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What are the colleges I should look into that are Finance Focused?
Im in 9th grade and In ohio #college #career #Finance
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8 answers
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Tammy’s Answer
I don't know of any school that does not have a finance major, so I think the first question you have to ask yourself is what kind of school suits you, a large, medium or small school. Do you want an urban or rural setting? My recommendation is to narrow down your search to schools in your budget and that have a grade point average and test grades you will have a good chance of getting into. With my kids, we started by listing the top 20 schools they wanted to go to, researched those schools and narrowed down the list to those that worked within our constraints. You will want to some reach schools (hard to get into) and schools you know you can get into and afford. As you are researching you will add and delete colleges from the list and don't forget to get out and visit them.
Choosing what college you go to is a very personal decision and must be a good fit for you or you may not be motivated to do your very best.
Choosing what college you go to is a very personal decision and must be a good fit for you or you may not be motivated to do your very best.
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Julie’s Answer
Finance is a universal degree, which means nearly every college will offer it and the curriculum at each of these schools will be very similar. (An Accounting 101 class is going to be the same at Notre Dame vs. Ohio State. They might even use the same textbook!) While a cheaper state college in Ohio might not have the "name brand" that some out-of-state options might have, the best advice I could ever offer is do not put yourself in $200K debt for a Finance Degree. The education will honestly be extremely similar despite the name of the college you attend, so you should focus on the right "fit" for you (size of school, location, culture, etc.)
For example, I went to a state college in New Jersey that isn't on the highest ranking list for finance degrees, but I was a well-rounded student and I liked the campus. At my interviews with Verizon, I sat next to other students from Notre Dame, Bentley, Penn State, etc., so I was able to compete with name-brand schools with only a fraction of the cost. Once you find an employer, a lot of them will have a Tuition Reimbursement Program where they will pay for your continued education if you wanted to attend graduate school. So my advice: look at schools in Ohio where you can find affordable tuition, get a quality finance education, and focus on fit for you!
For example, I went to a state college in New Jersey that isn't on the highest ranking list for finance degrees, but I was a well-rounded student and I liked the campus. At my interviews with Verizon, I sat next to other students from Notre Dame, Bentley, Penn State, etc., so I was able to compete with name-brand schools with only a fraction of the cost. Once you find an employer, a lot of them will have a Tuition Reimbursement Program where they will pay for your continued education if you wanted to attend graduate school. So my advice: look at schools in Ohio where you can find affordable tuition, get a quality finance education, and focus on fit for you!
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Melissa’s Answer
Hi Edward!
I agree with the other responders. Most colleges offer Finance degrees within the Business School, and you can further look into which colleges have highly ranked Business Schools. Typically the higher ranked Business Schools will have tougher admission requirements, so it's great to start planning early in your HS career. Think about where you would like to live and what kind of environment you would like to be in, and what kind of people you want to surround yourself with. I went to a very large public school by choice for my Finance degree, and enjoyed being in large classrooms with a variety of backgrounds (I'm also a people person!). I would also look into the career centers that schools offer, as this is a great opportunity to land a summer internship while working on a Finance or Business degree. This is what I utilized at my school, and the career center helped provide multiple interviews for internships and full time jobs after graduating. No matter what college you go to, the most important quality when having a successful career in Finance is the drive to learn and grow your skills, and to show that effort in any job you have in the future.
Good luck!
I agree with the other responders. Most colleges offer Finance degrees within the Business School, and you can further look into which colleges have highly ranked Business Schools. Typically the higher ranked Business Schools will have tougher admission requirements, so it's great to start planning early in your HS career. Think about where you would like to live and what kind of environment you would like to be in, and what kind of people you want to surround yourself with. I went to a very large public school by choice for my Finance degree, and enjoyed being in large classrooms with a variety of backgrounds (I'm also a people person!). I would also look into the career centers that schools offer, as this is a great opportunity to land a summer internship while working on a Finance or Business degree. This is what I utilized at my school, and the career center helped provide multiple interviews for internships and full time jobs after graduating. No matter what college you go to, the most important quality when having a successful career in Finance is the drive to learn and grow your skills, and to show that effort in any job you have in the future.
