your college

<p>I have heard a lot of debates about this so i was wondering what you think: Do you think that the college you go to will really have a huge impact on your future. I mean liek whether you end up in Harvard or a decent but not amazing school</p>

<p>some affect.........not the total determinate.</p>

<p>There is a book by Jay Mathews (Harvard alum) called "Harvard Schmarvard" that looks at this question. Most of the CEO's, editors, politicians and so forth did not go to elite schools. (Clinton and Bush have really been exceptions.) There have also been some studies on whether elite school graduates have higher incomes. They do, but not when compared to people who were accepted to ivies and then chose not to go.</p>

<p>If money is a big factor and you can't get need-based aid, it would probably be better to go to a state university rather than a private school. It might, however, be more fun to go to an elite private school.</p>

<p>If you can get need-based financial aid in large amounts, it might actually be cheaper to go to a private school than a public uni.</p>

<p>that would be my case. free at ivies as opposed to ~19K after financial aid in state school. ****es me off. do you think that financial difficulty is to be discussed in transfer essays as a reason?</p>

<p>"do you think that financial difficulty is to be discussed in transfer essays as a reason?"</p>

<p>I had that problem. I have to work to pay my tuition, which probably lowered my grades, which killed my chance at where i wanted to go. Being poor is great. Also, i found out using that excuse on your application does not work. What if i had my same grades, my parents were rich and had donated a lot of money to the school? Where do you think i would be? </p>

<p>Anyway, will i be making more money in 20 years, probably not? My real concern is if i am going to be stuck in a university for two more years with nothing to do. It is really going to affect how i look back on this time of my life. Will i look back and see a great time or a few years where i sat around staring at a wall.</p>

<p>I have a 4.00 so I'm not making excuses. what I was wondering is whether I should I say that one of the reasons for transfering is that it is my only alternative. Otherwise I'd simply have to drop out and go make some tution money before I can come back.</p>

<p>JackD: If by rich, you mean incredibly rich, then you are right, but not many people are in that area. A reporter asked the Pres of Harvard how much of a donation someone would have to make before it would make a difference in admissions. The reporter said that he thought for a few seconds, and then said $50 million.</p>

<p>i dont just mean financially sucessful. I mean sucess in general. Are you more prone to get the better job just because you went to an Ivy league?</p>

<p>Job wise: Going to an elite school will help you get your first job alot. The top companies recruit on the top college campuses. After the first job, where you went to school is not that important. You may still impress the job interviewer if you went to Harvard in the same way that you can impress your friends and neighbors, but they care more about your job experience and what you did on your last job more than where you graduated.</p>

<p>If you go to grad school, med school, or MBA school; the importance of where you got your undergrad degree is minimal. Once again, you can impress your friends and neighbors.</p>

<p>In terms of getting into grad school, the best possible case is that you are in the top 10% of your class at an elite school. If you can't do that, it is better to be in the top 10% of a public univ than the bottom half of an elite school. It is not like the top graduate and professional programs do not take people from the public universities.</p>

<p>Well, the top 10% at an Ivy would be a pretty tall task. Wouldn't your individual GPA be a better indication? I mean, if you're going to Harvard, chances are that most other students will put up amazing grades.</p>

<p>Saying 10% may have been an exageration, but the decile is going to matter just like it does for undergrad admissions. Some of the colleges have grade inflation while others have the opposite situation because they are actively combating grade inflation. The point though is that the competition at the elite colleges is going to make it harder to get the grades and some people might be better off being a star at public U rather than mediocre at Harvard. What is it, something like half the people at Harvard must be something like 1530+ on the SAT's. </p>

<p>Getting into the top grad schools is much easier if you are going for a doctorate in your field as opposed to getting into a Med/Vet/Pharmacy school or one of the top MBA programs.</p>