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College graduate, live in Los Angeles one year, USC programs, move home to Denver, USC diploma versus CU Denver diploma, education costs, California cost of living
Background: I am graduating college this May from Arizona State University (Phoenix area) and my plan is to go immediately into a MS in Accounting program. My goal is to become a public accountant (hopefully a Big Four firm) and become a CPA. I've received admission to several schools, including CU Denver (a downtown Denver branch campus of the main flagship school in Boulder. I'm a Colorado resident, so I would get in state tuition there), UNLV (not really a consideration any more), and here's the biggie... USC. USC is hands down the most prestigious, well recognized school that I have gotten into. They have a one-year full time program this begins this summer. The cost there is HUGE, but they've offered me a half-tuition scholarship, as long as I pledge to donate to USC throughout my career.
Dilemma: I really want to move back to Denver, my home town, and start my career there-- and I really do not want to live in LA. The two cities I have lived in throughout my life (Denver and Phoenix) are places where Californians are moving to in droves, so I've had first hand experiences with these interstate "refugees" who have been pushed out for one reason or another. LA is simply not where I want to be, but I have a number of specific concerns. First, USC appears to be in a lousy part of town. I love being outdoors, taking walks, bicycling, and it sounds like it would not be safe to do that in that part of town. It seems like the pollution would make outdoor exercise an unhealthy thing to do. The cost of living there is sky high, and I don't want to dump well over a thousand bucks every month on apartment rent. It seems like from a financial point of view, there's no way to get ahead there unless you make $150k a year or more. Entry level accountants at Big Four firms make $60k max-- and at a local firm, it will be less than that. I can forget trying to buy a house or even a condo if I move there. Instead of being able to save for a downpayment, I'll be throwing away money paying for "double rent" (the price of renting an apartment in LA is twice as expensive as for the same quality of apartment in Denver or Phoenix). I've been to California several times (including a trip to San Diego a few months ago) and the pace of driving there is downright scary. I'm not some fast paced, high strung person, so I don't think I would even fit in socially there. BTW, I think the "laid back lifestyle" thing is a total myth. And even if that were true, it won't be true for me; from what I've heard, public accountants regularly work 60 hours a week or more, sometimes much more.
Keep in mind, I'm not on here to bash LA, far from it. Just saying, I don't think it's the right place for me. I could be wrong; who knows, if for some reason I ended up loving it there, I could always change my
I think I've made the point that LA is not where I want to be. However, this USC program appears to be a great program, and seems like it would be the best thing career wise. One of my greatest fears is getting "stuck" somewhere that I don't want to be. You might think you're moving there for one year, and then it could end up being years of your life before you get out. Do you think I would be able to go there for one year and then try to get hired at a Big Four or local accounting firm in Denver (Btw, the recruiting starts this fall, so there's not that much time to think things out)? Should I suck it up, bite the bullet, and go there for one year, trying to make the best out of it? Or is it not worth it?
You have to determine what the USC diploma is worth compared to a CU Denver diploma. Of course, USC is a nationally recognized name but what will that do for YOU? I bring this up because my wife is thinking of getting into law at some point and we're thinking of moving to Denver. She knows people with contacts in the legal profession in Denver and their feeling is that employers in Denver strongly favor CU or DU graduates. If she were to go to a law school here in California, then move to Denver, she's be at a disadvantage. Do you plan on moving back to Denver right after grad school? Then going to CU Denver might be your best bet. If you plan on moving somewhere else, the big name of USC would be better. Something to think about.
Should I suck it up, bite the bullet, and go there for one year, trying to make the best out of it? Or is it not worth it?
It seems this question isn't as much about living in LA as whether USC is in your best interests career wise. With that, have you consulted with your academic peers and advisors? (Another thing that caught my eye was the pledging to USC forever thing....)
As a finance guy, what is the net future value of the present layout for the USC education and the extra rent and possibly the extra costs of living in LA? I'm Mr. Cheap, I'd say spend as little as possible now; Is it likely the more expensive education (and living costs) will be worth it? (I remember my first job out of college; I went to CSUN for like $500/semester including everything and on my first job there I was sitting next to a guy from Georgia Tech, loaded with student debt. Going to a world class school, he probably made $1000/year more than I did.)
On the other hand, this might be your only chance to live in LA and enjoy SoCal before you possibly get married and settle down.
It will be interesting to read other responses. Fun thread.
