<p>Hi, I just found out I have been offered a place at both Wharton and Columbia. The problem is I am really confused now as to which one to choose..I would just like any advice or information about the two that would aid me in making a decision.. Obviously, it's business at wharton and i intend on majoring in economics at columbia. </p>
<p>What are the pros/cons of both?? how is the location/sense of community/job prospects/ease of getting into a masters program at both??</p>
<p>any help would be greatly appreciated!! thanks!</p>
<p>Penn and Columbia, while both in cities, are very different. I don’t think it would make any sense to turn down Wharton for Columbia’s economics department because Columbia has the core, which would only prevent you from focusing more heavily on your interest in business. </p>
<p>Do you want more of a traditional college experience with an on-campus community or a more individualistic experience that focuses more heavily on the city?</p>
<p>I myself preferred the balance achieved between Penn and Philadelphia, which is big enough to have some of the nation’s best museums, restaurants, a lively art scene etc, but not so big and alluring as to be a drain on the energy of the campus community.</p>
<p>Is NYC a bigger and better city than Philadelphia? Absolutely, and that’s why I would choose Philly for COLLEGE (which to me should be about COLLEGE) and NYC for any other time in my life.</p>
<p>wow thanks guys!! so then wharton is more well-reputed than columbia economics?? I have been to neither new york nor philadelphia but i imagine the big city would be quite daunting…but then again it’s new york!!! so for undergrad penn is a better option?? thanks so much for your help!</p>
<p>I deal with that question there. If you want a career in business, then Wharton has far better career prospects than Princeton and Yale, let alone Columbia. Harvard is Wharton’s only real competitor, but Wharton does better even than Harvard in terms of job placement. But job placement is not everything, in that thread I discuss the other reasons why I think you should choose Penn and the advantages Wharton gives you. A Princeton alumna, that worked in the industry, admitted as much. </p>
<p>There is competition at Wharton, there is competition at any top school. There is even more competition in life, get used to it. I had two cousins that went to Yale, and one that went to Penn. I talked to all of them before making my decision, they all agreed that the competition at Wharton is not that different to the competition at Yale, the curve just makes it more visible.</p>
<p>If you’re looking to go into business, Wharton would be the obvious choice. If you’re more interested in scholarly economics and academia, Columbia might be a better fit, although you certainly wouldn’t be limited in post-grad options (such as pursuing a PhD) by going to Wharton. </p>
<p>I recently visited Columbia for the first time. While it was beautiful and I really liked Morningside Heights, it really did not feel like a college campus. It was tiny. I thought Penn was fairly small, but Columbia is absolutely microscopic. Whereas Penn truly feels like a campus in the middle of the city, Columbia felt like a complex of buildings in the middle of a city (not in the sense of NYU–more like a cohesive “facility.”) Of course, Penn is in a much less dense area of Philly than Columbia is in of NYC (are there any non-dense areas, though?) so it naturally feels more open, but the fact remains. It was a Friday afternoon and there were hardly any people outside (granted, it was chilly, but nonetheless). I can easily see how the city draws life away from campus, but I won’t deny at the same time NYC is very appealing. </p>
<p>Don’t forget that Wharton and Columbia both have almost completely opposite core curriculums–in Wharton you’ll have finance, accounting, marketing, etc. and at Columbia you’ll have lit, history, etc. Which do you prefer? Remember, you still have the opportunity to take plenty of classes outside of Wharton (and will be required to do so). </p>
<p>Submatriculating for a Wharton MBA is not easy; I recall a statistic in a thread lately that said out of the 9 people who applied recently, 1 was accepted. It seems a little repetitive, however, to go from Wharton undergrad straight to an MBA. You’ll probably find it’s not necessary at all, and if you do it would most likely be after working for a couple years. A comment I have heard several times is that the Wharton undergrad program is quite similar to the MBA program.</p>
<p>So in that sense, after going to Wharton an MBA is not a necessity?? Would it just be repetitive?? And can I still do literature, psychology etc at Wharton, alongside business? I know I want to go into Business, but I’m not sure I want to go into finance/investment banking where most graduates end up…Would it be better to go to Columbia, experiment in other fields as well as doing economics and then specialise postgrad? </p>
<p>I know competition is something that is inescapable, but I think the college experience should be more then just trying to compete all the time…</p>
