Trying to Figure Out Emory's Culture/Reputation?

Applying to College
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Emory is reporting 79K for me (not considering income taxes) while BU is reporting 86K for me (including income taxes). I suspect that my parents can afford these schools with no loans if they sell some of our assets, but they will likely take out loans. I’m not sure if this matters signficantly, but they have a good credit history and pay loans on time, so interest isn’t a major concern. Affordability is an issue, but I honestly think it will work out, especially as my parents don’t seem to pay attention to UConn 's low sticker price.

I presume you mean that it is the students’ drive that gets the internships/jobs? Or do you mean that the name brand isn’t going to bring people knocking on the door? Or both?

Sorry, but where? Just need to get the sources so I can show my parents :smile:

I’m open to the many other job/functional areas in banking. To be honest I don’t have a specific career/position in mind. Since I would like to double major (CS - specifically data science and finance/econ (not sure yet)) I presume I will more likely be heading to the fintech direction.

Lastly, thank you so so much for the CEW Georgetown report and college scorecard! I will read on the metholodgies as well. I will also contact Emory’s career center in the near future.

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Just re-looked at BU’s price tag. It’s saying 86K for my parents, and estimated net price, but when I scroll down it’s saying 3K for student contribution, even though I didn’t put report income for myself. So it really comes out to 89k and is suggesting a “potential self help opportunities” with a student loan of $3,500. Yikes That’s a estimated 10K difference between both schools and BU considers post-tax income…

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Just my perceptions based on various inputs over the years, including some of the resources I linked to.

Generally I would say both. Exceptions of schools that might have companies knocking on the door might be schools like MIT and CalTech.

See if the NPCs are using 2024-25 COA (and are either giving you any need based aid, not counting the $5.5K first year student loan?) The NPCs might not have updated COA. You will have to increase the 2024-2025 NPCs I pulled by 4%-5% for 2025-26.

I generally encourage families to not take out parent loans (the student loans of $27K total over 4 years can be ok). Of course it is up to each family to decide what to do wrt paying for college.

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I don’t think Emory’s NPC is updated for 2024-25. The COA went from ~$79,000 to ~$84,000 (+6%) for 2024-25 and I’m getting $79,000 in the NPC for total costs.
:smiling_face_with_tear:
So much for the 10K difference lol.
BU’s looks accurate for this year. Close to $90K.

I’m getting $0 in need based aid. Not even eligible for work study. Both of them are saying full cost paid by my family and I.

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You and your parents are going to need to talk about your budget and decide what they can comfortably fund. Your budget is going to be a primary driver your final college list.

If you ultimately want help building a college list, you should start a new thread, as dramamama said above.

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Your parents need to fill out the NPC, not you.

And yes, you need a firm budget from them - not - well if it’s this school.

So colleges don’t give you internships or jobs. Students get them.

I’m going to pivot to Cornell - fine school - right - and the CS major. I choose them because they post this data.

For the last two years, 59 kids found jobs on the internet (think indeed or company sites.
53 on linkedin. Compare that to 11 at Career Fairs, 4 on campus interviewing and 3 from Alumni.

This is the world today - and you have a chance at anywhere - from anywhere. It doesn’t mean you have a good chance - but many today are hiring online. Even companies that make visits - many do so virtually. My kid went to Alabama and sent in a resume to Jane Street - very prestigious firm - and the next day they emailed him a test to complete (you’ll see that a lot to).

The point being - you are not assured of anything just because you go somewhere. You have to hustle, be persistent, think outside the box and hope.

And no one knows the job market in four years - as some tech kids are learning now - because of so many layoffs, it’s slowed down.

While you are 17 and don’t know the future - when you say FINTECH - I’m not sure that FInance or Econ are your best bet - but rather CS with some finance or econ mixed in - maybe a minor.

What I would suggest is getting that budget. That your parents have a million dollar mortgage isn’t the school’s concern (their equity will be though). That’s a choice they made.

