McCombs BHP vs WashU Olin Undergrad

Hello folks,

So I'm a senior who is looking to go into college this fall. I was accepted into both the UT Austin McCombs Business Honors Program (out-of-state) as well as Washington University in St. Louis Olin school. Unfortunately, both are quite expensive since I didn't get any aid besides loans from both institutions. Currently, I'm in conflict on which one to pick. On one, Olin is quite good, especially for having a very diverse education and consulting is extremely prevalent, and there are good chances for IB too, especially with a strong network that the school makes possible. Generally, WashU also has more prestige for overall rankings and excellence in a lot of different fields, so if I wanted to double major, it would make my other fields of study just as strong. The atmosphere on WashU is very laid back, which would be refreshing considering the high school I've been going to has been quite toxic. On the other hand, Mccombs is pretty top ranking for finance, and especially with BHP (and hopefully the Wall Street program later), IB will be very easy within Texas, and with a strong profile to maybe look elsewhere. In addition, Austin itself is also a hub for work and new companies, and with so many opportunities within the city and nearby environment, I'll be able to build an impressive profile of experiences that will absolutely become handy later on, especially if I may try out other aspects of finance. McCombs is also just generally ranked higher for finance.

People of WSO, what do you think? I'd love to hear both sides of the argument!