Harvard or Columbia - Where would you go?

[Anonymous]

My DS is still trying to get over the shock of getting into both incredible schools. Commitment deadline is coming soon, and while the decision is his entirely, I was curious to see what insight people might give.

DS has flip-flopped between engineering and liberal arts for over a year now. If he goes to Columbia, he'll do engineering for sure (with a minor in humanities, probably). If he goes to Harvard, everything's up in the air.

Costs are very similar.

[Anonymous]

Harvard no debate

[Anonymous]

I'd probably go to Harvard. We can debate whether it should be true, but I've done enough hiring at this point to know that having that word on your resume is a huge difference maker.

[Anonymous]

Harvard.

[Anonymous]

Harvard

[Anonymous]

Harvard

[Anonymous]

Harvard, Boston is a great college town.

[Anonymous]

Having attended both... Harvard college is a lot of fun and way more relaxed. So... Harvard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd probably go to Harvard. We can debate whether it should be true, but I've done enough hiring at this point to know that having that word on your resume is a huge difference maker.

If you don't mind me asking, what field are you in? I'm not so naive as to think names don't matter, but DS was wondering about the comparative weakness of engineering/STEM programs at a liberal arts college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Having attended both... Harvard college is a lot of fun and way more relaxed. So... Harvard.

DS was definitely pleasantly surprised by the friendliness and lack of snootiness of people he's met through their virtual programs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd probably go to Harvard. We can debate whether it should be true, but I've done enough hiring at this point to know that having that word on your resume is a huge difference maker.

Ditto. It's a leg up in life and is massively helpful if your son ever desires to work overseas. Instant credibility, even though it's not deserved IMHO. Columbia and Harvard are diametrically opposite experiences.

I've worked with and spent a lot of time around the Harvard crowd - my ex went there and I'm still close with much of their network, spent a lot of time around the Final Clubs crowd. Out of the hundreds of Harvard folks I've met, I'd say less than 20% really wowed me with their intellectual prowess. Harvard churns out a lot of grad with solid 'soft skills.' Most are wealthy kids who have successful parents and ride those connections into finance, law, politics, or med school. To be frank, the vast majority of Harvard grads are not any better than those who go to Duke, NYU, U of Michigan, or any other selective college. There also continues to be a vert strong tradition at Harvard that it's a "finishing school" for young wealthy women who intend to drop out of the work force by the time they are 30. Take that for what you will.

If your son wants a career in finance, he should absolutely go to Harvard. There is no reason for him to ever get an MBA after Harvard. All the individuals I know who went to Harvard undergrad and straight into finance did well and did not bother with MBAs. A few are partners at Goldman, but most end up at smaller boutique firms in leadership roles or running their family office. All are making high 6 figures or low 7 figures annually. The crowd I know graduated right after the tech downturn, so there are less of those folks in my network. I know that more recent classes do well at placing grads in established tech giants - Facebook, Amazon, Google, etc where soft skills now matter more than raw coding talent.

I'm consistently impressed with people who went to Yale, MIT, and Smith College. I've never met a slacker or dummy who came out of either of those schools. I can't say the same about Harvard undergrad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Having attended both... Harvard college is a lot of fun and way more relaxed. So... Harvard.

+1000

The term "A Gentleman's C" came from Harvard. It's nowhere near as intense and competitive as Columbia. Go to Columbia for an intense academic environment; go to Harvard for a social environment where soft skills are prized.

That's basically the difference between the two schools. Whether or not your child will do well depends on his personality. If your son is a strong introvert, he may be miserable at Harvard.

[Anonymous]

Harvard

[Anonymous]

For undergrad, I would say Harvard.

For graduate, I turned them down, because they were weaker than the school I chose in my specific area of interest. I got lots of pushback from people who thought I was derailing my life to turn down Harvard.

[Anonymous]

Not liberal arts.