My son has been accepted directly to the business schools of UW-Madison, Indiana University and Virginia Tech (as well as Bentley U for Jan admission and some Jesuit schools–Creighton and Fairfield). He plans to major in finance and also eventually will want to get an MBA. We live in Wisconsin but he does not want to remain here (we are from CT). He was hoping to go somewhere warm but that didn’t work out so here are his choices. He doesn’t love the “vibe” of UW-Madison (too urban and spread out) but the in-state tuition and pretty good reputation is a real bonus.
This is the total yearly cost for each:
Madison - $30K
Pamplin/VT - $62K
Kelley/IU - $61K
Bentley U-$87K
Ultimately he is willing to go to the school that gives him the best value (best reputation v. cost). We’ve been confused by the rankings of the schools…business v. finance v. different ranking entities …and would appreciate any input!
Certainly UW is the best financial deal and it is a strong school. However, if other options are comfortably affordable (no hardship, no or minimal loans, money for grad school if that is in the long-term plans, etc.) then decide what you are comfortable spending and let the student choose.
He can always do a semester abroad and leave WI after graduation.
I feel as if this comes down to Madison vs. IU-Kelley.
VT is a terrific school - lovely campus, great food, respected programs - but it doesn’t offer any true value-added in terms of reputation or opportunities, as compared with UW-Madison. If the cost were equal then it could make sense to have it in the mix, but for more than double the cost, it seems very hard to justify.
Likewise, Bentley is a fine school, but for almost 3x the cost for no real increment in reputation or opportunity?
IU at least has its investment banking “feeder” status that could justify spending more for some students. But not all finance majors are looking to break into IB; and those that are have a steep road ahead of them, even at a feeder school. Does your son want to claw his way into the competitive clubs, internships, etc. that are necessary for this path? Or is he just interested in finance more broadly, in which case a UW degree is absolutely fine, and he can always shoot for an “elite” MBA.
As Happy pointed out, there are top-tier study abroad opportunities from Madison. He could, for example, study finance for a full year at the London School of Economics. (Or if escaping to somewhere warmer than London is a priority, a number of the 16 international locations offering finance programs are in Australia: Program Search – Study Abroad – UW–Madison)
If you have the money to spend for the more expensive schools, how about setting the money aside, that he’d be saving by going to Madison, in a separate investment account, and allowing him to manage it? That could be a huge enhancement to his finance education, as well as to his life going forward.
First of all congrats! This is just anecdotal, but a close friend has a son who needed to choose between Madison and Kelley/IU (didn’t apply to VT, don’t know about Bentley). They are from Chicago, so OOS both. He got into Madison from the waitlist and pulled out of Kelley. They all felt that Madison’s reputation surpassed Kelley’s for undergrad business, and he has enjoyed the program immensely with a job all lined up on graduation. I am an alum, so something to counterbalance what your son perceives as the urbaness of UW - Madison, is that they house the business undergrads together in a smaller living community (optional) and it does not feel urban when you walk around central campus with the lake and union right there. I believe his classes would be concentrated around Bascom Hill, Van Hise, Business School. For background, we also visited VT for a different major and loved that vibe.
I feel like I’ve written this a couple of times over the past few weeks
My senior VT/Pamplin finance major had the same outcome (same recruitment path, employment offer by the same bank) as my UNC/Kenan Flagler finance major (although they landed in different areas of finance - one is in CIB and the other is in corporate properties). No matter which college they choose, keeping a competitive GPA, joining business clubs, going to networking events and business recruitment fairs will help get them where they want to go.
One thing about VT/Pamplin, they allow admitted students to start taking business classes from day one of freshman year. They do not have to wait until junior year to begin taking business/finance classes. My daughter had several business and finance classes already under her belt by the time she went through internship recruiting. Recruiters noticed this and commented favorably about it. Opinions vary greatly on this subject, but I like that VT doesn’t overload Pamplin students with a bunch of unnecessary gen ed classes (also no foreign language requirement). It’s given my daughter an opportunity to easily double major.
Since all three are direct admits, I expect the OP will start taking introductory level business classes in the first semester at each school. And I think everyone agrees all of the schools are fine options.
IMO the big question is are UNC or VT worth twice the cost of UW and is Bentley worth even more than that. Logically, I’d say the added value is not there – but IMO the final decision must be made by the OP based on what is affordable and preferred for their family.
I agree with you that UW is likely the best value.
Some colleges either don’t have space for underclassmen in major-specific classes, have a model where mostly gen ed classes are taken in the first 2 years, or certain prerequisites are required before taking major- specific classes.
My UNC student wasn’t able to get any business or finance classes until after she was admitted into KF at the end of her sophomore year. Younger D’s boyfriend is a finance major at a SEC school and also didn’t take any finance classes until junior year. Out of all of her business school acceptances, VT was the only one that allowed her to enroll in business classes as a freshman.
OP can check with each college if that’s something that’s important.
I know what I would choose for him (Madison!) but it’s my son’s decision, and I’ll share all your information with him. This has been very helpful, thank you!