I say you should go for it. USC is a great school and being so close to downtown LA, you can take on paid summer internships with Big Four firms and lay the groundwork for having a fulltime position offered to you after graduation. If you play your cards right, find a roommate or two while in school and for maybe a year or two after school while your working for Big Four, you can then opt for a transfer back to Denver and keep your LA salary. You would have saved $$ by having a roommate and you could possibly buy your own place back home in no time at all.
You have to determine what the USC diploma is worth compared to a CU Denver diploma. Of course, USC is a nationally recognized name but what will that do for YOU? I bring this up because my wife is thinking of getting into law at some point and we're thinking of moving to Denver. She knows people with contacts in the legal profession in Denver and their feeling is that employers in Denver strongly favor CU or DU graduates. If she were to go to a law school here in California, then move to Denver, she's be at a disadvantage. Do you plan on moving back to Denver right after grad school? Then going to CU Denver might be your best bet. If you plan on moving somewhere else, the big name of USC would be better. Something to think about.
I have definitely heard that law firms like to recruit locally. I'm not sure if that same bias occurs in accounting, though. Yes, at least what's going on in my brain as of right now, the idea is I would go to USC, then try to go straight back to Denver.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Charles
It seems this question isn't as much about living in LA as whether USC is in your best interests career wise. With that, have you consulted with your academic peers and advisors? (Another thing that caught my eye was the pledging to USC forever thing....)
As a finance guy, what is the net future value of the present layout for the USC education and the extra rent and possibly the extra costs of living in LA? I'm Mr. Cheap, I'd say spend as little as possible now; Is it likely the more expensive education (and living costs) will be worth it? (I remember my first job out of college; I went to CSUN for like $500/semester including everything and on my first job there I was sitting next to a guy from Georgia Tech, loaded with student debt. Going to a world class school, he probably made $1000/year more than I did.)
On the other hand, this might be your only chance to live in LA and enjoy SoCal before you possibly get married and settle down.
It will be interesting to read other responses. Fun thread.
You are in finance? Let me ask you, how valuable do you think a MS in Accounting degree is, other than getting the required credit hours to sit for the CPA exam? Is a MS in Accounting degree from USC going to bring me benefits my entire life, or it only going to be good for a few years? As for the pledge, the exact phrase used in the admissions letter is "We will ask you to accept the following responsibilities: [...] Pledge to donate to the program-- over time and throughout your career-- for the benefit of future scholarship recipients." It doesn't specify exactly how much, when, and where. Do you think their scholarship would open a can of worms?
Are you sure I'd be enjoying SoCal? Is SoCal really that fun? I don't get what's so fun about it-- maybe I just don't get it. That's kind of what my whole question is about. I think LA would be a neat place to visit for a week, and maybe even live there for a month if I had nothing to do but spend time exploring and soaking up the atmosphere. I don't see how living there day in day out would be that fun, stuck in horrendous traffic and breathing in polluted air every day. If I go into the USC program, I'll be VERY VERY busy, and plus, I won't even have that much money to do anything fun. I've been following these forums for over a year, and one theme that keep recurring is you need a LOT of money to really take advantage of everything LA has to offer. Now, on the other hand, that could be true anywhere; skiing in Colorado costs a lot of money too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DaBeez
I say you should go for it. USC is a great school and being so close to downtown LA, you can take on paid summer internships with Big Four firms and lay the groundwork for having a fulltime position offered to you after graduation. If you play your cards right, find a roommate or two while in school and for maybe a year or two after school while your working for Big Four, you can then opt for a transfer back to Denver and keep your LA salary. You would have saved $$ by having a roommate and you could possibly buy your own place back home in no time at all.
Nope. According to them there is no room to do any kind of internship during the program, in summer or in the fall/spring. The USC program is full time, during the day, M-F. That's actually a concern I have-- I was under the impression that having an internship was very important. But USC is pretty confident their recruiting team can get you lined up with plenty of job interviews even without having an internship. They boast that 74% of their graduates get into Big 4 firms. A huge percentage of their students go straight into the program without any work experience. Ideally, I would like to have an internship, but it looks like that would only happen if I don't choose USC.
You're right, roommates would help split the cost. I'm living with a roommate right now, but we have a 2 bed 2 bath apartment so I still get some of my own space. I guess I could continue this type of setup for a few years. BTW, the admissions staff told me that during the summer session at USC most of the students live together in a dorm. She called it a "bonding experience." It sounds like a replay of being a new freshman. To some people that might sound like fun; to me, that makes me want to keel over! I've already been there, done that, experienced the dorm life for 2 years freshman and sophomore year. I'm glad I did it, but that is not something I want to experience EVER AGAIN.
