Serious question about B student

[Anonymous]

Is your child picturing them self going to grad school? Because frankly getting near straight A’s in college from any top 200 college/university in the country will lead to far better grad school opportunities, then going to a higher ranked undergrad school but graduating with a 3.0 from there and then trying to apply to grad school. people I know who graduated from Harvard law went to undergrad schools that you and the fellow people posting here would not think are impressive at all. But they have JD’s from Harvard and are Doing very well in a variety of fields related to law. I know she might not be interested in law but my point is that your undergrad matters far less than people think it does if you are applying to grad schools after having done exceptionally well in undergrad regardless of the field.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colleges are not harder or easier based on USNWR ranking. Your kid will likely get the same grades at either school. Do not foolishly assume your HS B student will suddenly become an A student at a college just because you look down your nose at the brand.

+1 This. The difference between the education at a USNWR ranked 25 and 75 is close to zero. I feel like it is immigrants or first gen people that just don’t get this fact. It honestly is not different. Open your eyes, DCUM.

This is not true. A version my be true 20ish-50ish are about the same. 50ish to 80ish is about the same. There are differences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you think it’s better for your solid B student (at hard private) to go to a college where they would be top of the class and get 4.0 or attend a prestigious school like BC, Vandy, etc and have a 3.0. My DC plans on studying accounting and getting a job right after undergrad. Does anyone know how the big 5 ( or whatever it is now) recruit? My DC got into a “ prestigious” school EA ( not Ivy) but I’m I just don’t know if it’s a good fit. Thank you!

CPA here who did not get a job at the Big 4. It was devastating when it happened. I thought my career was over before it even began. In hindsight, it was the best thing that happened to my career. I took a job at a small firm, then went to a national firm after four years. Ultimately, I decided I did not want to be a partner and left. In 4 years, I have been involved with as 4 sell side transactions and as result of that I was able to land the controller position at a fast growing software company.

Assuming she wants to do audit:
1.) Does she want to be a great auditor?
2.) Does she want to work with large public companies?

If so, I would say (from audit), Big 4 makes a lot of sense. There are some opportunities to work with smaller companies, but in my experience, staff/senior Big 4 auditors really don’t know how to approach those situations because they aren’t use to the different frameworks.

If she wants to see the end to end process and get a good understanding of business, I highly recommend a midsize firm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How is this your decision? Let your kid decide.
You can discuss pros and cons with him and then leave it up to him.
It is rude to profile him as a B student.
Maybe he will surprise you and do great at a top school.
Don’t put him in a box just yet

Calm down. That's what OP is doing. And is soliciting opinions based on what IS (a B studen). What's your problem?

[Anonymous]

Go to better school. Colleges aren’t easier or grade easier bc they have lower rankings.

[Anonymous]

A 3.4 from a well regarded private is likely going to find college no harder - and possibly easier - than high school. Let her go wherever she wants. Yea d pick the better school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Go to better school. Colleges aren’t easier or grade easier bc they have lower rankings.

Fairpoint. I do agree with this. I think another factor to consider is which school your child can be feeling actively invested in so that they are happy and able to be focused on doing their best work.

[Anonymous]

I would send here where she would be the happiest. If she can’t pass the cpa, it really wont matter when she went.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A 3.4 from a well regarded private is likely going to find college no harder - and possibly easier - than high school. Let her go wherever she wants. Yea d pick the better school.

+1 My DC had a 3.4 at a local private (big3) and is getting straight As in college. DC studies a lot, but resulting grades are much higher. College ranks in the mid-30s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is your child picturing them self going to grad school? Because frankly getting near straight A’s in college from any top 200 college/university in the country will lead to far better grad school opportunities, then going to a higher ranked undergrad school but graduating with a 3.0 from there and then trying to apply to grad school. people I know who graduated from Harvard law went to undergrad schools that you and the fellow people posting here would not think are impressive at all. But they have JD’s from Harvard and are Doing very well in a variety of fields related to law. I know she might not be interested in law but my point is that your undergrad matters far less than people think it does if you are applying to grad schools after having done exceptionally well in undergrad regardless of the field.

