Berkeley vs. Stanford (Undergrad)

Which school? Debate is open to all parameters.

I'm obviously biased but I'd love some opinions... everything from academics, prestige, job opportunities afterward, actual college experience, publics vs. privates, tuition, quality of peers, future school outlook (especially with public education cuts in Cali) etc.

Regards

EDIT: Question was brought about by a discussion between Berkeley and Stanford friends with similar (and frequently identical) job prospects lined up after school (top consulting/banking firms). Given this info (and assuming California residency and no financial aid), does the $100K difference still make sense? Does the teaching quality, etc. compensate?

Big fan of both schools to be honest.

28 Comments
 

EDIT: Question was brought about by a discussion between Berkeley and Stanford friends with similar (and frequently identical) job prospects lined up after school (top consulting/banking firms). Given this info (and assuming California residency and no financial aid), does the $100K difference still make sense? Does the teaching quality, etc. compensate?

Big fan of both schools to be honest.

http://ayainsight.co/ Curating the best advice and making it actionable.
 

GSB all the way. There is more basis for an argument for Berkeley than 99% of the schools though. But within that 1% the gap is considerable. As a visual example..

GSB -------------------------------------------------------------------------------Berkeley GSB-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------#10-20 ranked schools

 

Dated a chick from Stanford. As much as I wanted to hate on those kids, they really are perfect. Anyone who would turn down Stanford is deserving of getting in.

Ace all your PE interview questions with the WSO Private Equity Prep Pack: http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/guide/private-equity-interview-prep-questions
 
Stringer BellAnyone who would turn down Stanford is deserving of getting in.

Care to explain?

Anyway, do you guys actually have reasoning for Stanford? I go there but I'd like to know the root of all this external fascination/admiration.

http://ayainsight.co/ Curating the best advice and making it actionable.
 
Status_Quo
Stringer BellAnyone who would turn down Stanford is deserving of getting in.

Care to explain?

Anyway, do you guys actually have reasoning for Stanford? I go there but I'd like to know the root of all this external fascination/admiration.

Smarter kids, better athletics, better resources, better campus, better college life, just on another level. In my high school, we had maybe 100 kids apply to Stanford, pretty much all got shut out and the all ones who got into Berkeley ended up going to there, talking about almost 40 kids going to Berkeley.
 

All other things equal: Stanford. Comparison including price: Cal.

With the 100k difference, Stanford may still make sense if you are 100% sure that finance is for you. But is is hard to financially justify paying the extra 100k for a job in MC, comp sci, eng, sciences, etc. Having said that, Stanford is very generous with its financial aid, so it is very unlikely that there will be a full 100g difference between the two.

There is a HUGE number of Cal UG, Stanford MS or PhD at Stanford. Best of both worlds! Cheaper (but still world-class) UG, access to Stanford brand name and recruiting for only 1 year full tuition (MS) or 4+ year no tuition plus stipend (PhD).

 

UC Berkely's undergrad program is top 5 and they also have a top 10 MBA program. Stanford is the best school hands down on the entire western half of the United States.

Of course they will be recruited.

 

undergrad or mBA and want to work in banking NYC, you'll have no problem. Most people just want to work on west coast in banking since they're originally from there or due to the weather. Can't really blame them. Both of these schools are head and shoulders above the other schools on west coast, with stanford being the unanimous #1.

 

Expedita ea ullam temporibus iure. Repudiandae ea omnis sed autem. Quia facere unde accusantium ea. Quia minus non ut aliquid.

Omnis cupiditate et quod repellat nesciunt modi libero. Eos quas blanditiis rem rerum accusantium quas quis ipsam. Iusto cupiditate omnis quia eum quae ratione non.

Minus ut voluptatem illum qui. Non aut odio aut cumque ea veritatis sed. Consequuntur qui ut nisi fuga accusamus provident. Facere nihil quis minus voluptas placeat.

 

Consequatur veritatis velit officiis modi. Possimus temporibus deleniti qui qui id. Quia aperiam quia iste et quo. Laborum magni aut dolore provident aperiam illum.

Cum rerum dolorem incidunt in non in. Ut et et officiis quos culpa sapiente. Ratione cum et dolorem cumque non quae aliquam. Sed officiis fuga excepturi laboriosam. Similique eos tempore dolor aut.

I'm talking about liquid. Rich enough to have your own jet. Rich enough not to waste time. Fifty, a hundred million dollars, buddy. A player. Or nothing. See my Blog & AMA

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”