So you've decided upon an undergraduate degree in business. Excellent choice! Sorry to say, but that might have been the easy part. Now you have to figure out where to apply. And, if you've already applied, and had multiple acceptances, you have to decide which one to choose?
Obviously, in the end, only you can decide this, but we might be able to help with a few words of advice. First off, you probably want to go to the very best school that you can. There are lots of undergraduate business school rankings you can consult. However, it isn't necessarily quite that easy. There are other things you ought to consider as well.
Take an example: are you clear what the term business means to you? It's actually a pretty big tent, as umbrella phrases go. What about all those sub-disciplines? Not every school offers the same options. If you arrive, and early on get enthused about specializing in marketing or global supply chain management, what if the school you selected either hasn't got a specialized stream in that or they offer it, but the industry considers it a weak program? What do you do then? Transfer to another school? Settle for studying something that doesn't interest or excite you?
Consider a couple of possible scenarios. If you've had the foresight and/or good fortune of knowing before applying which sub-discipline of business in which you'd prefer to specialize, don't automatically choose a high ranked school with a full menu of options. Their high ranking may be based upon specializations that don't interest you. A school that provides highly regarded streams in real estate, quantitative analysis, information systems and insurance is of not benefit to you if you want a marketing program and theirs is poorly regarded. If you've settled on a specialization, get to a school that offers the best program in that sub-discipline.
There is though the contrary scenario to consider. What if you haven't yet identified a specialization? If you haven't or you're ambivalent about your direction, it may be smarter to look at a large menu, multi-options school. It will provide you a good sampling of different options. Furthermore, should you wind up deciding your initial choice wasn't quite right, the costs of switching specializations are much less in such a situation. It's a lot easier than changing schools, and likely cities, to be able to do a little paper work and start going to the classroom down the hallway.
In the same vein, let's face it, though you may be pretty excited right now about business school, you'd be following in a long line of (sometimes quite distinguished) professionals and scholars who realized they wanted to change major mid-stream. The same logic from above applies: if you're not 100% certain, attending a larger university gives you many more options if at some point you conclude that this whole undergraduate business degree is not really want you want to do with your life.
One other thing you might consider when ranking your business school options: there may be some cultural romance associate with brick and mortar colleges, with the ivy and all. But, if you know what you want to do, an online degree may be the wiser option. It certainly can save you a lot of money. And, interestingly, the sophisticated tools for online group cooperative work that they have available perhaps even better prepares you for the types of skills and technologies that make the modern global economy run.
So, when you look at undergraduate business school rankings, don't get too caught up in who gets the gold star from the ranking organization. There are a lot of factors to consider that apply to your own circumstances. And at the end of the day, it is your education. Use the information available to make a choice that works for you.
Obviously, in the end, only you can decide this, but we might be able to help with a few words of advice. First off, you probably want to go to the very best school that you can. There are lots of undergraduate business school rankings you can consult. However, it isn't necessarily quite that easy. There are other things you ought to consider as well.
Take an example: are you clear what the term business means to you? It's actually a pretty big tent, as umbrella phrases go. What about all those sub-disciplines? Not every school offers the same options. If you arrive, and early on get enthused about specializing in marketing or global supply chain management, what if the school you selected either hasn't got a specialized stream in that or they offer it, but the industry considers it a weak program? What do you do then? Transfer to another school? Settle for studying something that doesn't interest or excite you?
Consider a couple of possible scenarios. If you've had the foresight and/or good fortune of knowing before applying which sub-discipline of business in which you'd prefer to specialize, don't automatically choose a high ranked school with a full menu of options. Their high ranking may be based upon specializations that don't interest you. A school that provides highly regarded streams in real estate, quantitative analysis, information systems and insurance is of not benefit to you if you want a marketing program and theirs is poorly regarded. If you've settled on a specialization, get to a school that offers the best program in that sub-discipline.
There is though the contrary scenario to consider. What if you haven't yet identified a specialization? If you haven't or you're ambivalent about your direction, it may be smarter to look at a large menu, multi-options school. It will provide you a good sampling of different options. Furthermore, should you wind up deciding your initial choice wasn't quite right, the costs of switching specializations are much less in such a situation. It's a lot easier than changing schools, and likely cities, to be able to do a little paper work and start going to the classroom down the hallway.
In the same vein, let's face it, though you may be pretty excited right now about business school, you'd be following in a long line of (sometimes quite distinguished) professionals and scholars who realized they wanted to change major mid-stream. The same logic from above applies: if you're not 100% certain, attending a larger university gives you many more options if at some point you conclude that this whole undergraduate business degree is not really want you want to do with your life.
One other thing you might consider when ranking your business school options: there may be some cultural romance associate with brick and mortar colleges, with the ivy and all. But, if you know what you want to do, an online degree may be the wiser option. It certainly can save you a lot of money. And, interestingly, the sophisticated tools for online group cooperative work that they have available perhaps even better prepares you for the types of skills and technologies that make the modern global economy run.
So, when you look at undergraduate business school rankings, don't get too caught up in who gets the gold star from the ranking organization. There are a lot of factors to consider that apply to your own circumstances. And at the end of the day, it is your education. Use the information available to make a choice that works for you.
About the Author:
Thomas Ryerson is a regular contributor to the blog, Undergraduate Business School Rankings, click here.
No comments:
Post a Comment