Just a question 'bout college

[seireikhaan]

Okay, I've been narrowing my college choices down for next year, and among the choices, are University of Northern Iowa(a state school), and Marquette(private). Both are pretty good for an accounting degree, and I like both areas, though not for the same reasons. Basically, at Marquette, I can get a masters degree in 5 years, and their program is generally considered a little better anyways. However, counting in tuition and all, it will be rather expensive go to there, even with a few sholarships and financial aid. On the other hand, UNI's program isn't quite as good overall, and doesn't offer the same program to get a masters. However, I can pretty much go for free there, and will have basically no debt after I leave if I go there. So basically, the question is, what do you think is the better offer?

(As a sidenote, I am pretty close to making up my mind, I'm basically curious to see what everyone else is feeling.)

[Sasaki Kojiro]

The one with no debt.

Unless there's a major issue like one being accredited and one not, the quality of your education is more about what you put into it than the school itself.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Yeah, what Sasaki said.

The minor amount more you might get for getting your masters' at Marquette won't make up for the extra costs.

Oh, and btw, nice going narrowing it down to two. I'm a senior and still have no idea.

[seireikhaan]

Yeah, what Sasaki said.

The minor amount more you might get for getting your masters' at Marquette won't make up for the extra costs.

Oh, and btw, nice going narrowing it down to two. I'm a senior and still have no idea.

Heh, senior here too.

[Crazed Rabbit]

I've gotta go with Sasaki.

Unless Marquette is the top school in the country for your major, it won't make a noticeable difference when you graduate in terms of opportunities and the like (assuming you get the same degree). You can always get a masters after graduating, after all.

Out of curiosity, what made you want to go into accounting?

CR

[seireikhaan]

Out of curiosity, what made you want to go into accounting?

CR

I'm currently taking Accounting II at my high school, and currently I find it to be one of the most logical things I've ever done. From my experience, based on my classmates, accounting seems to either click for people, or completely blow them by. For me, it just clicks quite well. Granted, the work isn't necessarily exciting, but it doesn't bore me either.

[Whacker]

Sorry guys, I gotta disagree here. I've been around higher ed all my life, my mom and cousin are both Profs/Admins at Kelley School of Biz at IUPUI and Wharton, so I do somewhat know what I am talking about.

There's (99% of the time) a direct corollary between a school's ranking and the quality of education you will get. While education is first and foremost, having a big name school on your diploma can and most often does go a long way to getting one better and higher paying job offers immediately upon graduation. If you dont believe me, look up numbers for placement and salary info for Duke's school of biz vs. UNC's school of biz (there's an average $40k diff, if ya'll are too lazy). Both are top 10 graduate schools, yet Duke is private and their program costs $110k, while UNC's is $60k. The other aspect of going to a bigger name school is your classmates and making connections. This is moreso important in graduate school, but it's relevant in undergrand, and a simple fact that well-connected folks are going to most often go to big name schools for their educations. It never hurts to have a friend who's dad is an exec at some fortune 500 company. You'll often find that in your working life, many of your jobs will come not from randomly sending our your resume, but from your personal network and connections. Being 'well-connected' is always a major bonus. Lastly, companies and employers do favor bigger name schools, and will recruit more heavily from them and generally be more competitive toward attracting employees than they will at lower tier schools (hence better salary expectations).

Now, besides the above, one big thing to keep in mind is picking a school that fits in well with your profession of choice. What exactly do you want to do? Private CPA? Corporate Finance? Hybrid with something else? Different schools have different areas of strength, for example UNC's MBA program specializes in finance theory, whereas Duke's strength is in business management theory. Keep this in mind, ask questions about it, and try to figure out if you are a good fit for the program, and the program is a good fit for you. Don't rule out schools that aren't in your state either, unless for some reason you absolutely have to be near your home and family. I'd recommend heavily against this, your primary concern should be your education.

