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.
On the other hand, if you haven't figured it out or you have doubts about the direction in which you're leaning at the moment, choosing a school with a full menu of options may well be the way to go. Not only will you get a taste of alternative options, but if you conclude you made the wrong choice, changing into a program more suited to your goals will be a lot easier if it's just a matter of filling out a few forms and 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.
And here's a further consideration that you might want to keep in mind. There's still a lot of romance attached to the brick and mortar college. And there are obvious advantages to it. However, if you're certain about what you want to study, an online education could be the way to go. Huge savings are a real possibility. Wouldn't it be nice to not graduate into debt slavery? Yet, you may not be sacrificing as much as you first think. In fact, the sophisticated tools for online group cooperative work employed in these educational settings are remarkably similar to the kinds of skills and technologies that drive the modern global business world.
It's important, when considering the rankings of undergraduate business schools not to fixate too intently on the winner of the gold star as determined by the ranking organization. As we've seen, there's a lot more to consider than who is slotted number one on any particular undergraduate business school rankings. Remember, above all, we're talking about your education. Information should be a tool, not a harness; make the choice that works for you and your needs.
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.
On the other hand, if you haven't figured it out or you have doubts about the direction in which you're leaning at the moment, choosing a school with a full menu of options may well be the way to go. Not only will you get a taste of alternative options, but if you conclude you made the wrong choice, changing into a program more suited to your goals will be a lot easier if it's just a matter of filling out a few forms and 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.
And here's a further consideration that you might want to keep in mind. There's still a lot of romance attached to the brick and mortar college. And there are obvious advantages to it. However, if you're certain about what you want to study, an online education could be the way to go. Huge savings are a real possibility. Wouldn't it be nice to not graduate into debt slavery? Yet, you may not be sacrificing as much as you first think. In fact, the sophisticated tools for online group cooperative work employed in these educational settings are remarkably similar to the kinds of skills and technologies that drive the modern global business world.
It's important, when considering the rankings of undergraduate business schools not to fixate too intently on the winner of the gold star as determined by the ranking organization. As we've seen, there's a lot more to consider than who is slotted number one on any particular undergraduate business school rankings. Remember, above all, we're talking about your education. Information should be a tool, not a harness; make the choice that works for you and your needs.
About the Author:
If you're considering an MBA you need to go to Business Week MBA Rankings and read Thomas Ryerson's excellent analyses, including his article there on deciding if an MBA is the right decision for you.
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