Good option but I’m not sure he would consider going that far. Will definitely look into it though. Thank you!
Great questions. I want him to go away. Dad is on the fence but sees value in him going out of state and out of comfort zone. Student was initially set on going OOS but recently has begun saying he prefers to stay in state so he’s close to home and has friends already there.
He likes a big city. I would prefer a suburban or rural campus. He loves NYC, Chicago, Austin. He is well traveled both in and out of the country.
Big state schools are not my preference, but he is an Ole Miss football fan and likes the idea of a vibrant sports scene.
His dad and I would prefer a smaller school, but have assumed that private schools would be ridiculously expensive as his stats aren’t super competitive and would be unlikely to get merit scholarships.
Most of our choices have been based on business school ranking/reputation. That’s why I’m trying to get feedback and fresh ideas. I’m sure we have some huge blind spots.
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Thank you. Great info!
That’s a great question and one that I’ve asked him as well. The truth is I don’t think he really knows.
He had a nebulous vision of working as a hedge fund manager in NYC and making tons of money. I explained what a soul sucking job that would be and how he would be unlikely to have time to enjoy his money.
He does plan to go to grad school and if nothing else, go the CFA route and take over his dad’s business. Dad is a tax accountant. He would inherit the client base and be able to expand it to a year-round job by adding the financial planning.
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The thing about going to college - it’s much bigger than HS - and he’ll make new friends and his friends will make new friends.
My son’s best high school friend went to Bama - as did he. Both were engineers - and they rarely saw each other. Each had different interests.
I think it’s pretty common.
But yes, some are risk averse and it’s hard to leave the comfort zone. But isn’t that what college is all about?
Is this about you and your son or you and the dad:
He likes a big city. I would prefer a suburban or rural campus.
What does the student prefer? That’s what should matter. The biggest part the parent should play is in budget - and advisor - asking questions, playing devil’s advocate - to ensure the student knows what they want.
My kid goes to Charleston - it’s urban, it’s a small campus, smaller population - I think it’s sort of downtrodden. She thinks it’s the nicest school in America.
It’s what she thinks that matters.
As for smaller and expensive - that’s not necessarily true. Take a UAH for example - mid size - you’d be under $20K a year OOS.
Then others may be large colleges - but have smaller business schools. A Pitt vs. an IU - IU Kelley is huge whereas a Pitt, while still a big (not as big overall college) but the B School will be much smaller.
Why are you looking at ranking? Is the student looking to go to Wall Street?
If not, just corporate finance, most schools will be ok - but many will be large.
College of Charleston might hit the spot but if you can go farther, Bryant U in Rhode Island is smaller, Bentley (business focused, excellent outcomes but not sure if can get to budget with merit - it’s non traditional but has cross registration with other schools), Tulane is worth a flyer to see if can get merit to make budget, Loyola New Orleans, Stetson, Trinity (San Antonio). Some colleges have business like Rollins and Rhodes - and you can get finance exposure.
U of Denver Daniels might be one to look at. Your son would likely get $30K+ in merit. My daughter’s BF just graduated there. Starts in August at a fund company doing research, etc. and will start working on his CFA - so common to what you mentioned about your son. U of Miami might squeak in - merit is very common there - but it’s a pricey place to live (off campus). Denver will be within budget. U Miami - ehhhhh - close.
There are many great schools where you can get a finance degree…including Ole Miss and Mississippi State - but yes, it’s a question of where you want to end up afterward - and if you check many funds, you have some folks from schools you haven’t heard of - but of course if one wants I banking (different game), there are wall street feeder lists out there - and they differ greatly from the schools you mentioned. But that’s not fund management so in that sense, maybe it’s less important - I’ve read the bios of a lot of fund managers - and they run the gamut of most every type school and even major.
In the end, in my mind anyway, it’s where does the student want to go, moreso than the parent, assuming it’s within budget. It doesn’t mean you can’t challenge their assumptions - I did both - and turns out my kids were right - they went to the right schools for them, not me. At least they were right for today - we’ll see about tomorrow as it happens - but that will be on them (so far, so good with one).
Good luck on the journey.
