Economics Major

DylanHoey
Sat, 03 Mar 2012 22:07:42 +0000

Hello,

Sorry if this topic has been raised a few times on the board, but I couldn’t find any recent posts that were similar.

I’m currently a junior and I intend to double major in Economics and Healthcare (or Public Policy, haven’t decided yet). I live in Wisconsin, and my grades, ACT/SAT scores, EC’s, etc all give me a great chance of getting into University of Wisconsin-Madison. I’ve also considered University of Minnesota- Twin Cities, since out-of-state tuition is very cheap for prospective high school students in WI. Both schools have excellent economics programs; however, my question is, since Economics is a relatively small major, should I try to get into a “big name” school just for the name?

For example, Dartmouth has contacted me. Dartmouth isn’t known for it’s economics program at all, but in the field that I’m getting into, will a degree from a big name school like Dartmouth get me farther than a degree from great, but lesser known schools like UW-Madison/UM-Twin Cities? Or am I underestimating both of these schools reputations?

Thanks again, any help is appreciated!