This is a link to Iowa’s study abroad programs, just in Europe, for Business students. You can adjust filters as you see fit.
The U of Iowa is a very good school, and I would not pay $10k more to attend UMN or $40k more to attend Kelley, given your interests.
It is an option. U Georgia is your best option for one seeking a career in commercial real estate / real estate development and related areas. Athens, Georgia is among the best college towns in the nation and Atlanta is a very wealthy city with lots of real estate to be developed and redeveloped.
Nevertheless, while it is an option, is it an affordable option ? You need to formulate a realistic financial plan if you intend to matriculate at the University of Georgia. U Georgia is a far superior option for your intended career than are U Iowa, U Indiana, or U Minnesota. (I am familiar with all 4 universities.) Just read over the real estate courses offered to U Georgia undergraduates in the link shared above by @tsbna44. Very impressive.
So, yes, I recommend giving U Georgia serious consideration if you can formulate a realistic plan to pay beyond the $27,500 that you are allowed to borrow during one’s undergraduate years. Parent Plus loans should be avoided.
P.S. A time tested statement that you are likely to hear if you attend UGA:
“American by birth, Southern by the grace of God”.
P.P.S. FWIW Both the University of Georgia in Athens and Georgia State University in Atlanta are top ranked universities for the study of real estate as well as for the related field of insurance. UGA pioneered the study of marketing research and GSU has a respected accounting program. Although I am a huge fan of U Georgia for a variety of reasons, GSU may offer more generous scholarships. If so, and if timely for scholarship consideration, consider applying–although it will be a totally different experience than that at U Georgia. (Just checked GSU’s website. The deadline for the most generous merit scholarships has passed. It was November 15, 2024 deadline for your class.)
But, as you posted below, you are not set on a career in real estate, then you may want to focus on COA (cost-of-attendance).
I’m going to be a contrarian here. People take loans out for college all the time. The federal loan limit is $5500 but you can absolutely take out private loans if you want, but they will need to be cosigned by your parents. You would be responsible for paying that back, but your parents would be on the hook if you fail to pay.
You may not know (assuming you’re still in high school), but where do you want to end up after college? If it’s back in Iowa, then there’s your answer. However, you mention that you want to get out and see more of the country. Where do you want to go? IMHO, I don’t think MN is worth the additional cost unless you want to end up in MN - it’s just not that much of a jump above Iowa generally. IU/Kelley might be worth it if you want a more nationally known b-school. But check the ROI. Do you make the $100k back over time after graduation? That said, you can always go back to get an MBA at a top b-school.
I ultimately want to end up outside of Iowa. Another reason for wanting to get out. I am not set on real estate at the moment - that is just a successful path that I am familiar with. I am willing to bet on myself elsewhere… I just want to make sure it is actually worth it if I do.
The issue is you can’t really know that ahead of time. You can interview for internships and jobs all over the country from Tippie (or from any of the schools you have mentioned.)
One thing you might also think about is where would you most likely be able to stand out?
Regarding money and financing college, it can make sense for some students to take more than the $27K in federal student loans. I don’t know if that’s the case for you, but I agree with the others who have said you need to talk with your parents. If you did get private loans, it’s on them either directly or as co-signers…and both generally have the same impact on your parents’ credit rating, ability to take on other debt, etc.
It’s not clear to me (and you don’t have to say here) how much in total you are talking about borrowing (it looks like IU at about $32K costs somewhat less than UGA at this point ($20K tuition plus room and board), is that correct?
Here is a calculator that you can use to figure out loan payments. For example, $80K in loans is going to probably be close to $1,000 per month in payments (for 120 months in a row) at today’s rates ($27K would be at the direct student loan rates, the rest would be at private rates, which are higher.) Think about how that payment would feel to you. You can also calculate how much you have to be earning in salary to be able to service that debt every month.
I don’t say these things to discourage you, but to make sure you understand what you would be signing up for. Only then, can you make the best, most informed decision for you.
The last thing I want to add about IU is that you should visit, and talk with people who attend there. It is a competitive school from the get go…not only in classes but also for clubs/orgs, as well it is male centric (don’t know if that could be an issue for you.)
No matter where you go to school you can leave. Jobs today are found on the internet - LinkedIn and indeed.
Leaving will not be an issue.
Bottom line - you said your folks are unwilling to take on debt (in message 1).
