Undergrad Acct/Finance at U of Illinois or economics at Northwestern

don't be an idiot...cost isn't a concern so northwestern hands down

Northwestern would open many more doors for you.

It's pretty simple:

IB / Consulting = Northwestern

Big4 Audit = U of I

Make your choice accordingly. If you think "fit" is more important than landing the type of jobs you want, then you're free to make that choice, but be aware that IS the choice you're making. U of I is a great school, particularly for Accounting, but it's more of a feeder for big accounting firms than Wall Street or elite Consulting shops.

Northwestern > UofI especially if you're paying the same price and an average gpa at Northwestern probably = guaranteed Bi4 accounting gig somewhere.

Even if I would be happy with obtaining a IB/consulting job in Chicago, is U of I still at that much of a disadvantage?

Northwestern is the king of midwest recruiting. U of I is a good school, and I sure wouldn't pay the 100+k in tuition difference, but Northwestern is just better for recruiting.

They have been amping up their pre-finance offerings too- they have a certificate in finance, or something along those lines.

We can't make the decision for you, but most people on this site have faced similar issues. Do you go to Vandy/USC, or do you go to the target in the North East?

In better times, it would have been fine to take the less recruited school. These days, you need every edge you can get- there is a very good chance headcount will be even lower 4 years out. You really do need every edge you can get. Even going to NW and doing well is far from a guarantee of a IB/Consulting job.

If you want to do banking, Northwestern.

If you want to do tax or audit, DEFINITELY Illinois.

In other words, how well do you think the economy will do over the next four years?

.

Just compare placement stats. I can't find ones for UIllinois but here are Northwestern-Kellogg-Certificate's placement over the past two years:

http://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/Certificate/career-development/jobs-internships.aspx

For Bug4 audit though, I'd choose UIllinois.

That is pretty impressive. But, I have heard it is very difficult to meet the prerequisites of the Kellogg program. If I wasn't able to get into the program, would I still have a good chance at landing an IB job with a 3.5 + GPA in econ?

For the record, I was in the exact same situation and I chose U of I

Reasons: 1) NW Scholarship was a last minute grant which wasn't guaranteed for four years. (Oldest child) 2) Waaay better social life at U of I 3) Well ranked business program 4) Liked the idea of a big school w/ legit sports (Big ILL bb fan) 5) Figured I could compete well for a job there

For the record, U of I places very well in finance in Chicago ranks well in computer surveys. New York is another matter, however.

The Kellogg certification program is legit. I do agree with what's been said here: If you want to go Accounting/Big 4 go to Illinois. Otherwise NU and Kellogg's certificate program (if you can get in that) for banking.

Is it extremely difficult to get admitted into the certification program though? I am extremely interested in that but I figured that since only about 50 students/yr. are admitted that it is only the very best students and I would not have a very good chance. Is this correct?

Why defeat yourself before you even try? "Top 50" isn't that difficult if you put your mind to it and focus on the dream - the chance to sit in a cubicle for 100 hours a week fixing typos and spacing. In reality though, if you go in with the express intent to be a part of that program - your odds are better than you think.

I posted this in another thread. I don't know anything about recruiting at Northwestern, but here is a list of most (may have missed some) banks that recruit at UIUC. These are all for IBD.

here's a list of banks that are coming for SA/have come in the past at UIUC:

RWBaird Duff & Phelps Goldman Sachs Bank of America Citi Deutsche Bank JP Morgan Sagent Advisors Morgan Stanley Lincoln International BMO Capital Markets William Blair Houlihan Lokey Lazard Greenhill Moelis

There are other firms that recruit for FT, but I'm not sure if they recruit for SA: Oppenheimer Keefe Bruyette Woods Sandler O'Neil Stifel Nicolaus Mesirow Financial

and there are a number of regional boutiques in Chicago too (brown gibbons lang, etc.)

I think this is a comprehensive list. Might have missed some. Hope this helps

U of I if you are thinking about trying out engineering (major or minor) - U of I has awesome engineering program