epictetus

Hi! Will be visiting Beloit in a week but am curious about any held opinions on beginning college at a small liberal arts school (Beloit, DePauw) with a built in alumni/professorial network vs the big business school (in this case, Smeal at Penn State) where supposedly the "prestige" factor will help you post-graduation. Although I have had experience in quant investments and will probably continue in this direction after graduation, am very curious about other fields (psychology, film). Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

asdad

my advice - go to the school where you feel the most comfortable.

carolyn

I usually would agree with ASDad, but in this case, I'd have to say that Penn State would be the better choice IF you are ABSOLUTELY certain you want to focus on finance. DePauw and Beloit have decent business programs for liberal arts schools, but you won't get the depth of courses in finance/business at a liberal arts college that you'll get at a University, including Penn State. And, most liberal arts colleges will not be as "career focused" as a place like Penn State --- but some people like LACs PRECISELY for that reason.

However, if you don't feel you'd be happy at such a large university, keep in mind that the depth and career focus can easily be picked up in any good MBA program afterwards. You might also want to check out the business programs at some mid-sized Master's level U's in addition to Penn State.

I will add, however, that DePauw and Beloit are quite different in some ways, so be sure to visit both if they stay on your list.