The obvious major downside is the cost. Private schools always cost more, and depending on what you go with, you can end up with some significant debt. Cost of a program is also usually a function of a particular school's ranking and popularity. If you can get a copy of Newsweek's published guide on this, you can look up some schools and see where they stand. These rankings are often heavily criticised, but for the most part they are an accurate portrayl of the qualify of education you can expect, salary expectations, and cost of the program. This really boils down to A. your comfort level and B. a calculated risk. The business/accounting field has been strong for years and years now, so the risk of the job being commoditized (like mine, technology) and/or having salaries bottom out for some reason is extremely low to nonexistant, so you take your pick. In terms of the amount of debt you are willing to carry, is again a function of how well you can do to reduce this burden up front (scholarships and the like), and how much you expect to make and if you can get your future employer to help defray some of these costs. If you graudate in the top of your class, you can expect some heavy competition from prospective employers, use that to your advantage.

Some people are also of the mind that college is a waste of time. I honestly just ignore these folks, they always turn out to be uneducated themselves. College isn't for everyone depending on what you want to do in life, but it certainly isn't remotely a waste of time.

Best of luck kiddo!

[Sasaki Kojiro]

It depends on your job. Business is obviously one major where connections and school's reputation is hugely important. Other majors, you can go to a big name school but have a really hard time getting a job because people will think you are overqualified and won't stay at their company for long. Accounting doesn't strike me as a job where networking is paramount but I don't know much about it.

[Whacker]

Fair enough Sasaki, I'll concede there. I don't know about stuff like liberal arts type fields, BUT what I said holds true for the sciences, engineering, most technology, and business fields.

[Sensei Warrior]

I'll chime in on this one for what its worth. Is it possible to split the difference? What I mean is, why not go to University of Northern Iowa first and nail down your Bachelor's Degree, and then, if you want to carry on and do post-graduate work get your Master's from Marquette.

This way you'll have defrayed most of your costs for school via the mostly free Uni, and still have gotten your Master's from a school of higher caliber. I dont think anyone has cared where you've gotten your Bachelor's from once they found out you have a Masters under your belt.

I know some people that have gone this route, but mostly because of severe monetary strains or because they didnt quite know if the major they picked was the one they wanted to do. In the end, don't kill yourself stressing about it too much. Lot's of times people make these sorts of decisions sound like it'll make or break you when in reality they won't. It sounds like you got all the hard decisions out of the way. Like what you want to do when you hit the workforce, and whether what you want to do requires you to go to college or not.

I will completely agree with what Whacker said about connections. Forming connections, and creating a solid network helps obtain jobs IMHO no matter what the field is. The world is a tough place, and a friend with some clout on the inside who can put in a good word for you is generally worth a heck of alot more than the college name on your Degree. Your performance and accomplishments will eliminate the importance of what school you went to, for better or worse.

Dont know if all this helped or hindered, but like I said, 'for what its worth'.

[drone]

Which one has more or higher quality women?

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

What?!? This is an important question. I went to a school with a terrible ratio, I know what I'm talking about.

[Caius]

Go to the school with better education and the more recognizable, better.

[AntiochusIII]

Just don't think it to the death, go with your guts and to hell with these bourgeois plans.

If it ends up all so wrong you can just backtrack and try again.

Dammit, man! How old are you? Nobody with any sense of youth and idealism should be thinking about lifelong careers when they start choosing college! What's the average for people changing careers again? Seven?

Whatever you feel best just go for it and don't look back. Keep your regrets for when you're old and gray.

If you think Marquette will be your best shot then jump in and deal with the debt later (just be smart about it); if you think it probably won't matter anyway and you'll only fret over the bill at year's end then UNI is probably better to your liking.

Unless you plan to stop at Bachelor's Degree, it's in the Masters that the schools' reputation really come into play, so count your experiences first.

Disclaimer: This poster is not responsible for damage in property values, wasted time, ruined lives, and insurance costs associated with making the wrong decision.

[Samurai Waki]

Gah. all this talk about "jobs" is making my head spin. Go to the school where you think you'll get the most out of your money, this includes the experience. Don't worry so much about what comes after, really good paying jobs... are still, well jobs! Don't pre plan out your life so much, the majority of the really educated, and satisfied people I've met in this world are the ones that still aren't entirely sure what they want to do with their lives and these are people that are 50 and older. Plus you never know if you'll renege on your current major, so go to the school that offers more variety. This word "career" makes me angry, and dilutes the human experience. But, if accounting is what you really want to do, than I humbly bow to you, we need people like you in this world, and you should feel honored that your willing to become one.