BTW, the CU Denver thing has the opposite problem-- all the classes are offered at night. The idea is if I went there I would be doing an internship during the day, then go to classes at night. But now I'm not even totally sure if the CU Denver program can be completed in one year-- I'm trying to find out from them, which is turning out to be difficult. The USC program has the advantage of being one year, then I'm done. In any case, I don't want to "play the cards," I want to be reasonably sure of where I'm going to live. Everything else in life is a big toss up. If I was willing to gamble with my life, I probably wouldn't want to become an accountant in the first place.
Never, never, never talk yourself into doing something you don't want to do. You are absoultely right about where USC is. I require an armed guard to go slower than 50 mph through that area.
If oyu let yourself be talked into USC becuase it's a prestigous school, prepare yourself to be miserable and unhappy the entire time your are here. I grew up in L.A. and it can be a wonderful place. But if you've already decided you'll hate it here, you will never find the fun spots and wish out on the few good things the city still has to offer.
You are in finance? Let me ask you, how valuable do you think a MS in Accounting degree is, other than getting the required credit hours to sit for the CPA exam? Is a MS in Accounting degree from USC going to bring me benefits my entire life, or it only going to be good for a few years? As for the pledge, the exact phrase used in the admissions letter is "We will ask you to accept the following responsibilities: [...] Pledge to donate to the program-- over time and throughout your career-- for the benefit of future scholarship recipients." It doesn't specify exactly how much, when, and where. Do you think their scholarship would open a can of worms?
Are you sure I'd be enjoying SoCal? Is SoCal really that fun? I don't get what's so fun about it-- maybe I just don't get it. That's kind of what my whole question is about. I think LA would be a neat place to visit for a week, and maybe even live there for a month if I had nothing to do but spend time exploring and soaking up the atmosphere. I don't see how living there day in day out would be that fun, stuck in horrendous traffic and breathing in polluted air every day. If I go into the USC program, I'll be VERY VERY busy, and plus, I won't even have that much money to do anything fun. I've been following these forums for over a year, and one theme that keep recurring is you need a LOT of money to really take advantage of everything LA has to offer. Now, on the other hand, that could be true anywhere; skiing in Colorado costs a lot of money too.
No, You are the finance/accounting guy. (I am an engineer but I did earn an MBA.) I was suggesting doing a net future worth for each scenario. "If I invest at 9% the money I'd save by not going to USC...." Crunching the numbers is the easy part; making monetary assumptions is the hard part. But after reading this past post (you don't sound too interested in LA and you sound well aware of the hassles of LA living, you'd have little time for fun....) it sounds like you wouldn't be too happy in LA. I have suggested in the past that LA is a fun place for single people with disposable money and disposable time.
Dilemma: I really want to move back to Denver, my home town, and start my career there-- and I really do not want to live in LA.
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Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim
LA is simply not where I want to be...
Quote:
Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim
The cost of living there is sky high, and I don't want to dump well over a thousand bucks every month on apartment rent.
Quote:
Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim
Instead of being able to save for a downpayment, I'll be throwing away money paying for "double rent" (the price of renting an apartment in LA is twice as expensive as for the same quality of apartment in Denver or Phoenix).
Quote:
Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim
Keep in mind, I'm not on here to bash LA, far from it. Just saying, I don't think it's the right place for me.
Quote:
Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim
I think I've made the point that LA is not where I want to be.
YES, you have indeed made your point. LA is not the right place for you. So let me give you some very simple and straightforward advice. DON'T COME!!!
YES, you have indeed made your point. LA is not the right place for you. So let me give you some very simple and straightforward advice. DON'T COME!!!
Reading back over my post, I definitely came out as sounding extremely negative about LA and rambling. You did quote me slightly out of context though. I said that if I decide to attend USC and "bite the bullet," that I will try to make the most of it. I just haven't reached that "if" stage yet, I'm still trying to decide. I said there's always the possibility I could end up liking LA and wanting to stay, just that I don't see that happening as of right now. I'd rather go in with low expectations and be impressed than go in with high hopes and have my dreams shattered. A lot of this is fear of the unknown. If I have a game plan and a solid exit strategy before going in, I might feel better about this potential 1 year move and even enjoy it while I'm there.
One of my biggest concerns is the location of USC. Great school, beautiful campus, but why, oh why did they have to build the school in the middle of South Central LA? Is the campus really fenced off with barbed wire? I heard they have some kind of security escort-- does anybody know anything about this? Where do USC grad students typically live?
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I've already been there, done that, experienced the dorm life for 2 years freshman and sophomore year. I'm glad I did it, but that is not something I want to experience EVER AGAIN.
