, but he’ll need to take the initiative to use all the resources that UVa has.</p>
<p>On a different note, I have to admit that my perspective is different from most folks that come here to CC. Most people when they’re picking colleges, they mostly focus on 4 years of one’s life. They debate ad nauseam about rankings, the classes, and the departmental reputations, all of which are important. But as an alum who’s very involved, I’ve come to realize that the college you pick at 18 can affect the rest of your life in non-tangible ways. In fact, those 4 years at UVa have given me alumni opportunities that may not be found in other schools like the University of Georgia. For me, it’s comes down to 2 factors: (1) the overall reputation that UVa carries, and (2) the strength of the UVa alumni network. Let me explain.</p>
<p>Firstly, I’ve gotten jobs because of having gone to UVa – either from my UVa alumni network hooking me up, or employers giving me a serious look because of where I went to school. Socially-speaking here in NYC, having gone to UVa has helped me to hang out with smart, cool people either through the [Ivy</a> Plus Society](<a href=“http://www.ivyplussociety.org/about.html]Ivy”>http://www.ivyplussociety.org/about.html) or being a member of the [UVa</a> Club of New York, which shares a clubhouse in NYC](<a href=“Login - Yale Club of New York”>Login - Yale Club of New York) with Yale and Dartmouth. Because of these networks, I’ve become friends and acquaintances with other UVa alums who I didn’t know at UVa or had graduated before or after me. One friend became a [congressman[/url</a>] last year. Another is a [url=<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lowell_P._Weicker,_Jr.]retired”>Lowell Weicker - Wikipedia]retired</a> senator and former governor.](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sean_Patrick_Maloney]congressman[/url”>Sean Patrick Maloney - Wikipedia) Another works in the White House. Another one has [his</a> own hedge fund.](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Ridge_Capital]his”>Blue Ridge Capital - Wikipedia) Another alumni friend is a [real</a> estate mogul.](<a href=“HABITATS/Bridgehampton, N.Y.; The Duke of Dumbo Rides Tall in Horse Country - The New York Times”>HABITATS/Bridgehampton, N.Y.; The Duke of Dumbo Rides Tall in Horse Country - The New York Times) Another is the COO of Major League Baseball. Several of them are medical doctors. [Two</a> of them founded Reddit.](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexis_Ohanian]Two”>Alexis Ohanian - Wikipedia) I’ve even met both Katie Couric and Tina Fey. (Here’s a [video</a> of both of them talking about attending UVa](<a href=“Katie Couric and Tina Fey Share Their UVA College Confessions - YouTube”>Katie Couric and Tina Fey Share Their UVA College Confessions - YouTube).) </p>
<p>Furthermore, I find UVa people to be quite successful. In [Wealth</a> X’s recent list of schools that produce the highest number of “ultra high net worth individuals,” UVa is the highest ranked public school](<a href=“3 Public Universities Made List of 15 Schools With the Wealthiest Alumni - ABC News”>3 Public Universities Made List of 15 Schools With the Wealthiest Alumni - ABC News) at #11, just after Princeton. Plus, UVa has the “the highest percentage of self-made ultra high net worth individuals” amongst the schools. At least here in NYC, these are the types of alums one meets with when you went to UVa.</p>
<p>So in short, as a UVa alum you will still be getting dividends from having attended Virginia many, many years later in your life. That’s why I think UVa is the long-term better choice.</p>
<p>Excellent post and advice, Globalist!</p>
<p>Thanks jc40.</p>
<p>I am also making the same decision. Any more opinions would be welcome. I know it sounds superfluous, but weather may actually be the deciding factor for me. I feel as if ND has the edge academically/alumni network, but the location of UVA is superior. Especially considering the fact I love to play golf and UVA seems to have the weather to extend the golf season. </p>
<p>My only concern about UVA is job placement. There unemployment rate out of their engineering school was about 15% while at ND every engineer either had a job or went to graduate school. I am finding it hard to look past those statistics. </p>
<p>Another thing is recognition. Which school is more well regarded nationally? I understand ND has the Midwest and UVA the Southeast, but if I applied for a job in California or New York what degree would hold more water?</p>
