<p>I have been admitted to one of Cornell’s statutory colleges and I am also interested in transferring to the Haas school of Business for undergrad.</p>
<p>I visited both schools and I love them, with a little preference for Cornell’s campus but I love Berkeley’s history so for me it’s very even. </p>
<p>By reading some posts (actually tons of them) on this board, I get the feeling that contract colleges, SUNY colleges, state colleges, and the list goes on and on, get a bad reputation… It seems like most students don’t really care but some elitists Arts & Sciences and Engineering students do… I was about to choose Cornell but I am now very uncertain since when I applied, I wasn’t aware of that gap in terms of prestige (at least for the elitists)…</p>
<p>I know some of you will tell me to disregard the haters but at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter whether what they believe is right or wrong, if they believe it, it will hurt my school’s reputation and therefore me too as a student. In the same way, it doesn’t matter if God really exists or not, because if some believe he does exist and live their lives accordingly, then many consequences will become real because of their belief that God exists. Anyway, I am a Catholic and this is not a debate about religion but just an example.</p>
<p>I was probably the best or 2nd or 3rd in my high school out of 1000+ students. I don’t know for sure since we didn’t have official rankings but it was fairly easy to figure it out. Anyway, I was not the guy that screwed up in HS or anything (I have always been very book smart) and I really do not want to be looked down upon after transferring to one of Cornell’s statutory college from a community college.</p>
<p>I also want to work in investment banking so prestige does matter not only for me personally (and I think there’s nothing wrong with that) but also professionaly.</p>
<p>What is your point of view about this prestige issue? Please, if you answer to tell me that I should not care/listen to elitists, I understand your point of view and respect it but that’s not really the answer I am looking for.</p>
<p>If you’re looking at one of Cornell’s contract colleges (ILR, for example), there is certainly less prestige associated with it; however, I think it depends on the location of the job region that you hope to work in during/post-college. It is widely known in NY that contract colleges have been seen as a “backdoor” to get into a prestigious school like Cornell, mainly because they are state schools with the Cornell name stuck onto them. I would personally suggest doing some research about Cornell’s job placement from these schools. Berkeley is hands down a solid decision. I would personally choose it, but this is a choice you must make for yourself.</p>
<p>The people who are telling you that the statutory divisions are no good are just haters. Ignore them.</p>
<p>Harder to do than to say I know, but I repeat: Ignore them.</p>
<p>The statutory divisions at Cornell are among the very best in their own categories in the country. For Ag. and Life Sciences, there are only a handful that have national recognition: Cornell, Purdue, Iowa State, Davis, Texas A&M. For ILR, well there isn’t anything else like it in the country. It is unique. For HumEc, again the nationally recognized group again is a pretty short list topped by Cornell. Do not for one second think that you are getting a second class education in those divisions, or that you have “sneaked in through the back door” because you were able to transfer in from one of the NY community colleges. If you have met the transfer requirements, you are good enough to be there.</p>
<p>Nobody asks which division Happydad (HumEc) or I (Ag & Life Sciences) got our graduate degrees from. They just say, “Cornell, great school!”</p>
This will be difficult, not impossible, but very difficult as I am assuming you are not a California resident/student from a California Community College. In addition, Haas has very strict prerequisites in order to be eligible for admission. If you are missing any, you will be deemed ineligible. </p>
<p>For example, last year 1542 students applied however 1166 applicants did not show planned completion of the admission requirements and were considered ineligible. Of the 376 eligible applicants, 105 (28%) were offered admission. </p>
<p>I would advise to plan. It’s very important.</p>
<p>
If you don’t mind me asking, why? I’m debating this as well but I don’t know if I want to work 100+ hours and be someone else you know what. Yeah the pay is great but do you really want to be tied down to a computer working on excel files or playing around with fonts in PPT? Take a look at the post I found on WSO.
<p>Cornell is a prestigious school, one of the best in the world. If anyone looks down on an Ivy League degree, then that makes them beyond elitist.</p>
<p>@cornellvshaas: The premise of your syllogism is incorrect. The specious conclusions of people on a message board should in no way affect your abilities as a student. </p>
<p>Furthermore, – I mean this with all kindness – if you are so inclined to follow the opinions of ignorant postings of people on a message board, then PLEASE PLEASE do not go into investment banking. I don’t need a wealth manager with a limp backbone so as to be swayed by the proclivities of people who have no expertise on the matter. </p>
<p>A valuable and successful wealth manager should be as Adam Smith puts it, “an impartial spectator.” </p>
<p>I love both schools and was admitted to Cornell and expects to be admitted to Cal.</p>
<p>I don’t have expertise in the matter but I rely on the information of people who do. If you think I personally look down on Cornell, you’re mistaken. This is second-hand information, not a personal opinion.</p>
<p>First of all, I do not want to become a wealth manager but an investment banker. </p>
<p>“The specious conclusions of people on a message board should in no way affect your abilities as a student.” </p>
<p>Well, the specious conclusions on a message board might reflect the opinions of certain people in the real world.</p>
<p>Let’s not lie to ourselves, we go to school, or at least I go to school not only because I love my major and want to be challenged intellectually, but also because I want a network and a form of intellectual certification- a degree that proves that I am worth something. A stupid dude from Yale might get the job that a bright guy from an unknown state school should have gotten. Yes, life is unfair bla bla but I am not going to change the fact that people are attracted to prestige, we are just wired that way.</p>
<p>While I agree with your assessment concerning the reality of people’s validation of your degree, keep in mind that the posters on College Confidential will hardly reflect the real world. So to base the value of your degree on the rantings of posters not likely to be in the majority is dangerous. Regardless of whichever school you attend, you’ll have to work extremely hard. As such I hope you base your decisions on which school to attend using your own criteria. When it comes time for an interview, you’ll need to display an unswerving command of the job requirements, at that point, you either do or you don’t. Good luck.</p>
<p>"keep in mind that the posters on College Confidential will hardly reflect the real world. "</p>
<p>I agree with you, posters here might not reflect at all the reality at Cornell and elsewhere. I really appreciate your help and I should reword my question: what do people at Cornell and Cornell’s employers think of statutory colleges in terms of prestige?</p>
<p>I guess it’s not going to be a black or white answer as most probably don’t care but some haters, elitists or whatever, might dislike those colleges or other colleges such as Hotel Administration.</p>
<p>Sometimes the people in the extreme (elitists, haters, Ann Coulter) have no influence over the majority (you’re average students in CAS or employers) but sometimes they do have a great influence. For example, if someome wants to be a model, that person is going to have to display certain characteristics that would probably seem futile for your average person. As a male, I do not care enormously about women having not a single pound of fat on their body, but if someone wants to be a model, it’s different so the elitists win over the majority. I am wondering if that’s the case at Cornell…</p>