I Have Six Days: UT (McCombs) v. Berkeley (Economics)

Archive State Forums
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So for the last six months, I have been happily getting my UT Austin affairs in line- making friends on group chats, choosing a dorm, best friend decided to go to UT and is rooming with me, looking at what classes I should take, visited Austin THREE times and fell in love with the city. Then. I got an email yesterday saying that I got off the UC Berkeley waitlist for a January admit. And I’m so so so conflicted on what I should do now. And I only have until May 11th (next Thursday) to decide.

Austin:
Low cost (I will be saving my parents 160K)- my parents can afford to pay for Berkeley but it will be difficult- I will be expected to pay them back after graduation but not if I go to UT

City/People- In a nutshell, I’ve grown attached to Austin. I’m a Texas girl, born and raised, Austin feels familiar but not TOO familiar. I like the idea of living close enough to home to visit occasionally, but far enough to not have to. I’ve made friends on the group chat and I have a lot of friends going. I like how UT is such an inherent part of Austin and I’ve never visited Berkeley. I can see myself living in Austin after college, but not California. The cost of living is ridiculous there, especially near Berkeley, in comparison to Austin.

I’ll be probably studying accounting/finance at McCombs, which by all accounts is a great program, but my parents don’t like how low Austin’s overall ranking is.

Berkeley:
Prestige: Widely considered the best public school in the US- at least outside of Texas

Opportunities: I’ll have a better income or graduate school opportunities coming out?

I worry that I’ll regret not going to Berkeley.

Considerations: Going to UT or Berkeley will put me on drastically different life paths- this is the second biggest problem after cost I think. I love how Berkeley has a undergraduate statistics program (UT doesn’t) and I just like economics more. I like the versatility of career paths- going to grad school or not- that an economics degree could bring. Going to UT, I would probably work for a Big Four after graduation and go on a relatively narrower career path.

Suffice to say, I’m really lost right now and I would really appreciate any guidance (though probably biased) or insight that you guys can bring.

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You don’t like how low UT’s ranking is???

Not worth 160k. McCombs is a top 10 undergrad. You don’t want to live in Cali. You fell in love with Austin. Not to be rude, but this doesn’t sounds like a very tough decision. If you want to work in Texas, a degree from UT will take you miles farther than Berkeley. Overall ranking shouldn’t matter. Your employers will be looking at the rankings of the business schools, if they even care.

UT has an economics program and certificates in statistics.

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Thanks Jpgrainier, I did a lot of research on UT’s stats certificate and I’m definitely doing it if i go to UT.

Also something I forgot: Since I’m a January admit, I’ll have to stay at home or go to CC for the first semester, which I just feel kind of weird about. And I’ll also miss the traditional time a lot of people make friends. And I’m not guaranteed housing (probably won’t get it either).

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@poetandroses

UT Austin is a top 20 public university and has a great reputation!!! If you do well there, you will be well positioned for either graduate school or a job in your field upon graduation. Given that you have to be in the top 7% of your HS class to obtain guaranteed admission, you will be surrounded by other hard-working, bright students. Austin is a great college town. Cost of living, as you say, will be much lower than the Bay Area.

Berkeley is offering you a January admit - do you know what that means? They are trying to increase the size of the freshman class and to do that, they are going to fill vacancies in student housing in the spring semester that are freed up by people who have dropped out or will study abroad. You may end up with a roommate who has been there for a semester already and has an established circle of friends. Settling in socially may be more difficult as other freshman will have had a semester to get to know one another. You may also miss out on prerequisite courses that should have been taken in the fall. That could delay the time towards completion of your degree. Plus - it will cost 160K more for your parents. They also will be flying you back and forth for holidays and breaks.

This does not sound like a good alternative to me. You would be taking on crushing debt in a high-cost of living area by sacrificing fit and proximity to your family. For what, a name? Prestige? Choose fit! Save the money and go to Austin!

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UT. Hands down. For someone who is a Texas girl at heart, the connections to future Texas business leaders will be far greater at UT than at Cal. And not having to repay your parents 160K is another bonus.

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Agree that for you, it is a no brainier. UT all the way.

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The fact that you have never been on Berkeley campus and it would cost 160k more to attend makes this decision a no brainer to me. You have already determine that UT is a great fit for you and have already started making connections. Your having a little remorse right now but we both know were you want to spend the next four years.

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Obvious choice is UT-Austin. While Berkeley is a great school, it is not worth $160k. Save that money for an MBA. McCombs is also a top ranked undergrad business school.

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DD gave up UCB (OOS) for BSMD at a much lower ranked school. It is not worth 160K. It is saved for medical school tuition fees.

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Thanks for all the good advice. This and talking with other people has made the choice more clear for me.

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Wanted to add that even if you had to major in business instead of econ at Texas, given a strong math background you could get into the same grad schools that you could with an econ major.

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dude, you posted this in texas colleges. Everyone will say UT cause they think UT is the best (which it is not, besides business and cs it sucks). UCB will give you miles of opportunity. It is the most recruited college in silicon valley, and its main rival is in the HYPS(stanford)M. Its a public ivy league school, and really that prestige is hard to come by. To me the decision is this: if you want grad school, stick with UT Austin as its cheaper and you need that money. If you see yourself working after undergrad for a bit, then go with Cal

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@ANormalSeniorGuy even if OP plans on working straight out of college, it will take years to pay off $160k. Prestige, OCR, alumni network, etc. are important, but it is not worth $160k, especially when the alternative is a great school like Ut- Austin. Even if OP posted this on Berkeley’s sub, I am sure the consensus still would have been UT-Austin.

On business insider’s Top 20 colleges that Sillicon Valley recruits from, Berkeley was #2 and UT-Austin was #7. At google, Berkeley was #2 and UT-Austin was #16. Would you still pay $160k extra for “miles of opportunity?”

Also, anything is labeled an ivy these days. Public ivy, southern ivy, little ivy, etc.

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What is your political affiliation? Do you lean to the right or left? If you are not very liberal, I would steer clear of Cal. UT Austin is very liberal for Texas, but doesn’t compare to Berkeley. If you are more conservative, A&M is a great choice.

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Berkley is a better school than UT but it is not 160k better. I would say the samething if this was on the CA board.

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@ANormalSeniorGuy, many posters watch “Latest Posts” and see posts from a lot of forums go by. I’m not from Texas, and personally would prefer the Berkeley atmosphere. But the OP likes Texas and the cost differential is huge. UT is a very good public university, too. It doesn’t sound like a great fit or a wise financial decision to go to Berkeley.

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I consider myself a moderate liberal- so Austin’s similar liberal (but it is Texas after all) political slant would be good.

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Sounds like UT is the perfect fit for you

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I don’t think any school is worth $160k more than UT-Austin, or any other solid flagship (for that matter) that offers programs you’re interested in.

Go on, take the money and run.

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@ANormalSeniorGuy

To say Berkeley is miles ahead of UT is outrageous. You say Berkeley is much better because it’s a “Public Ivy.” It seems like you’re not very familiar with the phrase public Ivy.

The Eight “Public Ivy Schools”:

UT Austin
UC Berkeley
Michigan
William and Mary
University of Vermont
Virginia
Miami University
UNC Chapel Hill