<p>ScienceGuy12, I’m not sure that academically ND has an edge over UVa. [UVa</a> Engineering is ahead of ND according to US News.](<a href=“http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-engineering-schools/eng-rankings/page+2]UVa”>http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-engineering-schools/eng-rankings/page+2) Also, regarding the strength of our alumni networks in NY, you should read my earlier post in this thread even though it’s about UGA. Personally, I think the UVa alumni network is stronger than ND’s in NY. We do stuff with the Ivies all the time. I never see ND anywhere.</p>
<p>Exeter7 – Of my two students, my oldest graduated from UGA (not honors) and my youngest will graduate from UVa this May. Both loved their schools and their experiences there, but the schools are very different. I have not looked at UGA tuition lately, but I suspect it is still substantially cheaper OOS than UVa OOS. Since your son was invited to the honors program, he may well have also received merit money further reducing the price of UGA. Don’t overlook, though, the cost of travel to Athens, GA. Maybe your son would be taking a car, since freshmen there are allowed to bring cars, but flights to Atlanta can be pricy, especially on short notice, and then one has to get the 90 miles from Hartsfield to Athens. Also costly for mom and dad to go visit. </p>
<p>As I recall, the Honors housing at UGA was very nice, MUCH nicer than most of the other first year housing. It is also nicer than much of the first year housing at UVa, unless one gets into the one of the new dorms at UVa. Honors housing at UGA is closer to classes than the newest dorms at UVa, though.</p>
<p>Food at UGA is outstanding (though expensive, with minimal options for dining plans). Same is not said for UVa, unless things have improved drastically with the opening of the new dining options at Newcomb.</p>
<p>What does your son think he wants to study? That could make a huge difference in which school he would prefer. UVa liberal arts classes are vastly more varied than UGA’s. Another difference, at least in the past, was that UGA students not in the Terry College of Business could not take any basic business classes within Terry. At UVa, there are some business classes open to non-Commerce students. Also, what kinds of students does your son prefer to be in class with it? Although there are many very bright students at UGA – the Hope Scholarship program has been very successful in raising the academic level of the student body at UGA, there is decidedly a less “intellectual” feel to the school than at UVa. Some students prefer that feel; others are more comfortable in a different atmosphere. That probably accounts for the huge number of students at UVa from Atlanta and the Atlanta suburbs. </p>
<p>I have not been overly impressed with the Career Services/Placement offices at either UGA or UVa for non-commerce or engineering students (my UGA student was a journalism/TV-Film production major).</p>
<p>Both schools have are facing financial challenges, though I think UVa is weathering them better than UGA.</p>
<p>Football is hands down better at UGA. But, in recent years freshman at UGA can’t buy tickets to all home games. Tickets are pricy and hard to get for parents. Both schools have strong tailgating traditions, but there is little comparison between the intensity of UGA and UVa tailgating.</p>
<p>Both schools have strong Alumni networks, and if your son wanted to end up in Atlanta or another GA area, I think he would find many of the attributes Globalist described for UVa in NY. UVa Alumni also have a strong GA presence. Everywhere else, UVa’s network would trump UGA’s from my observations.</p>
<p>UGA is WAY more Southern than UVa – with all the good and the bad that can entail . . . </p>
<p>Good luck to your son with his decision!</p>
<p>FYI, the engineering “15%” survey is done before the end of the school year. I don’t know a single engineering student that wanted a job or grad school and didn’t get either or both. Both names carry clout, though in the DC area UVa I think has more</p>
<p>Birdwood opened while I was in school at UVA, and I thought it was awesome. But these guys only rate it as the 21st best college golf course. ND comes in at #9 (ahead of UNC and Duke)! </p>
<p>[Links</a> Golf Magazine | The Best Source On Golf Courses, Travel and Lifestyle: Virginia Birdwood College Golf Courses](<a href=“http://www.linksmagazine.com/golf_courses/features/best_college_courses/virginia-birdwood-college-golf-courses/]Links”>http://www.linksmagazine.com/golf_courses/features/best_college_courses/virginia-birdwood-college-golf-courses/)</p>