Good luck!
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James’s Answer
Hi Edward, there are some excellent responses here to your question. Just about every major college/university offers degrees in Finance. The issues you should be considering at this point are:
Your interest in a small, medium or large school.
Whether you desire is to be close to home or attend school in another state.
The financial resources that you have available to you.
The value of the degree from a specific school in finding a job when you graduate.
These are just some of the issues to consider. As far as schools that offer well established programs, certainly the University of Chicago comes to mind as it is fairly close to where you live. Of course, Stanford, the University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern, Harvard, MIT and Columbia would be the big name schools.
As you are still very young you have plenty of time to focus in on what would be most important to you. As you get into your Junior year in High School you would typically begin to visit some of the schools you may have an interest in. For now, it is extremely important to maintain excellent grades participate in extracurricular programs while in High School.
Your interest in a small, medium or large school.
Whether you desire is to be close to home or attend school in another state.
The financial resources that you have available to you.
The value of the degree from a specific school in finding a job when you graduate.
These are just some of the issues to consider. As far as schools that offer well established programs, certainly the University of Chicago comes to mind as it is fairly close to where you live. Of course, Stanford, the University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern, Harvard, MIT and Columbia would be the big name schools.
As you are still very young you have plenty of time to focus in on what would be most important to you. As you get into your Junior year in High School you would typically begin to visit some of the schools you may have an interest in. For now, it is extremely important to maintain excellent grades participate in extracurricular programs while in High School.
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Mohamed’s Answer
This depends where you are applying. Generally, the best colleges for finance are in the US and UK.
In US, you have Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Wharton and NYU Stern.
In the UK, you have LSE, Oxford and Cambridge.
Also, in Italy, there is Bocconi.
These I believe are the best places to study finance, but you definitely need solid grades to get into any of them. Also check QS World University Ranking for more rankings :)
Hope this helps and good luck with your applications :)
In US, you have Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Wharton and NYU Stern.
In the UK, you have LSE, Oxford and Cambridge.
Also, in Italy, there is Bocconi.
These I believe are the best places to study finance, but you definitely need solid grades to get into any of them. Also check QS World University Ranking for more rankings :)
Hope this helps and good luck with your applications :)
Natalie Dunn
CareerVillage.org TeamProduct Manager at CareerVillage.org
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Natalie’s Answer, CareerVillage.org Team
Hello! My first job out of college was working in corporate finance, which means I worked in the Finance department at a large company. In college, I studied Business Administration, which was a general major including the following classes and fields: finance, economics, marketing, leadership, accounting. With this background, I was totally able to jump into a Finance internship and job after college. In my experience, what's important is that you have a good quantitative background, which means you feel comfortable with numbers, and if you can, some exposure to using Excel and spreadsheets. I don't think it's as important that you have a Finance major, if you can major in Business Administration or Economics, that is likely a sufficient background for entry level roles in Finance.
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Leahanne’s Answer
Edward, you can go to College Board, Niche or if you HS has a system, you can do a search on any of these sites for colleges in Ohio that have finance majors. Most all colleges and universities do. They are typically housed in the Business school of the college or university. You should then look at the programs and see which ones interest you the most, and which ones resonate best with you. Some criteria to consider would be : Which type of learning styles do you like best? What types of opportunities do they have such as internships? What types of career placement do they have? Can you marry the finance with another area that interests you, such as health care, or sports, or fashion?
And then which universities over all atmosphere and "vibe" fit you best? The better the fit the university is to you, the more you'll thrive and get the most out of your college experience.
And then which universities over all atmosphere and "vibe" fit you best? The better the fit the university is to you, the more you'll thrive and get the most out of your college experience.
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Neal’s Answer
Finance can be done at many schools. The most important thing is to get work experience by doing internships during the school year and during the summer breaks. You can find internships by offering to work for free initially and later using your experience to find paid internships. By maintaining a high GPA and completing many internships, you should be able to find a full time job when you graduate.