Yep, it’s a tough job but it sounds like there is a good back up plan if it does not work out. I think people sometimes get so obsessed with Investment banking that they forget there are other jobs in Finance that pull in numbers well into the six figures. And those jobs usually could care less about the prestige of your undergrad.
If your son is thinking about taking over your husband’s accounting business and adding financial planning, then I would also recommend looking at the CPA exam pass rates of different universities. Part of it will be based on the caliber of student entering…it’s hardly surprising that schools where most students have a standardized test score in the top 2% will have students who then do well on the CPA exam. But when looking at schools that take a wider variety of students and seeing how those passage rates line up…it can be an indication as to the quality of their accounting program.
I can’t find a free resource at present with more recent data, but this site has data for the 2018 school year. If anyone else has a more recent resource, please share!
Has he visited Ole Miss? What were his impressions of Oxford? Because depending on his impressions, that lets you know whether he prefers a type of school vs. a type of location.
If he hasn’t visited Oxford, I’d suggest a trip to Birmingham where he can visit UA-Birmingham (13k undergrads) and Samford (about 3700 undergrads). See how he likes those. Visit Tuscaloosa (32k undergrads less than 1hr from Birmingham) to see the flagship campus to see whether he really wants a city or if he’s okay with a college-town. See how he deals with the different sizes of campuses (and the difference in class sizes) and then move on from there.
Also, a male with a 3.7 GPA and a 34 ACT will be able to get merit aid at a number of schools, including private ones. They shouldn’t be disregarded just because of their sticker prices.
I’ll wait to hear about whether he’s visited Ole Miss and what those impressions were before working on a more detailed list of additional possibilities to consider.
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Have you considered ULouisville?
Seconding UI Kelley, Pitt, Fordham, and Bentley - you can ask whether he’s okay applying knowing that if admission doesn’t come with enough merit to make it 60k and under then it’s off the table, or would rather not apply.
Auburn doesn’t seem to match his wishes as well as UAlabama.
A boy with solid rigor and a 34 ACT would get merit scholarships at a lot of private colleges. Is size&big spectator sports deal breakers?
What about AU? UMaryland Smith? NCSU?
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I lied, but I didn’t mean to.
You may want to check out this thread about a high schooler with similar stats who was interested in investment banking. There were comments about the profession and certain schools which might prove helpful for your family.
As a frame of reference these are the schools that are currently on your list with the 2018 CPA pass rate and its letter grade from Niche with its ranking on college athletics fandom from Niche (based on survey responses). The CPA exam data did not indicate whether this was passage on the first time, passage of all sections of the exam, etc. Apparently the typical passage rate is 45-55% with one source saying that in 2018 it was 53.00%
Extremely Likely
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U. of Arkansas: 58.8%, A for athletics (#60 on Niche)
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U. of Mississippi: 63.5%, A+ for athletics (#35 on Niche)
Likely
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Auburn: 65.3% overall pass (#20 on Niche)
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U. of Tennessee: 70.4%, A+ for athletics (#34 on Niche)
Toss-Up
- U. of Georgia: 72.8%, A+ for athletics (#9 on Niche)
Lower Probability
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U. of Florida: 77.1%, A+ for athletics (#1 on Niche)
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UIUC: 63.5%, A for athletics (#98 on Niche)
Low Probability
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Georgia Tech: 60.6%, A- for athletics (#125 on Niche)
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U. of Notre Dame: 72.3%, A+ for athletics (#22 on Niche)
All in all, you have a solid list of schools already! But since you came on to see if there were any schools you were missing, below are a variety of schools that I considered. The ones that I’ve sorted by my guesses as to the likelihood of merit are smaller to medium-sized schools so that your family could get a sense of some of the options that seem to meet a number of the criteria. A few of the “medium” schools are getting so large (like Syracuse and Louisville) that some might consider them “big” schools. Also, for states that are not near Mississippi (and definitely not in the south), I think that your son might be viewed extra favorably which could either increase his chance for admission and/or merit aid.
