Currently I am studying engineering at Georgia Tech and I have been accepted to both Duke and Cornell. Which one should I pick?
I want to ultimately work in consulting/finance and get an MBA and I have no financial aid from either institution.
Which college would provide me a better undergrad experience and help me get into an elite MBA program or finance/consulting firm?
Duke sends more kids to HBS (9 more), Booth (>12 more), Tuck (4 more), and Columbia (5 more).
https://poetsandquants.com/2011/08/15/top-feeder-colleges-to-harvard-business-school/2/
https://poetsandquants.com/2011/10/06/top-feeder-colleges-to-chicago-booth/
https://poetsandquants.com/2011/09/14/top-feeder-colleges-to-dartmouths-tuck-school/2/
https://poetsandquants.com/2011/09/07/top-feeder-schools-to-columbia-business-school/2/
Cornell sent 2 more kids to Wharton.
https://poetsandquants.com/2011/08/07/top-feeder-schools-to-whartons-mba-program/
Considering the fact that Cornell is a much larger school, it would be fair to say that Duke is a better bet for students with B-school aspirations. Of course, there can be yearly fluctuations in the data but the trend probably holds.
If you are going the business route choose Duke.
No wrong choice, but I would choose Duke for the undergrad experience. Much better weather an added bonus.
You can get into those top MBA programs with a solid degree from GA Tech and the same two to five years of increasingly responsible work experience that you would need coming from Cornell or Duke. Unless your major isn’t offered at GA Tech, or you simply can’t stand something about the social scenes there. There is no need for you to leave at all.