Undergrad Dillema: which school should I go to?
I was recently accepted to the University of Chicago and the Business Honors Program at University of Texas for Undergrad. I'm very grateful to be accepted to both of these schools, and now here comes the hard part: deciding. I get the sense that UChicago is better for recruiting, but it also costs a lot more than UT. I guess the main question I'm asking is: is UChicago a better target than UT BHP for a career in finance at Wall Street. And if it is, is it worth the money? ( I know the social and academic scenes at the schools are extremely different, so i'm only asking about sheer recruitability)
U Chicago without a doubt. UT is a great school and you will have a lot of IB opportunities, but nothing like Chicago.
As Anthony said - you can't go wrong, but I do think the on campus recruiting is probably a little stronger at Chicago - if only for geographic reasons.
The "College Experience" of UT would be a bit different/better at UT. But opps after college/education definitely better at Chicago.
be advised that U Chicago sucks big time socially and is located in the ghetto- plan on getting mugged at least once a year. a former boss went to U Chicago and he told me that students kept a 20 dollar bill in their wallets in order to have something on them for when they got mugged.
but yes, U Chicago is better for recruiting and is a much better school overall.
as someone with a bit more perspective, i would suggest UT. unless you are really dedicated to learning for learning's sake or want access to marginally better recruiting options (but still inferior to a typical ivy). you would definitely get a vastly better education at UofC but it will probably hurt your long-term career and grad school prospects. and at 50k/yr the cost is absurd.
edit: above post is dumb you will not get mugged in hyde park. they had a couple shootings over past few years though. area does generally suck though.
Although many of UChicago's theories have gone down in flames, there is no doubt that it is one of the premier schools in the world for those who want to learn economics. It also has many other world class departments such as sociology. In my opinion, the overall quality of your education will be MUCH better than UT.
UChicago will also give you better access to recruiters and the investment banks. There is an academic bias to the students in the program, lessening competition somewhat.
Of course, in terms of social life, weather, women and athletics, the school is pretty miserable. These things are somwhat negated by the school's location in the city of Chicago, since that gives you all the city has to offer. But as an undergrad deep in the south side, you probably won't be able to take full advantage.
It really comes down to what kind of person you are, and where you will think you would be happier. The way I see it, the recruiting benefits that come with UChicago are net neutral with UTexas' lower tuition. Thus, it should be decided by whether you value academics over social factors.
As a current BHP student at UT, I can tell you that I have a great time here. While I cannot say much about Chicago, UT offers a lot of opportunities for its students. In terms of getting a job directly on Wall Street, your chances are a bit limited, but there are still plenty of options in Texas in terms of recruiting. All of the big banks recruit for Energy IBD in Houston and there are plenty of boutiques that do the same. Overall, I would say around 20-25 students each year get into an investment banking analyst role, and being a BHP student definitely helps.
This is just a short summary about recruiting, but if you have anymore specific questions about the program itself or anything else about the school, please PM me.
chicago (period)
Assuming you meant "dilemma" in the title, you may want to consider that UChicago is notorious for having a tough grading curve. If a non-alum is handling recruitment, you may be faced with having to deal with a less credible GPA.
Then again, if you're not the type to just deal with it and work harder, you probably don't belong in finance.
a further point- I have heard that McCombs (UT-Austin B School) is notorious for grade inflation b/c they want their students to be more marketable for recruiting. So that could be an advantage.
Any UT people care to clarify whether or not this rumor is true?
That was true, yes. For example the top 20% of graduating students in 2009 had a GPA of 3.82 or higher. It was even easier as a BHP major, as those classes are usually 50% A, 50% B. A lot of the inflation had to do with no cutoffs for A-'s, B+'s, etc (just strictly A/B/C). However, over the past semester, the school has changed the grading system and now all professors are required to grade on a +/- scale.
The things I've heard about Chicago are: "hard", "often frustrating", "were fun goes to die". However, if you live to study than Chicago might be a better fit. Their libraries are unreal, I felt smarter just walking through them. UT has a great party scene and some of the hottest coed's in the country with a badass football team.
If I was single and 18 I would go to UT for the chicks alone. You can still tear it up academically and network your ass off for a banking job. Party now and boost your GPA big time so you can get into a good MBA later.
Thanks for the replies, guys.
learn and freeze yours balls off while checking out chicks on the redline cause they are not on campus- UC learn and loving the fact 19 year olds still are not wearing much clothes in oct cause its 85 degrees = UT
Also, UT could be just as frustrating. If your not fairly out going or really involved it can be pretty overwhelming at a school that has a dorm that has its own zip code. If your somewhat introverted and just like doing your school work & really don't get that rowdy, UChicago will have a lot kids like that.
If you can't get into IBD from BHP you probably wouldn't get in from UC either.
BHP is a great platform.
There has to be more than 20-25 kids going into IB each year from UT.
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