Wharton vs. Harvard vs. Yale vs. Princeton vs. Stanford

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Pennsylvania
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<p>I feel very grateful for being accepted into these colleges. However, I am now faced with a difficult decision of choosing. (I did not have the chance to visit any of these colleges.)</p>

<p>So far, the financial aid packages I have received from all of the schools are terrible. (Still have not received one from Harvard yet though...) However, I have received a very nice scholarship from my state school, which is top 10 in undergraduate business, that pays between 30-40% of my total expenses.</p>

<p>I am interested in pursuing business/finance, but I'm not 100% sure. Yes, I am aware that most of these schools don't have business programs, just economics. I know many people say that I should not substitute business for an economics degree because the two fields are completely different, and I should only study them if I find it interesting. Luckily, I do find economics interesting so all is well.</p>

<p>However, I am completely confused on which college I should pick. All of them are prestigious definitely, so I do not think I can use that as an argument about which university is better. (Unfortunately, my parents are "prestige-oriented", which is super annoying, and they are kinda pushing me to go to Harvard, but in the end it is my decision.)</p>

<p>I have started doing research in each schools and I just find it so confusing. Every time I read student reviews, it all contradicts with each other. And of course, each school website I go to will boast of its programs in the positive light so I don't know what to believe in anymore.</p>

<p>I regret not visiting colleges, and I have one month to decide. I may visit Harvard on a weekend though, so we'll see</p>

<p>** However, from your experiences at Harvard, what is your opinion? How are the students' personalities? Is the atmosphere pre-professional, or is there also an intellectual presence as well? Are the professors accessible and are they good teachers, or just good researchers? Since everybody at Wharton is competing with each other to get to do research with professors and job opportunities, was it hard for you to secure those types of research/employment? Is the student life good? **</p>

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<p>I second this question…</p>

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<p>I’m still in high school so I can’t speak from experience, but I’ve got Wharton (/LSM), Yale, and Stanford of the ones on your list. I’ve spent a fair amount of time at Penn, and yes, it’s pretty competitive but that is by no means bad. People just work hard. Each year’s class is fairly small, and the education is phenomenal so you’ll have opportunities to spare. I’d say that Wharton sounds like the place for you if your interests lie in finance. Unlike the other schools, they have the undergraduate business focus, and you’ll be bale to get top jobs with the bachelor’s. Harvard is great for the name, of course. Still, there are big-name companies that recruit at Wharton that don’t recruit at Harvard.
I, personally, am leaning towards Stanford at the moment. Can’t beat that weather…</p>

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<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-pennsylvania/902457-wharton-mythbusters.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-pennsylvania/902457-wharton-mythbusters.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Student life is pretty amazing (we are the “Social Ivy”) and if you have a decent gpa, it’s actually quite easy (though I guess that’s a relative term) to get research positions and internships/jobs, as far as I’m aware…or I guess I should say, I haven’t heard about people having issues getting these opportunities.</p>

<p>For professors, it really depends on the professor, but I think that’s the case everywhere. We have a site called Penn Course Review where you have past rankings from students that rate professors and classes on everything from the professor overall to “Instructor’s accessibility and willingness to to discuss course content and any problems” to “ability to communicate the subject matter” to ability in “stimulating your interest in the material.” So you always know what you’re getting into and can choose the good professors.</p>

<p>There is an extremely pre-professional atmosphere. However, the intellectual type does exist, and I do have friends who are that type, and even I, in Wharton, am a bit intellectual (thinking of minoring in English)…so basically, you just have to search it out. It also depends on where you end up living/who you end up living with (luck, really) and what non-Wharton classes you take. And there are lots of events that are more intellectual than pre-professional–though there are tons of pre-professional events. I think it’s really what you make of it.</p>

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<p>just a warning from a Penn admit from NorCal: I live 15 minutes from Stanford. Do NOT expect it to be sunny all the time…it’s mostly cloudy and only really sunny in the late spring, summer, and early fall. Most of the time it’s just pleasant but nothing like LET’S GO TO THE BEACH. Also, the weather’s really fickle and unpredictable :slight_smile: I’ve heard people at Stanford complain that this is not OC weather but NorCal>SoCal all the way!</p>

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<p>This last March was cold and rainy pretty much constantly here in the Bay area. Ironically it was abnormally warm and sunny in the northeast at the time…I can never win with you, weather.</p>

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<p>Sounds like you’re in a pretty good position there. I’m a recent college grad. I haven’t visited the big name schools you listed but I turned down a couple big name schools for a 30% scholarship at my state school (CU) when I made my college decision. So here’s my take on that part of your decision.</p>

<p>Academically, it doesn’t matter. CU has a top 15 program in my major (Physics) and the academics in that subject was very competitive, certainly comparable to how it is at the big names. There were lots of research opportunities and professors doing cutting edge research and classmates to work with and learn from, a large percentage of whom went on to grad school at top programs.</p>

<p>Socially, it matters. I think the social atmosphere at the smaller, private, big name schools would have been different. The big name schools pick a very (very) select group, and if you are in that group you will be around people more like you and have an easier time making friends. On top of that there’s an element of getting “lost in the crowd” at a big state school; the people I walk past on campus I don’t know I don’t expect to see again. I didn’t make as many lasting friendships as I probably would have; most of my current “good friends” I had already known in high school.</p>

<p>Ultimately: On the bright side I can say I got the most bang for my education buck. On the downside, I probably would have had more fun had I been willing to pay for it.</p>

<p>An afterthought: the big name might be more valuable to someone going into business than into physics.</p>