I don't know why people always say "you can go to an elite school for grad school." Yes, that's true for med and law school aspirants, but what about everyone else? A Business major would be better off at a higher ranked school.

I truly, truly, truly do not understand the people who say "go to a lower ranked college for undergrad where you can get straight As and then go to Harvard for Law/Med school." If you went to an Ivy and worked just as hard, you'd be able to break into MBB/BB IB/buyside right out of undergrad. Getting a JD has a negative ROI for the brightest of college students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you all. She has a 3.4 from DC private. She did get in a highly regarded (atleast here on the forum). Has decent ACT, she is AA, 2 varsity sports, summer job, etc. i think she is a solid applicant. I just think (not being a college grad) that there would be so much more pressure at a smaller competitive college than say Va Tech…

OP, I hear you. My DC had similar GPA at a DC Catholic school. Did not get into any reaches and ended up at a school ranked well below the top 100. Being a big fish in a little pond has led to many wonderful leadership opportunities. Accountants are well recruited from big national name brand firms even at lower ranked schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thank you all. She has a 3.4 from DC private. She did get in a highly regarded (atleast here on the forum). Has decent ACT, she is AA, 2 varsity sports, summer job, etc. i think she is a solid applicant. I just think (not being a college grad) that there would be so much more pressure at a smaller competitive college than say Va Tech…

OP, I hear you. My DC had similar GPA at a DC Catholic school. Did not get into any reaches and ended up at a school ranked well below the top 100. Being a big fish in a little pond has led to many wonderful leadership opportunities. Accountants are well recruited from big national name brand firms even at lower ranked schools.

Correct, but not for all divisions. If you want audit/assurance, then yes, many Big 4 accounting firms recruit at lesser known schools. Not so for consulting/advisory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is your child picturing them self going to grad school? Because frankly getting near straight A’s in college from any top 200 college/university in the country will lead to far better grad school opportunities, then going to a higher ranked undergrad school but graduating with a 3.0 from there and then trying to apply to grad school. people I know who graduated from Harvard law went to undergrad schools that you and the fellow people posting here would not think are impressive at all. But they have JD’s from Harvard and are Doing very well in a variety of fields related to law. I know she might not be interested in law but my point is that your undergrad matters far less than people think it does if you are applying to grad schools after having done exceptionally well in undergrad regardless of the field.

I don't know why people always say "you can go to an elite school for grad school." Yes, that's true for med and law school aspirants, but what about everyone else? A Business major would be better off at a higher ranked school.

I truly, truly, truly do not understand the people who say "go to a lower ranked college for undergrad where you can get straight As and then go to Harvard for Law/Med school." If you went to an Ivy and worked just as hard, you'd be able to break into MBB/BB IB/buyside right out of undergrad. Getting a JD has a negative ROI for the brightest of college students.

No one is staying that as a strategy but the fact remains that a ton of people admitted to very high reach grad programs went to “ lesser “ undergrads and are very capable.

[Anonymous]

Getting a big four job is not hard.

We used to say take their pulse and hand them a laptop.

Really an accounting degree is a commodity like nursing or pharmacy. They don’t care about school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thank you all. She has a 3.4 from DC private. She did get in a highly regarded (atleast here on the forum). Has decent ACT, she is AA, 2 varsity sports, summer job, etc. i think she is a solid applicant. I just think (not being a college grad) that there would be so much more pressure at a smaller competitive college than say Va Tech…

OP, I hear you. My DC had similar GPA at a DC Catholic school. Did not get into any reaches and ended up at a school ranked well below the top 100. Being a big fish in a little pond has led to many wonderful leadership opportunities. Accountants are well recruited from big national name brand firms even at lower ranked schools.

Correct, but not for all divisions. If you want audit/assurance, then yes, many Big 4 accounting firms recruit at lesser known schools. Not so for consulting/advisory.

Sure, on campus recruiting is convenient, but a motivated student can do her own search. That’s how my kid got an offer in IB.