<p>My daughter wants to ultimately get a masters in accounting (CPA) and then move onto law school.
Which schools are rated best in business in the northeast/midatlantic? She likes Upenn, Georgetown,
Harvard, Cornell, Yale and safety school is Boston College. She likes urban type setting, and despises Columbia (while attending a college fair she met with Columbia and the person selling the school totally turned her off).
She is also not a fan of NYU (No campus, sports not a college feel she states). She is a junior. Number one in her class with tons of EC, 2340 SAT, and 4.0 avg.. I know all of this does not mean an automatic in to the ivies, but she will be applying. DC is about far south as she wants to go. Are there any schools with strong business (that are in an urban type setting) that she is missing on her list? </p>
<p>If she wants to add more low-match and safe schools, consider Fordham/Gabelli and Lehigh. </p>
<p>^^ Lehigh is not urban, safety would be Drexell and Tempe in Philadelphia. Master in Accounting (CPA) does not have to be from very prestigious schools, a CPA is a CPA, schooling has no difference but where to have on job training after CPA exam makes huge difference. It will also help to enter top law schools.</p>
<p>Here are few things that really count in a CPA career:</p>
<ol>
<li>GPA, a 4.0 GPA student in CPA program from a school like Drexel trumps a 3.3 student from Stem.</li>
<li>Scores in CPA exam, you need to score high in one sitting and get special awards in a Big 4 firm.</li>
<li>Can you excel into Sr. Accountant in Big 4 in less than two years? I think less than 5% of Big 4 recruits can reach that status. It is an indication of leadership and partner quality.</li>
</ol>
<p>Harvard and Yale do not have undergraduate business programs.</p>
<p>We do realize Harvard and Yale do not have undergrad business school, but they do offer plenty of business/finance classes and she can then apply to their business school to get her masters. Although not her favorite choices she will apply to Harvard and Yale. Her favorites are Upenn, Georgetown and Cornell. They have a program that she can get her masters in 5 yrs. She wants other alternatives just in case she does not get into those three. Yes I believe she will put Fordham as a safety school. I do not think she wants a career as a CPA she will double major in accounting and finance/business. She then wants to go to law school and follow a career in law.
She wants to have options when she is done with college. Not put all her feathers in one cap. Tha is why she wants to leave college with multiple job options. </p>
<p>I am a CPA with many years experience at a Big 4 firm and my S got his MS in Accounting recently and is working at a BIg 4 firm now.</p>
<p>You can also look at Fordham (mentioned above), Villanova, and Bentley which are all in/near Northeastern cities. Bentley may not have the sports/school spirit she is looking for though. </p>
<p>And yes, Harvard and Yale have no undergraduate business schools – I would check their undergraduate course offerings very carefully – I don’t think much in the way of finance/business classes are offered on the undergraduate level. Also a Masters in Accounting would likely take 2 years instead of 1 to complete without a BS in Accounting (or at least a minor in accounting).</p>
<p>And to become a CPA one needs to pass the CPA exam and get a year (with a Masters degree) or two years (with a BS degree) of work experience.</p>
<p>The CPA exam is no longer given in one sitting — it is self-scheduled, taken one part at a time, and is done at a computer testing center. It is still a rigorous exam, just administered differently. Students typically have job offers (Big 4 or otherwise) before they even sit for the exam.</p>
<p>And for the record, I happen to think a 3.3 from a top school will “trump” a 4.0 from Drexel but that is just my opinion. Others may differ and we can agree to disagree. As your career moves on, people still ask about what college you attended but they stop asking about your GPA. </p>
<p>One cannot become a senior at a Big 4 firm in two years. Some excellent people will work at higher levels than their experience, but they will not be promoted to senior accountants early</p>
<p>PS I mean no disrespect towards Drexel which has a very fine coop program, I just tried to mirror the example presented above. </p>
<p>Cornell is not urban.</p>
<p>Do you have a budget in mind? Are you aware of the cost of these schools? With plans for masters and law school afterward, you’re looking at well over half a million dollars.</p>
