UA vs. NAU (Tucson: homes, layoffs, school)

[az461]

** I posted this similar post in the education section, but I also wanted to get some input from people who are in Tucson and may have some knowledge of the University of Arizona

Here is my question.




I am a pre-business student at the University of Arizona who applied to the Eller School of Management (Very prestigious) I went through the whole application process, interview, test. (lots of hoops and hurdles)
In the end process I did not get in which was not due to the G.P.A. but because of my interview didn't go very well planned. So I got points deducted from that and my application was rejected.

At this point everything I worked for two years has been put to a halt. I was going to declare my major as Finance. In order for me to be in the Finance program I have to be accepted into Eller. My advisor gave me these options.

a. Apply again in the Fall (For Spring 2012)
- the reason this option isn't for me is because I've already done all the electives and all the access needed. All I have left are more foundation upper-division classes. I honestly just want to graduate and not put time off.

The second option is...
b. Get your degree in Bachelors of Arts: Economics

I recently applied to Northern Arizona University and got in. The process was easy, and now I am stuck making a decision.

This is the underlying aspect of my "question".

UA is more reputable. It has a great reputation with an amazing alumni department. (which in the end could help me network more)
VS. NAU is not as "famous" as the UA, but I then could declare my major as Finance.

It comes to this.

Bachelors of Arts: Economics - UA (Reputable)

vs.

Bachelors of Science: Finance - NAU (Not so reputable)



But. a Bachelors of Science is considered to be a stronger degree is what they tell me.

Anyway.



Does the name of school matter MORE than the degree you get. So for example lets say I graduate with a marketing or finance degree from NAU. Can I potentially have better opportunities in the corporate world than if I got Bachelors of Arts in Economics which does not look as lucrative as a Bachelors of Science degree in Finance (But it has the NAU name on the diploma)

So does the name of school matter to a huge extent? Does my question sort of make sense as what I am asking?

I really appreciate all the future help, and if you have any questions I will address them to best of my abilities.

Thank You

[azdr0710]

how old are you?

[Jukesgrrl]

In general, I would say WHERE you went to school trumps whatever you did there most of the times in your life. You could have been drunk at Harvard for four years -- still, you went to Harvard.

I don't need the fingers of one hand to count the people who have ever looked at my college or grad school transcripts. When you send out resumes, certain words pop out at the low-level people who vet them. The name of the school you attended might impress someone who wouldn't know the difference between the two degrees. If you can't move your resume out of the heap in the HR department, it will never be seen by the person who might actually interview you. My brother got decent grades at a Big 10 university where he was the president of a large fraternity. I went to a prestigious but small private college with no Greeks and graduated with honors from a difficult program. Guess which one of us has made the most money all our lives?

But in your case, the answer might depend more on what you plan to do with your undergrad degree. If you want to enroll in an MBA program, you should do whatever your academic adviser tells you to do. If you are going to look for an entry-level job in the corporate world, I'd say stay at the U of A, especially if there's any chance in the world you might seek a job outside of Arizona. No disrespect to NAU (three members of my family have gone there and loved it), but outside of this state, few people have ever heard of it.

In any case, work on your interview skills -- you need them, no matter what, and they will help your alumni networking.

That's my vote. I'm interested to see what others might say. Good luck.

[coatimundi]

Sorry, but this has absolutely nothing to do with Tucson and will not be best answered by "people who are in Tucson and may have some knowledge of the University of Arizona" because it's a very general question about which college to enroll in. If you want a response to it, post the question on some general answer site, like Yahoo! Answers, because this is just absolutely not the venue for this sort of question.

[RickTucsonHomes]

You did not mention the ASU School of Business? Is there a reason you are not exploring that possibility? Will you be going on to do graduate work? IMHO, with many years in the business world, I would opt for the Bachelor of Science degree. That's why I mentioned ASU, might be a happy median. Sorry you did not make it into the Eller School, that obviously would be the ideal. azdr asked your age, that is a good question. If you are young, you have a lifetime ahead of you and waiting to reapply to Eller could reap big dividends down the road. Only you can answer the question of what your chances would be with a second interview, how confident are you? What are your long term goals? As for NAU, my daughter graduated from there with a BS in Accounting and CIS. She had numerous job offers coming out of college, signed on with one of the major firms, passed her CPA exam within about 18 months out of school if I remember right. Being an NAU grad has had no negative affects. She has received promotions and raises each of the 5 years she has been there, and has survived two layoffs. The Pedigree "may" get you an extra interview or two, but bottom line one has to perform and get results out in the business world. That will determine your future more than where you went to school. But back to your original question, if you will be going for an MBA anyway, just get a Bachelors asap. Otherwise I would go for a BS Degree at one of the three universities.

[az461]

Originally Posted by RickTucsonHomes

You did not mention the ASU School of Business? Is there a reason you are not exploring that possibility? Will you be going on to do graduate work? IMHO, with many years in the business world, I would opt for the Bachelor of Science degree. That's why I mentioned ASU, might be a happy median. Sorry you did not make it into the Eller School, that obviously would be the ideal. azdr asked your age, that is a good question. If you are young, you have a lifetime ahead of you and waiting to reapply to Eller could reap big dividends down the road. Only you can answer the question of what your chances would be with a second interview, how confident are you? What are your long term goals? As for NAU, my daughter graduated from there with a BS in Accounting and CIS. She had numerous job offers coming out of college, signed on with one of the major firms, passed her CPA exam within about 18 months out of school if I remember right. Being an NAU grad has had no negative affects. She has received promotions and raises each of the 5 years she has been there, and has survived two layoffs. The Pedigree "may" get you an extra interview or two, but bottom line one has to perform and get results out in the business world. That will determine your future more than where you went to school. But back to your original question, if you will be going for an MBA anyway, just get a Bachelors asap. Otherwise I would go for a BS Degree at one of the three universities.

Wow, thank you so much this is so insightful. It really is. I am glad someone answered with clarity.

Also thank you for the replies. From my "Overall" conclusion I can tell that the name of the school matters.
Of course if you graduate from Harvard even with a degree in something like "Religion" it won't really matter because you went to the infamous "Harvard"

When I graduate I will be moving out of state. I want to pursue my MBA. As for how I old I am. I am 21 years old.

[az461]

Originally Posted by RickTucsonHomes

The Pedigree "may" get you an extra interview or two, but bottom line one has to perform and get results out in the business world. That will determine your future more than where you went to school. But back to your original question, if you will be going for an MBA anyway, just get a Bachelors asap. Otherwise I would go for a BS Degree at one of the three universities.

Thank you for this. This is also insightful

[azdr0710]

I asked how old you are because if you were 25 or older or so, I'd say get a move on....

but since you're only 21, I'd say get the UA degree and continue to pursue the MBA application at UA or another good school....get some real-life business experience, too....some clever project or invention or unusual experience looks good on apps, too.....

obviously, figure out how to improve the interview process, too....

but I graduated from the UA before the internet, so I don't know.....