Extremely Likely
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Bellarmine (KY): About 2300 undergrads in Louisville, 52.4%, A for athletics (#101 on Niche)
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Butler: About 4400 undergrads in Indianapolis, 53.7% overall pass in 2018, A- for athletics (#160)
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DePaul (IL): About 14k undergrads in Chicago 53.3%, A- for athletics (#115 on Niche)
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Marquette: About 7500 undergrads in Milwaukee, 57.6%, A for athletics (#104 on Niche)
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Providence (RI): About 4300 undergrads in…Providence, 55.3%, A for athletics (#58 on Niche)
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Samford (AL): About 3700 undergrads in Birmingham, 65.4% overall pass, B+ for athletics (#266 on Niche)
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Stetson (FL): About 2600 undergrads 69%, B+ for athletics (#260 on Niche). This one’s not in a big city but it’s 45m to Orlando and 35m to Daytona Beach, if he likes Florida.
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U. of Alabama – Birmingham: About 13k undergrads, 51.5% overall pass, A- for athletics (#136 on Niche)
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U. of Alabama – Huntsville: About 7200 undergrads,47.2% overall pass, B- for athletics (no rank on Niche). Just listing it here for informational purposes, as I don’t think it would be a good fit based on what’s been shared.
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U. of Denver (CO): About 6200 undergrads, 67.9%, A for athletics (#108 on Niche)
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U. of Louisville: About 16k undergrads, 45.7%, A+ for athletics (#28 on Niche)
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U. of Saint Thomas: About 5900 undergrads in Saint Paul in the Twin Cities, 54.3%, A for Athletics (#62 on Niche)
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Wofford (SC): About 1800 undergrads in Spartanburg, 54%, B+ for athletics (#273 on Niche)
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Xavier (OH): About 4900 undergrads in Cincinnati, 56.7%, A for athletics (#99 on Niche)
Likely
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Baylor (TX): About 15k undergrads in Waco, 66.8%, A+ for athletics (#16 on Niche)
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Furman (SC): About 2300 undergrads in Greenville, 77.4%, B+ for athletics (#251 on Niche)
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Syracuse (NY): About 15k undergrads in Syracuse, 46.0%, A+ for athletics (#21 on Niche)
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U. of Tulsa (OK): About 2600 undergrads, 61.4%, A- for athletics (#149 on Niche)
Toss-Up
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Texas Christian: About 11k undergrads in Fort Worth, 72.5% overall pass in 2018, A+ for athletics (#50 on Niche)…I’d say leaning closer to likely
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Southern Methodist: About 7100 undergrads in Dallas, 63.3% overall pass in 2018, A for athletics (#114 on Niche)…I’d saying leaning closer to likely for admission, but a toss-up for the business school.
Lower Probability
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U. of Miami (FL): About 13k undergrads in a suburb of Miami, 74.1%, A+ for athletics (#17 on Niche)
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Villanova (PA ): About 7k undergrads in a suburb of Philadelphia, 61.7%, A+ for athletics (#10 on Niche)
Low Probability
- Tulane: About 7400 undergrads in New Orleans, 68.3%, A- for athletics (#192 on Niche)
If your son does decide that he really prefers big flagships, these are some others you may want to consider.
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Florida State: 67.6%, A+ for athletics (#12 on Niche)
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Indiana U.: 64.6%, A+ for athletics (#39 on Niche). Not a big city but quite metropolitan with a lot of arts opportunities and international cuisines.
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Louisiana State: 63.3%, A+ for athletics (#2 on Niche)
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Ohio State: 60.5%, A+ for athletics (#11 on Niche)
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U. of Alabama: 61.1% overall pass, A+ for athletics (#3 on Niche). Not a big city, but if he likes Ole Miss, then this is an obvious add.
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U. of Cincinnati: 45.3%, A for athletics (#102 on Niche). Cincy is known for its co-op program where students get a lot of real-life experience on the job market, which some students find very appealing.
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U. of Houston: 49.6% overall pass in 2018, A for athletics (#88 on Niche)
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U. of Kentucky: 57.5%, A+ for athletics (#24 on Niche)
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U. of Minnesota – Twin Cities: 66.4%, A+ for athletics (#43 on Niche)
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U. of Nebraska – Lincoln: 67.0%, A for athletics (#56 on Niche). Nebraska has a surprisingly large number of opportunities in finance (Warren Buffet and insurance companies).
