Choosing Between USC and Ross, help?
Hey everyone,
Currently been admitted to USC on a full tuition scholarship (school is basically free, I pay something like 10k a year for food+housing) and UMich - Ross (65k/yr for all 4 years). Cost isn't a big deal, but I would ideally like to have the money in my 529 ready for me in case I want to get an MBA, so I do not need to go into debt, however I am willing to pay for Ross if the difference in opportunity is large.
I ideally would like to work in IB for a couple years, and make a move to PE or VC for a couple years before getting an MBA and advancing my career in VC or PE, and if I get enough capital, hopefully opening up my own firm.
Overall, I would like to know how large of a difference is USC vs Ross is when it comes to landing an IB job to jumpstart my career.
I do not have that large of a preference in terms of where I end up working. LA/SF is fine, and NYC is also fine.
So my three questions are: 1. Where would you guys recommend I go? USC will be 200k cheaper than Ross which means I can fully pay for my MBA debt free if I go to USC, and I do not really care about which coast I end up working on, but I want to make sure I make the correct choice that will help me on my prospective career path.
Is USC A Target on the West Coast and is UMich-Ross a Target on the East Coast?
Is the difference between USC and UMich-Ross in terms of recruitingl/opportunity and chance of breaking into IB marginal or large?
IMO this is a no brainer. Save the money and go to USC. High caliber students will have similar opps from both schools. You’re not comparing USC vs Harvard, this is Michigan we’re talking about.
Is there a ~220k difference between the two? Well that's up to you. Generally Michigan is considered a better school (top 1/2 among public universities for business).
These situations are peculiar because at the end of the day both schools send kids to where you want to be. The question here is if you truly think you're good enough to get there. If you know you'll be disciplined, do well, get involved, etc then I'd say you have a shot at both schools. If you're going to be an average student, moderately involved, not get near a 4.0 then your chances breaking in from USC drop far more than chances at Michigan.
For reference at 6.5% that 220k difference will double in 11ish years. I'll tell you now that breaking into IB will net far more than 220k in 11 years.
You need to ask yourself what you think your own chances are from each school.
Let's be honest, OP is here as a high schooler which means they are way ahead of the curve. If non-targets like me who didn't even think about banking until halfway through college can make it, so can OP at either school. If they don't, that's because there are bigger issues at play and not picking the wrong institution to attend.