college choices
redacted
……………………………………….
redacted
……………………………………….
redacted ………………………………………. redacted
……………………………………….
Trending Content - Business School and GMAT Forum
Career Resources
WSO Free Modeling Series - Now Open Through
June 30, 2026
9 Free Financial Modeling Lessons
Get instant access to lessons taught by experienced private equity pros and bulge bracket investment bankers including financial statement modeling, DCF, M&A, LBO, Comps and Excel Modeling.
+Bonus: Get 27 financial modeling templates in swipe file
+Bonus: Get 27 financial modeling templates in swipe file
High Finance Applications
Guaranteed
Get at least one offer GUARANTEED
- 1:1 support
- 92% success rate
- 2,000+ mentor network
- Unlimited Live bootcamps
- AI for resume + LinkedIn
- Networking automation tools
- HireVue simulation tool
- Full course library
- Private Slack community
- 20hrs of mocks
- + much more...
.
Wtf.....
https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/business-overall
Haas>McDonough>=Duke
If you want to do West Coast or anything in SF/Tech, then 100% Haas. Otherwise, Duke is prob your best bet
How close is Georgetown to Duke in ocr and alumni network for ib?
Should be asked the other way around. Fuke is a more prestigious school overall, but gtown places better than duke
Yea thats what I thought too
In my mind Duke is the clear cut winner here.
Georgetown and Duke are the clearest choices IMO. Do you want to be in a small knit community in middle of nowhere or in a small knit community in DC? Pick whatever, can't go wrong with either
Honestly UVA should be on the list with the above 4. Since you don't want to work on the west coast I'd drop Berk. Williams is for a pretty particular type of person; being a LAC it's student body is really small so make sure that would be ideal for you. Duke, Georgetown, and UVA are a lot more comparable and you couldn't really go wrong with any of them. Williams is an elite school but with its size OCR is kind of iffy and its headcount on the street is of course smaller, but you also couldn't go wrong picking it as it's top tier. Summing it up, pick where you fit best among Duke, Williams, Georgetown, and UVA.
Found the UVA bro.
Haha the infinite UVA boosters on here actually made me irrationally hate it but it's a good university albeit not as good as some of the people posting about it here make it out to be.
If you always dreamed about being a business administration major at a big state school, I would choose UNC or UVA. If you always dreamed of attending an elite LAC, I’d choose Williams.
With that aside, I’d go Duke or Georgetown. McDonough building is drop dead gorgeous, as is the GU campus and surrounding DC area. Duke campus is also beautiful but in comparatively quiet and green way, which some people will love. Both place really well with maybe a slight edge to GU MSB, and with Duke having a slight edge in alumni loyalty just because fewer people are gunning for finance. GU has a competitive culture in general and for club entry (this one can be bad) whereas the community at Duke is a little more welcoming. In this case I would make the choice based on the urban vs suburban environment and where you’d be happiest. There is no wrong answer so talk to current students.
Arbitrary rankings aside, there is no real difference in prestige between GU and D. Both will be extremely impressive to employers, neighbors, girlfriends, your 2nd grade counselor who held you back, and your 5th grade soccer coach who never gave you play time.
You are SO lucky to have this choice, you have no idea. I’m proud of you. Be proud of yourself.
I'm surprised at the answers tbh. I thought it's pretty clear it's Duke>Georgetown>=Haas>Williams but I guess not
You can't really go too wrong, I think most of the above posters (with the exception of the guy right above me) pretty much have it right.
I'd kind of think of it really as Duke/Williams > Gtown > Berkeley especially if cost is equal.
Duke to me has a nice combination of strong academics, fun school, and great placement/reputation for jobs. It's a big school, but not too big, and you get pretty good weather as well.
Williams is probably the "best" school in terms of ranking/prestige, but the LAC feel isn't for everyone. It's pretty, north eastern feeling, and the nightlife/fun/sports scene will be minimal. Network is small, but obvsily super strong, so if you like the LAC vibe and won't care about going to a Duke basketball game or going out to the local bars, then this would be my other top choice.
Georgetown is a great school as well and McDonough undergrad is one of the better feeders to wall street. DC is a cool town as well, more of an urban vibe for better or for worse. To me Georgetown is kind of a lesser Duke (no offense to anyone from Gtown) but if you have any political or foreign policy type of leanings or just want to be in a city and to take advantage of that type of lifestyle (which honestly I don't fully recommend for undergrads) then I wouldn't fault you for picking Georgetown.
Berkeley is the one I'd put definitely below the others, not because it's a worse school, but at the end of the day, it's highly competitive and a public university. I've heard it's pretty competitive from a job standpoint, even if you get into Haas just because you're always competing against kids from Stanford. Berkeley is an ok college town/area, but it's expensive. Plus if you're not getting the in-state rate, I would feel like I'm getting a little ripped off vs the kids that are paying less than half of what you're paying.
UVA is also a great school, but similar-ish to Berkeley, public university, would be big and fun, not a bad choice but you've got better ones. UNC is poor mans Duke, Middlebury is poor mans Williams, and BC is just kind of meh compared to the others.
I'd go with Duke or Williams, maybe with Georgetown as a darkhorse if you have some specific tie to DC.
Good luck with the decision!
I didn't realize Williams was such a good school, but in my defense, if you had to get laid based on only what school you went to, the average chick would consider Duke/Georgetown/Berkeley over Williams easily, sooooooooo
realistically cannot make a terrible decision here. All of them will get you to a BB or MBB if you really desire. Although I personally would go to Duke or Haas because I wouldn't enjoy a liberal arts school
Est magni voluptatem libero odit. Omnis quos voluptatem nihil dolor. Sint quia quasi aspernatur eaque numquam rerum ut. Blanditiis doloremque eaque qui alias molestias est quasi voluptatem. Assumenda ut iusto adipisci consequatur veniam. Consectetur tempore aut reprehenderit quos omnis.
Itaque occaecati nulla consequatur quis dignissimos. Et voluptatem ea ut recusandae quasi ex. Aut vero odit maxime consectetur dicta dolores et. Nihil aut mollitia explicabo.
Perferendis non a aliquam molestiae in ut ut adipisci. Aspernatur est mollitia id expedita at. Rerum illo tempore deserunt quia dolores in maxime. Harum aut magnam corporis quia eaque. Voluptas enim itaque dolores nulla. Possimus earum fugit illo ullam.
Incidunt nihil et odio earum aliquam. Tenetur itaque distinctio modi quas repudiandae. Natus ullam et voluptate sunt facilis voluptas.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...