<p>There are many discussions on the net regarding promotion strategies Big 4 use and I am at fault to generalize my experiences into all Big 4. In fact not all Big 4 today uses the same way of evaluating entry level accountants and here are few that I found on the net, I am sure you can find more:</p>
<p><a href=“Deloitte Promotion Structure - Big 4 | Wall Street Oasis”>http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/deloitte-promotion-structure-big-4</a>
<a href=“Reddit - Dive into anything”>http://www.reddit.com/r/Accounting/comments/1ykh95/leaving_big_4/</a></p>
<p>In each firm mentioned above Diloitte & PWC has slight different policies regarding the title of different job levels and promotions are not uniformed either. I was at the headquarters of one of the old “Big 8” so I did see some exceptions than the rules regarding promotions, those are rare and the individuals got promoted do have higher level of leadership. </p>
<p>Are you looking for financial aid or is cost of attendance not a concern? </p>
<p>MIT has an excellent Business school (Sloan). UVa is also an excellent option. Although it is not located in the NE or Mid Atlantic, I also recommend Michigan-Ann Arbor.</p>
<p>Might consider Holy Cross-top25 LAC located in mid-size Worcester 1 hour from Boston. HC has an accounting major and very strong alumni network among CPA firms and corporate world. The Holy Cross campus is very nice and the school meets 100% of demonstrated financial aid.</p>
<p>Thank you for all the responses. Yes I believe a better college will help in the long run. I do see alumni sticking together as far as networking goes. I agree Harvard and Yale are probably not the best choices, as it will take her six yrs. to her masters, but she would rather spend six years at Harvard/Yale/Brown than five at Bentley, Fordham. Yes I keep forgetting about MIT. I do hear they have a great business school and she will apply there also. SO far I think she will apply for Upenn, Georgetown, Cornell (Cornell is not the most urban, but there are plenty of restaurants, cafes and such in Ithaca). Those are her top three choices. We will look into Holy Cross, thank you. I believe after her top three the list will take this shape… MIT, Boston College, Harvard, Yale, Brown, Villa Nova (Villa Nova not in a city, so she may exclude), Fordham, Holy Cross (possibility), Binghamton (SUNY). She has to throw one SUNY into the mix. There were some other nice colleges proposed but not in the area. At the end she will apply to between 8 to 12 schools only because Upenn, Georgetown, Cornell, Yale, Harvard, Brown, MIT are all very hard to get into and she may be denied by all, it has happened to many other valedictorians. That would eliminate 7 possibles right off the bat. I am near positive her ED will be to Upenn (Wharton). The other schools listed, IMHO, she would have no difficulties for acceptance. With my salary (fire lieutenant) and most of the schools being financial need basis i am sure we will be paying about half. Around $30,000 a yr… I am really not worried about the cost. Put it this way, she has a well off grandpa. Thank you all for the insight to the accounting firms. I am not sure she well be an accountant/investment banker/attorney or a mix of all three. As she goes through her college experience she will decide which of these professions suit her best. </p>
<p>Sounds like a good play. And BTW, Villanova is in a suburb of Philadelphia and has easy access to the city. I think it is similar to BC in that regard.</p>
<p>Thank you, Yes I know that about Villa Nova and that is why it is on her list. Happy1 you know much about the accounting life.
Let me ask you this question. If my D were to finish school decide not to study law and become a CPA, what is the salary scale like through the years? Is all that schooling worth the pay? Or, would she need to have her own private accounting firm to make decent $$? If she were to go to law school she is probably thinking tax law or corporate law. After 5 to 6yrs. to get her masters she may not want to go to school anymore and jump into the workforce. I wouldn’t blame her, but I would like to see her finish her dream of today. I realize her dream of today may not be her dream of 5 yrs. from now. How about investment banker? Are there jobs, and is the pay scale much higher than accountant? So many questions. I do not have the answers for her, as I am only a high school graduate and have been fighting fires for a living. Do not get me wrong I do well enough with my chosen profession, I just wish I knew more about the whole college scene and white collar work force. Thank you to everyone. I am digesting everything and I am sure she will be happy wherever she goes, as she is just an outright happy young lady. </p>
<p>Deleted my comment.</p>