Is 90k debt worth going to Stern (Finance) when I can go to Rutgers and have a 25k debt?
I got a 30k scholarship per year and I really want to go to NYU. I didn't like Rutgers very much but my parents are scared of the debt. I know NYU is clearly a better school with better networking and recruiting opportunities but is it worth the extra debt? I read that the average starting salary for finance is 81K at NYU and 60k at Rutgers. If I work part time and get good internships I think I can reduce the amount of debt if I choose NYU. I also have not applied for any private scholarships yet. I read that the average summer internship paid 2K per week for NYU as well. Thanks for your input. (Also, I am interested in the BS/MS Accounting program but it's an extra 35k. But I know the degree would make me more attractive to employers and help me earn more money to pay off loans)
Not worth it. Lets be honest; An IBD role is not guaranteed and if you don't get one, you are financially screwed for the next 15 years. Gonna be hard to save any extra money for house, family ect.
It depends on if you are set on a particular career path. Stern will certainly open many more doors for you right out of school, especially for more competitive jobs in finance (i.e. investment banking). What may seem like a relatively small difference in average starting salary (about 80k vs 60k) will turn into a much much larger earnings gap of the course of your career. Also, I would bet that the Stern number doesn't include what is likely a sizable average bonus (i.e. a 1st year investment banking analyst will earn a bonus of 30-40k+) whereas I doubt many Rutgers grads have large bonuses straight out of school (non-front office finance jobs - the kind that pay 60k base out of undergrad - will have significantly smaller bonuses, think 5-10k at best). That being said, if you want to save money for now you can go to Rutgers and try to network like crazy. You can also go back for your MBA at a top school after Rutgers for undergrad, although that would obviously open up the possibility of even more debt.
Playing devil's advocate here - there is likely a difference between the typical Rutgers grad and one who also got into Stern-caliber schools. School attended is not the only factor affecting lifetime earnings. $65k additional debt (is this tuition only?) is also not insignificant.
In general I think the whole "extra student loan debt is nothing relative to finance career earnings" line is tossed around way too carelessly on this board. For one it's easy to cop when talking about someone else's life, and for another it ignores the possibility of deviating from or falling off of "the path" at which point owing another $65k becomes a much greater burden. Furthermore, flexibility around job/career/lifestyle choice created by lack of debt should not be underrated.
/soapbox
Obviously school isn't the only factor that affects lifetime earnings. But school does significantly impact what career path you start on after graduation. And the career path you end up on will certainly affect lifetime earnings. Regardless of how smart or ambitious somebody is, certain career paths will produce significantly higher average incomes - or even incomes of the very top earners in that field - than others. So while a top caliber student at Rutgers will likely still be successful in whatever job they end up in, that job is still likely to result in lower earnings over the long-term than the typical job of a Stern graduate. Additionally, the sad reality is that most employers will only target students from a certain set of schools, no matter how talented the top students at other schools may be. So a student from Rutgers who is of the same exact quality as a typical Stern student will still end up with fewer opportunities. Companies receive too many applications to care about the top students from schools they do not typically recruit from.
Also a problem is that a lot of stern people return for MBA after. Not that other schools don't do it,. It for stern a business school to ship back many to other bschool again is somewhat a red flag
yes
I try to think of it as an "investment" on yourself and I think that is a better way to look at it. If you believe that the $90k is worth the investment in yourself be able to produce more out of college then choose Stern. I would strongly suggest Stern, because not only is it a better school but also think about the opposite and going to Rutgers. There is of course nothing wrong with Rutgers, but if you didn't like it and end up resenting the fact that you go to Rutgers then I think it's not worth the "what could've been".
Along with this I think you can be better developed at a more prestigious university. Often times people forget that the reason why some schools are ranked so high is because of their ability to develop their students. Going to Stern would definitely give you that advantage of being able to develop your skills.
Finally I think the fire you'll have trying to remove your debt might just help your cause. In any case, both require a ton of work to get into the world of high-finance but I believe Stern is worth it.
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