That leaves you with one choice from your current list.
You only have one choice… talk to your parents. Do not be browbeaten into a decision without their input.
Pardon my insistence that you talk to your parents but others seem determined to make you feel like you are out of options. Only your parents can make that call.
As a parent I would be furious at any adult stranger repeatedly giving my kid definitive and specific advice in the absence of all the facts and or my involvement. Suggestions, information and general advice are one thing, but declarative statements pronouncing a singular option seems in my opinion heavy handed and potentially harmful.
OP: Check out the employment stats for each of your options.
I have been watching Tippie for several years since U Iowa-Tippie was among the first major MBA programs to cancel their full-time MBA program. Closure was announced in 2017 and implemented in 2019. However, Tippie’s online MBA program is experiencing popularity.
When a full-time MBA program closes, it is usually due to a lack of interest from both students and employers.
If you plan to attend U Iowa-Tippie College of Business for your undergraduate studies, it will be a bit of a challenge to obtain internship & employment opportunities outside of the states of Iowa & Illinois (and other nearby states). This is why I suggested that you incorporate the possibility of an extra year of education for a one year (or less) specialty masters’s degree as it should give you a second chance to be recruited by employers beyond your current geographic region if needed.
One thing that hasn’t been discussed much in this thread is related to your statement that your parents “will pay for full room and board”. You really need to talk to them about what that means to them and what is the upper bounds of that $$ amount. Each of the schools that you are talking about are going to vary in the non-tuition costs and may vary quite a bit. My suggestion would be to work with them on establishing an amount they are comfortable with contributing as you may also have a gap in funds for that depending on which school you select.
Also, don’t underestimate the added costs of living OOS. There are impacts related to transportation to/from Iowa, health care (and in-network providers), etc. that can easily add ALOT to the cost of attending school OOS. In that regard, UMN is nice since it will be a relatively short drive and not a flight away and you can better address other things that may come up.
I was just like you. I started college in the late 80s. I grew up in Texas. It is difficult to put into words how much I wanted to get out of that state for college (and life after college). Originally, my father was on board. A co-worker gave him a bunch of pre-internet resources for college he had used for his kid the year before (books, magazines, newspaper articles etc.). My father saw the book that birthed the phrase “Public Ivy.” Texas was one of those schools. Much to my disappointment, since he was paying the bills, that locked me into UT Austin.
Ultimately, my father was right. I have also lived & worked the bulk of my adult life on the East Coast and outside of Texas. I think the same thing will happen for you. You will have a blast at Iowa, you will get a great degree with little to no debt and the world will be your oyster.
100% This! It’s all about what you make out of the experience. In my wide circle, I know plenty of people who are incredibly successful (if we assume that is defined by a high-paying career) that went to “directional university”, and plenty from state flagships and Ivy/near-Ivy.
Okay. I’m really leaning Iowa. Nearly all of my community college classes are going to transfer and I will end up having over a year and a half worth of classes done going in. I am just so scared of being stuck in Iowa for the rest of my life. Does anyone have any idea where they place students after graduation and if my only options are going to be local jobs?
If you choose Iowa, you will NOT be ‘stuck’ in Iowa for your career. To find internships and jobs you have to network to find opportunities, and you can look for jobs in geographies/cities that appeal to you (but cast a wide net.)
Here are the results for the Class of 2023. 30% of Tippie grads stayed in Iowa, 34% went to Illinois (a majority probably in Chicago.) Many of those students are likely from those two states, and may want to stay relatively close to home.
The list of companies that recruit at Tippie is long, and with access to Handshake and LinkedIn you can go anywhere. I would also encourage you to contact the career center and ask them any questions you want.
So - this is another thing - with all your community college classes, you won’t need four years - so how does that impact you budget wise?
If you don’t want to be in Iowa, there is 0% change you’ll be in Iowa. You’ll simply apply for jobs not in Iowa - like I said, my Alabama kid got 5 offers by xmas and a sixth later and zero were in Alabama.
Your fear in that regard is not reality - unless you want it to be.
Tippie had a 97% success rate in finance and has 39 Fortune 500 companies hiring grads. We don’t know where they’re hiring but there’s not 39 Fortune 500 companies in Iowa - but yes, more than 39 likely have Iowa based employees. But according to Tippie stats, only 30% hire on in Iowa - so you’ll be one of the other 70%. And many/most of that 30% probably wanted to end up in Iowa.