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U. of Oklahoma: 59.1%, A+ for athletics (#5 on Niche)
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U. of South Carolina: 63.3%, A+ for athletics (#26 on Niche)
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U. of Wisconsin – Madison: 82.0%, A+ for athletics (#32 on Niche)
I realize the list above is pretty…extensive, but in reviewing some of the information it may help your son decide what things are more important to him than others with respect to his college experience.
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There is a possibility of merit at TCU, getting price probably down to around 45-50k (note that it would be lower, but business school courses cost more than arts & sciences). TCU offers EA with a decision in December.
Another option for finance along the lines of ND, but on the edge of a big city, albeit way over your budget and reach for admission: BC.
I like the idea of Fordham to see what merit you’d get. I’d remain wary of NYC living expenses and intuitively I’d budget for more than whatever they estimate.
Yes you did - but as usual, not only do you have names - but interesting data with it.
Shout out to Bellarmine - I always pass it when I’m on the bypass around Louisville - a Catholic school with strong merit.
And when I googled fund manager and Bellarmine - the first name that came up - Invesco
Said person is a Bellarmine grad, been with them 22 years.
Not steering to Bellarmine - but pointing out the fact for the fund industry, there are opportunities to be created - some schools may be easier but a student can find their way. Sometimes at smaller schools, they have more opportunities to be in the club that manages the portfolio, etc. as often it’s by interview and invite only.
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University of Mississippi is automatic admission for frosh applicants completing the specified high school course work with a 3.20 HS GPA. So if the student meets that, and it is affordable, it should be assured, rather than extremely likely.
Fairly similar to UIUC is UW-Madison. It has strength across the board and is also a couple hours from Chicago. It’s just an hour from Milwaukee, if Milwaukee will do.
Similar to Notre Dame (apart from setting…) is Georgetown. Its business school – and the university overall – is a peer of Notre Dame. And no travelling would be required to get to a big city, since it is in DC.
My son thinks he would prefer to be in a big city, I’m not so sure about that. I think his dad and I are on the same page with preferring a smaller student body, smaller college town. We both think he (son) enjoys visiting big cities, but wouldn’t enjoy living/going to college in one.
Agree with you 100% on the parenting issue. He will make the final decision about where he goes. I am trying to help him navigate this process and make sure he considers every angle. I won’t lie, I’m also very much hoping to dissuade him from Ole Miss.
Thank you so much for the specific recommendations. We are making a new list of schools to consider for the master list!
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He has been to Ole Miss many times. His dad graduated from there and we are an Ole Miss football family. He has been going to The Grove for tailgating and to football games since he was little. There is definitely an understandable affinity for this school. It’s an hour away from home and I own a smaller, second clinic in Oxford. He’s familiar with it and does like it. To me, it’s not much different from going to the local CC because of this closeness and familiarity.
The fact that he likes Oxford and the college town vibe is also one of the reasons I think he would be very happy (probably happier) in another smallish college town vs. a big city.
I recalculated his GPA using the formula that UGA uses and it’s a 3.95, so I agree there’s definitely room for merit depending on the school.
Is this because of the size? If so, I agree, but he loves the city of Oxford and Ole Miss and he loved South Bend and ND. I really think he’s going to love other college towns as well, so we’re simply not closing the door on those options.
Yes, I think a fairly decent football culture is important to him. Size is definitely NOT a dealbreaker.
AU, maybe. A little further than we like but…maybe. NCSU definite maybe. Will add to the list of considerations for sure.
Thank you!
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Just wow.
This is just so amazingly generous and helpful! We definitely have our work cut out for us, but I’m enjoying the journey so much.
Thank you.
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Very interesting. You guys are great!
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Yes, you are correct. This one is 100% guaranteed. Especially since he has one parent with an undergraduate degree from there and another with a graduate degree from there.
Unfortunately it’s my least favorite. I know way too much about the party culture at Ole Miss, but beyond that (a) I want to push him out of his comfort zone, and (b) I think he’s selling himself short. He can get into a better school and, at least I am convinced, have a better experience.
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Follow-up question: does the football have to be on national tv, or is big fandom at home games sufficient?
You’re very welcome!
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