<p>What about class sizes? and the drop out rate?? Does anyone know where I can find these statistics?</p>
<p>Also, i know this may sound like a generalisation, but I always hear about people going on about how they love columbia but i’ve never really heard people raving about the actual college experience at Wharton?? Sorry if that sounds ignorant, but I was just wondering…?</p>
<p>There is still a portion of Wharton undergrads that go on to get their MBA (I’ve heard around 1/3, but you might want to check the career services site for that). Wharton students still have to fulfill distributional requirements, and those classes will be outside Wharton. Minoring in a subject outside of Wharton is quite easy, as you only need to take the classes required for the minor. I know may Wharton students have the space to complete 2 concentrations (which are 4 courses each), so a minor (which is typically 6 courses) shouldn’t be too difficult if you only have one concentration. However, majoring in something outside of Wharton is (much) more difficult because you need to fulfill all the requirements of the other school. So, if you wanted to major in Psychology, you would need to fulfill all the requirements of the College (such as sector requirements, foundational approaches, etc.). This is one reason, for example, M&T is much more desirable than simply doing a dual degree between Wharton and Engineering on your own: it is very hard to fulfill all the requirements, and special dual degree programs decrease the number of requirements you need to fulfill. If you decide you don’t want to be in Wharton at all, it’s very easy to transfer into another school; all you need is a 3.0. </p>
<p>I’m not in Wharton, but it seems to me the perception of competition arises mostly because all Wharton kids are going to be taking many of the same classes, especially core classes. Simply by virtue of how many other people you are competing against, it seems to ramp up the idea of just how competitive it is. But I’m not sure why it gets that rep–you don’t ever hear people complaining about how cutthroat CAS science majors are, when you better believe it’s damn hard to get an A in science classes, especially intros. I don’t think there’s a different level of competition with outward displays of sabotage or people doing anything they can to get ahead. It seems fairly normal to me. You’ll be working hard for As (most of the time), but that doesn’t mean people are eyeing each other hoping for one another’s demise. It’s simply a factor of going to school with a bunch of other smart people. </p>
<p>And people wouldn’t rave about the college experience at Wharton, it would be at Penn. Please make no mistake of that; Wharton is a part of Penn (even if they try to brand themselves as a separate entity). There’s quite a bit of enthusiasm for Penn among the student body.</p>
<p>thanks so much for your reply, it was very insightful and helpful. I think I am leaning towards Wharton, it seems like an opportunity that might not come again!</p>
<p>They are relatively small. That was a selling point about Wharton for me. Imagine being taught by the best finance professors in the world, by siegel for instance, and having him know your name. It is very intimate. Read this article:</p>
<p>^Actually…most Wharton classes are not like that at ALL. A quick search of some Fall '10 classes shows very few under 45 or 50 people. That said, most of these classes aren’t the kind you would really need to be 25 people because they aren’t discussion oriented.</p>
<p>Just a note to all the people worried about the so-called competition at wharton</p>
<p>You will get out what you put in. Most classes give about 60-70% A’s and B’s so if you work hard you will get a good grade. Also many students here are primarily focused on things outside the classroom (sports, activities etc) so if you work hard you will do well. Most people who do worse than they would have liked attribute it to simply not putting in enough work. With the good professors, TA and professor office hours and recitations you have all you need to do well. </p>
<p>In terms of cut-throat atmosphere, it also depends what you put in. If you are sociable, hard working and outgoing you will get a solid group of people in your classes (for the first two years you see many of the same people) who you will work on projects, assignments and study with. While random strangers won’t be your best friends, you will find a group of people you function well with.</p>
<p>Life in NYC is pricey, and some students I know, never go out.
I knew two people at Columbia (one is doing premed now) and of them, the one that graduated did econ and he is now working in a well paid job on Wall Street. I guess job opportunities and internships in Wall Street are good at Columbia because it is located in NY.
Asides from the education, Penn is bigger and has a huge campus. But Philly is actually ranked to be the second most dangerous city in the US (but I’m sure you won’t get harassed or worse if you don’t stupidly walk around drunk alone at night).
Columbia students don’t really have school spirit (they admit their sport teams suck) and go out of campus for their fun usually.</p>