Anonymous wrote:

She went to Princeton for her undergrad and Harvard Law School which makes quite a difference.

As a parent of three children who have all done fairly well, let me just say that where one goes for undergrad does matter as does the major but even more important is where they end up going for grad school, business school, law school or medical school.

But I also agree with those who advocate going a good state school for undergrad and then expending any disposable income for the next step in their education.

Sure. I was just pointing out that what one majors in in undergrad has little bearing on one's future earnings compared to where they go, how well they do, how they network, and where and how well they go to graduate/law/medical/business school. I found that chart informative, because it basically indicates that with the exception of a handful of engineering degrees, what is most important is getting a degree, and perhaps going to graduate or professional school. The incomes vary somewhat, but not as drastically as one would think--for the most part 50K, +/-5K as a median income (and this is only for people who only have a bachelors degree--graduate degree holders are not represented). It indicates to me that majoring in the humanities and social studies is not the economic death sentence that people seem to believe, and majoring in the sciences is not the magic bullet either. This is coming from someone who majored in the sciences myself.

This is spot-on.

There is a lot of uninformed opinion in this thread.

First, the small, relatively unknown college mentioned by the OP, Mary Washington, is a Virginia state school. For a Virginia resident, this will be a very affordable option. Also, it happens to be a small school, which appeals to some students far more than the typical large state school.

Second, many relatively unknown colleges offer generous merit aid, which can make them much cheaper than top-tier privates (especially for families with higher incomes) and which can even reduce the cost of attending to a level comparable to in-state public. So sometimes it absolutely makes sense to attend a relatively unknown private, depending on what your other options are and how much they cost.

Third, as a PP noted, many small colleges aren't well-known by the general public but are well-known by those in the know--graduate schools, medical schools, certain niche employers. So it's worth thinking about the student's long-term goals and who he/she will be trying to impress straight out of college.

Fourth, big names don't need to be private (as a PP noted), but most of the big name state schools are just as expensive as the big name private schools for out-of-state students, and most of them offer no aid of any kind to out-of-state students. The estimated cost of attending Michigan in 2014-2015 is $53,490 for an out-of-state freshman.

She went to Princeton for her undergrad and Harvard Law School which makes quite a difference.

As a parent of three children who have all done fairly well, let me just say that where one goes for undergrad does matter as does the major but even more important is where they end up going for grad school, business school, law school or medical school.

But I also agree with those who advocate going a good state school for undergrad and then expending any disposable income for the next step in their education.

Sure. I was just pointing out that what one majors in in undergrad has little bearing on one's future earnings compared to where they go, how well they do, how they network, and where and how well they go to graduate/law/medical/business school. I found that chart informative, because it basically indicates that with the exception of a handful of engineering degrees, what is most important is getting a degree, and perhaps going to graduate or professional school. The incomes vary somewhat, but not as drastically as one would think--for the most part 50K, +/-5K as a median income (and this is only for people who only have a bachelors degree--graduate degree holders are not represented). It indicates to me that majoring in the humanities and social studies is not the economic death sentence that people seem to believe, and majoring in the sciences is not the magic bullet either. This is coming from someone who majored in the sciences myself.

Anonymous wrote:

Don't spend big dollars on a sociology degree even from Yale or NYU

Well, according to this chart, sociology majors make a median of 45K, which is better than counseling psychology (29K), about the same as English (48K), and worse, but not an order of magnitude worse from even some STEM majors (biochemistry 53K, biological engineering 50K, chemistry 57K). From this chart, it looks to me like all this angst about what to major in matters little. In less you are in a hot engineering field, likely getting a degree at all means that your earnings will cluster around 40-55K without grad school.

You know who was a successful ivy league sociology major? Michelle Obama.

She went to Princeton for her undergrad and Harvard Law School which makes quite a difference.

As a parent of three children who have all done fairly well, let me just say that where one goes for undergrad does matter as does the major but even more important is where they end up going for grad school, business school, law school or medical school.

But I also agree with those who advocate going a good state school for undergrad and then expending any disposable income for the next step in their education.

Anonymous wrote:

Don't spend big dollars on a sociology degree even from Yale or NYU

Well, according to this chart, sociology majors make a median of 45K, which is better than counseling psychology (29K), about the same as English (48K), and worse, but not an order of magnitude worse from even some STEM majors (biochemistry 53K, biological engineering 50K, chemistry 57K). From this chart, it looks to me like all this angst about what to major in matters little. In less you are in a hot engineering field, likely getting a degree at all means that your earnings will cluster around 40-55K without grad school.

You know who was a successful ivy league sociology major? Michelle Obama.

So they make less money than English majors...

Good luck...

^^ the link: http://chronicle.com/article/Median-Earnings-by-Major-and/127604/

Don't spend big dollars on a sociology degree even from Yale or NYU

Well, according to this chart, sociology majors make a median of 45K, which is better than counseling psychology (29K), about the same as English (48K), and worse, but not an order of magnitude worse from even some STEM majors (biochemistry 53K, biological engineering 50K, chemistry 57K). From this chart, it looks to me like all this angst about what to major in matters little. In less you are in a hot engineering field, likely getting a degree at all means that your earnings will cluster around 40-55K without grad school.

You know who was a successful ivy league sociology major? Michelle Obama.

Don't spend big dollars on a sociology degree even from Yale or NYU

Anonymous wrote:If you can't get into a big-name private school, you should go to a public school that is cheap.

Big name doesn't need to be private. UVA? W&M? Michigan?

Yes. I know people who have dismissed resumes based on college attended because they are familiar with their curricula and know they are sub-par. It happens often.

If you can't get into a big-name private school, you should go to a public school that is cheap.

That said, lots of people are successful and went to no name schools. I think it makes it harder but certainly not impossible. I would never spend a ton on a small school nobody has heard of. I'd just send my child to a state school that cost less at that point. (At least people think the decision was partially motivated by money and not what school they could get into!)

"No name" is really arbitrary. There are a lot of small liberal arts schools that have excellent reputations for graduate programs and tight alumni groups to help with employment that your average Joe on the street is not going to be impressed with because it isn't Harvard. Hell, a whole lot of people haven't heard to Amherst, Reed, Swarthmore, Williams, Carleton, Oberlin, Macalester, Pomona, etc. which all have excellent reputations, especially in terms of sending kids to top graduate programs. Part of it is finding someplace that is a good fit for the kid, where they will get a great connections, have good faculty mentors, and have a strong peer group.

I say go big or go home. If you aren't going to a big name school, then go to a cheap school.

College alumni associations are very powerful resources. If you can harness that, it helps you a lot in your career. Where you went to college follows you throughout your life.

That said, lots of people are successful and went to no name schools. I think it makes it harder but certainly not impossible. I would never spend a ton on a small school nobody has heard of. I'd just send my child to a state school that cost less at that point. (At least people think the decision was partially motivated by money and not what school they could get into!)

I wouldn't spend too much on a sociology degree. Does she plan to go to grad school?

I'm looking into colleges for my 10th grader and came across a few small colleges that don't "have" a name for themselves. Do potential employers decide on a candidate based of the college they went to? I'm sure some do, but I'm not talking about those commercial colleges that are run on TV mid-day. I'm assuming in the business field for private employers they may look at this more so than a local or federal government position. FWIW I was looking at University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg VA. DD is interested in Sociology.