<p>So...ya, I'm looking alot of LACS right now, as well as Dartmouth. I want a LAC-style experience for sure, but I want to go to a top business school after and then pursue a career in business. I want alot of internship opportunities in college, a great career service-center, and then a good track record of top-firm recruitment. I also need financial fairly significantly (my parents combined income is 85-90K, and we have no significant assets other than house) so all my my schools (and if you have any recommendations) should be need blind admissions and have loan-free financial aid, or have limits on the loans.</p>
<p>If it matters my current list (which is in the process of being cut down...really freaking hard) is as follows, in no order.</p>
<p>Dartmouth
WAS
Pomona
CMC
Grinnell
Bowdoin
Middlebury
Davidson
Colby College
Washington and Lee University</p>
<p>If the above is TL;DR, here is a summary</p>
<p>Want LAC-style school with top business firm recruitment
Has to be loan free financial aid, or very limited loans; and need blind admission
lots of internship opportunities; great career center
My path is LAC-experience<<<business school</p>
<p>If you can afford it intellectually, count Berkeley-Haas in your list. It’s alumni network is now next to none. It offers amazing opportunities to all its graduates and it has the highest placement success rate to top graduate b-schools according to Businessweek survey. But then again, Haas is only for the chosen few.</p>
<p>I don’t want to go to undergraduate school and major in business, plus Haas undergrad is only a two year program. And I know Haas is very good, but I’d be OOS so I’d get next to no financial aid, and it is as you said it’s an insanely competitive program only accepting 800 undergrads? And that number is going to be decreasing with the state California is in (pardon the pun).</p>
<p>And I want a LAC style experience, something I’d assume a state flagship school wouldn’t offer me.</p>
<p>A lot of people on CC don’t really understand that most flagship schools run by departments. As students in large state schools move on to the next year level, they decrease in number, making the whole atmosphere “LAC-like” or even more close-knit than some LACs in your list, but at the same time, with having a close supervision by some of the leaders and pillars of your chosen academic field. In other words, don’t be deceived by the lure of LACs if their claim is that they offer a more personal approach than some elite state schools do, because even if you go to such large schools, there will always be a million ways for you to make your stay personal. But then again, you’re OOS for Cal, so then I suggest that you look into your flagship state school and don’t be hesitant to apply there even when they superficially look large to you. (BTW, Haas undergrad has a total population of 700 only, which means, the school accepts the top 350 applicants each year. That doesn’t look large to me.) </p>
<p>To limit my pick amongst your choices, I’d say Dartmouth has got to be number one in terms of alumni support and graduate placement to top graduate business schools, and maybe followed Bowdoin. But have you been to Washington and Lee? I think you should visit the campus because I thought it really has a gorgeous campus set up with a very caring academic environment.</p>
<p>OP, you’re smart, I wouldn’t major in undergraduate business either. I’d add Carleton to your list and even though Princeton isn’t technically LAC, it has a lot of the attributes of one with the really good business recruitment too.</p>
<p>My son has similar wants and chose Dartmouth.</p>
<p>On the aid aspect, understand that while they are among the most generous, they don’t give aid like HYPS. With a $90K income and if there is significant home equity, your parents would be expected to make a significant contribution. Run the calculator on their web site to make sure it’s realistic for your family. </p>
<p>If you have the stats for HYPS, the aid is considerably better for families in your range and while they’re not LACs (Princeton feels like one), they are also great for business recruitment.</p>
<p>Morsmorre, your statement bothers me a little.
Do you mean smart people shouldn’t be majoring in business administration at the undergrad level?</p>
<p>No, not exactly. It’s just that the OP didn’t get sucked into the erroneous school of thought that an undergraduate business degree is required for business related jobs. Usually a strong liberal arts, science or engineering education is seen as at least equal to business degrees for business related jobs. In cases involving Ibanking and consulting, if you’re not from Wharton or Sloan you’ll be passed up in favor of non-business majors at top undergraduate schools.</p>
<p>Morsmordre, thanks for clarifying that, but graduates of other top undergrad business schools such as Haas, Ross, Stern, McIntire and the like are as highly favored as those grads of lower ivies and other elite privates in terms of employment success rate. and maybe even better in terms of getting into top graduate business schools. Looking at the Businessweek data, the average earning of all graduates of elite undergrad business schools such as those I’ve mentioned above are at least on par with (if not even higher than) those of the lower ivies and elite privates in terms of salary potential and opportunities. Having graduated from Brown is not better than having graduated from NYU-Stern, for example. And, if getting into IBanking is your goal, it may even be better to attend Stern than Brown.</p>