You’re creating a narrative for yourself that is not real world.
They actually show more ending up in Illinois than Iowa in fact - but also place in the NE, South, Southwest, and West - and in the end, you’ll apply for jobs in the places you want to be - or for the jobs/companies you desire.
You, yourself, made it sound like your parents won’t let you take on debt - but yes, talk to them, but given your interests, one school doesn’t necessarily give you an advantage over another.
But let’s say your parents are willing to cosign and you borrow $10K a year. Guess what, after fees, it’s far less than $10K you are getting - but you are paying back that $10K.
Now you get a job - you have rent, car payment, insurance - and oh by the way hundreds of dollars a month in student loans.
And guess what, companies pay by job and location in most cases - not school attended.
So what loans do to you are take away choice/flexibility - you lose in many cases, the chance to make decisions that you desire vs. being forced into chasing for $$$.
There will be many stupendous students at Iowa but you can also find other schools - Alabama, Kansas - both have high rated Honors Colleges and both will be inexpensive for you - closer to Iowa than UMN in cost - and there’s more - so you don’t have to go to Iowa…but just know you are not being handcuffed by going there.
And find out from your folks - who is paying for “extras” - books, travel, pizzas, and more, etc. - because tuition and room and board are not the only expenses.
But - look at the data - your perception of I’ll be stuck here is wrong - unless you decided to be stuck there.
OP you shouldn’t use other posters “one off” individual experiences as examples that you will be able to replicate. Their experience will likely differ from yours.
Talk to your parents.
My daughter at Clemson was the opposite, wanted to come back to the NYC area. I think at a lot of large public’s, the students themselves find their internship opportunities, she hustled and had many offers, the best one was actually here in NJ, did the internship and has a great job offer for July after graduation. Her cousin who attends Richmond was just handed her internship in NYC and got a job offer starting in October. My daughter’s financial compensation was definitely greater for both the internship and first job. My kids who attended NJ publics secured their own internships and they’re both still there years later. My niece is from the Midwest, nyc was the plan. It sounds like you are open to different areas, you just want to experience something different.
Here’s an interesting website. UGA - scroll way down and you’ll see careers - everything from valuation analyst to realtor and lots in between.
And check the 4 year academic plan.
If you say, that’s what I want after looking at the curriculum and outcomes - then you look for a school that has a real estate major that you can afford.
For example, UNI claims the only real estate major in Iowa.
Ole Miss merit brings your tuition under $300 with $28k merit. They have a real estate major so it’s away from home and dirt cheap.
K State has a real estate and community development degree and folks who have a connection in this website rave about the school.
I put links below - you have multiple less than UMN options that are away from Iowa.
https://apdesign.k-state.edu/larcp/real_estate_planning/realestate.html
I work in commercial real estate and it’s a broad field with many entry points. Yes, you can have a rewarding and high paying career in the field from Iowa…I would focus efforts on Chicago as a post graduate path which has a very deep Iowa alumni base and really well respected real estate services and investment companies (as well as banks with real estate tracks). Is Kelley more known and targeted by I-banks and consulting firms? Likely. But that doesn’t seem to be your path. You will have a full slate of good recruiters going to all these schools. Your path seems to be to go somewhere you can focus on being a student and crushing your classes and focusing on internships. Having a bit of spending money for internships in large cities (which you will likely need to subsidize) will also be helpful and that will be easier if you’re not also stressed about paying for school.
Since I never saw a response to this, I’ll just throw out an option for consideration. Marquette has a real estate major. It’s an LAC in Milwaukee so a different experience than the large universities you are considering. The RD deadline is February 1 so there’s ample time to research it.
https://www.marquette.edu/business/undergraduate/majors/real-estate.php
If an LAC is of interest, run the NPC to see if it makes financial sense. Marquette meets need (as they define it), but that may not align with what you can pay.
https://marquette.clearcostcalculator.com/student/default/netpricecalculator/survey
While I know it’s not your preference to attend Iowa, you are very fortunate to already have that affordable option. Many kids are not so lucky. Best wishes!
There are many options out there to “leave” Iowa affordably - I put several above.
I think OP’s struggle is US News rank/ perceived prestige above all else.