But it should be your concern and I applaud you for noting that - but let your parents share with you what they’re willing to spend - from their mouths.

But there are great B schools out there - whether a Miami Ohio, IU Kelley, Illiniois, Iowa, UGA, Bama, U of SC, ASU Carey (too far), Haslam at UTK and more - they come in different shapes and sizes and different costs.

Not all are as reputed but again, some come at a much better cost.

So fist find the budget - that is far more critical than the name - in my opinion.

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My dad did Emory’s. He wrote down the specific values for each step of the way/for each circumstance so I was able to use the same exact amounts for BU.

My apologies if I wrote poorly so it is subject to literal interpretation. I meant that the brand name has people knocking on the door (which hardly occurs as mentioned by all) or at least has strong alumni to contribute to the ease of finding a job for a hardworking student. Obviously, I know that no school is going to hand out internships and jobs like lollipops lol.

I believe I said I’d like to double major in CS (maybe a focus in data science) and economics. However, the part I’m unsure about is whether if the major that accompanies CS is economics or finance. I don’t think I mentioned majoring in both econ and finance?

Maybe my age is really showing — I’m 16 and will be basically until new year :sob:

Anyways, I will figure out the budget after speaking with my parents more. In the meantime, I will check out the schools you mentioned. If anyone else has any more resources (in spite of subjectivity/methodology) regarding Emory’s ROI that would be greatly appreciated.

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Got it - you’re doing a great job and asking great questions. Nice of your dad to give you the details - if each calculator is the same you’d be in good shape.

I think I showed with the Cornell stats - don’t get tricked into that alumni make it happen> They can and it’s great to reach out to them. Many CS jobs have tests - even my nephew who works at a large company in NYC (Poli Sci major) had to pass four tests - before he got hired - and in that year, two layoffs and most of his team let go - including the person who hired him. Lucky to still be there.

Find the right budget - the one that’s comfortable for your family.

My son’s situation isn’t exact - he’s an engineer - but on his time - he’s in a development program with 150, many of which are engineers. You have Michigan, Purdue, Washington, Case Western and more. He’s an Alabama, there’s Auburn, NC State, W Michigan, Akron, etc. etc. Organizations are diverse. For something like FinTech, a name alone won’t be your home run - but the tests you pass and knowledge you show.

Again, talk to mom/dad about budget.

The answer you don’t want is - well the budget is $50K but for the right school I’d pay x $$.

You need a hard #, etc.

So you’re a Junior or Sophomore? your first sentence says you’re contemplating Emory (great school) as a Senior. SMU might give you similarity, btw, maybe more Greek…and with merit.

Definitely do the chance me so we can see more about your stats. Nothing to be nervous about - you’re exploring and seeing where you fit.

It’s great.

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Just to present it in a different way…It looks like BU would cost $10K more than Emory first year, and likely an increasing delta each year. So let’s just say BU ends up costing $50K more. Both College Scorecard and Georgetown ROI study show Emory grads making significantly more money than BU grads, on average. So, comparing the two (with all the data caveats), Emory’s projected ROI (with lower cost and higher average salaries) is much higher than BU’s.

Don’t let ROI drive your college list…the data will never be complete, nor will they take into account your specific situation. I am assuming you are a strong student and full pay, so your outcomes will likely be similar no matter the school you attend. Of course that’s not assured but it is generally more about the student’s effort and performance, rather than the name of the school (when talking about high stat, affluent students.)

I’m not sure your flagship, but say it’s UMass…you can definitely work in fintech or banking from there and your costs would be much lower and therefore ROI likely much higher than either Emory or BU. What state do you live in?

So, talk with your parents and start with a budget, then research and choose schools you like that are good fits for your various priorities, and build a balanced list (say 2-4 reaches, 5-7 targets, 2 safeties/highly likelies.)

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Connecticut. State school is UConn!

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Junior. Very late December bday.

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