Is HYPS really worth it...

College Search & Lists
1

<p>I am speaking strictly from a financial perspective. I was just thinking (as I fill out my stanford app) if it was really worth it to try to go to HYPS and pay 50k/ year when I could attend a top knotch public (UNC, UVA, UT-austin) and only pay around 20K. Do the kids at HPYS get jobs that are so much better coming out that they make up this deficit or am I really just paying for the superior intellectual experience.</p>

2

<p>The thing is, their endowments are so damn enormous and their financial aid programs so damn generous that it would ultimately cost you less to attend any of them over your state flagship.</p>

3

<p>What is your career objective?</p>

4

<p>pgh if ur parents combined <60k u go to stanford practically free</p>

5

<p>even though all of these schools are generous with financial aid, my parents combined income unfortunately rules me out from received any significant aid (they make ~160k). I plan on majoring in econ but i will probably end up getting my mba after college. Thats where i start thinking maybe leave the big guys alone for undergrad and try later for grad.?.</p>

6

<p>For the M.B.A., work experience, connections, and undergrad prestige are important.</p>

<p>You are far more likely to get all of those if you choose one of HYPS.</p>

<p>And, you’ll still get great FA @ 160k.</p>

7

<p>If you want an MBA, it won’t matter where you went for undergrad as long as it was a well regarded college (any school in the top 75 of USNews will be good enough). You need to work for a few years before you even have a chance applying to MBA programs, and it’s that experience that will get you into good MBA programs or not.</p>

8

<p>First off, you won’t pay $20k at UT Austin, UNC, UVA. If you are out of state, you will pay between $30,000 and $40,000 (or $45,000 at Berkeley or UCLA).</p>

<p>Second, you fall in a really tough income category for parents. They make enough money to seem well off, but a $160,000 - $200,000 four year hit on that after-tax income could take them over 10 years to replace… a tough spot to be as a parent.</p>

<p>Lastly, I attended both a HYPS and a highly ranked public. There are significant differences. It is impossible to say in which environment you will perform at your optimal ability… that’s really a fit/psychological/social question with lots of variables.</p>

<p>You should go where you will be inspired to do your best work and <em>also</em> be ranked in the top 20% of the class. The gpa is a very important data point for graduate schools. They generally do NOT adjust a 3.1 at Cornell to a 3.5 at UNC. The gpa is generally taken at face value, and many graduate schools have informal cutoffs at 3.4 or 3.5 that require some significant other achievements to overlook.</p>

9

<p>If you can afford and get into those schools they are worth it if your goal is a career in business. The trend is moving away from getting an MBA for many from those schools who score a job they want right out of college. While the terminal degree is certainly most important, the contacts you’ll make at any ivy/top college will be invaluable over your lifetime.</p>

10

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<p>Thank you. I was waiting for someone to say this. I myself applied as out of state for UT-Austin and UNC (got into both), and it actually cost me more money (about a couple thousand more, give or take) to attend UT-Austin than Rice. For out of state students at UT-Austin, you’re actually looking at at least $44,000. Trust me, I’ve seen the real financial aid statement as someone who’s been through the process.</p>

11

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<p>Your decision should encompass much more than where your class rank is likely to be higher, especially since at this point there are so many determining factors that will go into it that you are completely unaware of at this point. In addition, because the average student is smarter at Cornell than UNC, the avg GPA at Cornell will be higher as well. The avg GPA at Cornell may be ~ 3.25, but a 3.25 GPA at UNC could be much closer to top 25%, so you can’t just look at GPA in a vacuum. An MBA is definitely not a degree with an informal cutoff anywhere near that high as even the top grad schools have an avg GPA of ~ 3.5.</p>

12

<p>Pgh - If your family income is around $160K, it should cost you around $16,000 a year to go to Harvard. My two Ds there each pay about what it would cost them for room, board and fees AFTER getting a full tuition scholarship at an in-state public.</p>

13

<p>You should worry about getting acceptances first then worry about whether they are worth it or not. You also get a better picture of how much you have to pay for these schools. It’s not worth speculating at the moment.</p>

14

<p>You seem to be competitive enough to apply all HYPS. Your parents seem to be able to provide all costs after their financial aids. You seem already to consider your path to a grad or a prof school, which must be one of highly respected. HYPS put you a better position for it.</p>

<p>Have you read this article?
[The</a> Wall Street Journal Classroom Edition](<a href=“http://www.wsjclassroomedition.com/college/feederschools.htm]The”>http://www.wsjclassroomedition.com/college/feederschools.htm)
and list of schools
<a href=“http://www.wsjclassroomedition.com/pdfs/wsj_college_092503.pdf[/url]”>http://www.wsjclassroomedition.com/pdfs/wsj_college_092503.pdf&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“http://www.wsjclassroomedition.com/pdfs/wsj_college2_092503.pdf[/url]”>http://www.wsjclassroomedition.com/pdfs/wsj_college2_092503.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;