Hi, I am going on to my last year of high school and preparing for college and I have a questions for the business executives on this forum. I wanted to know if what college I graduate from makes that much of a difference in the work field as far as getting hired goes. I am asking this questions because I am really considering going to college in the Philippines to save my parents some money and because I enjoy it in the Philippines. My parents are concerned about me getting less credibility as to graduating from a school here in America because after I gradute college I plan on returning here to America to work. If i do go to college in the Philippines I will attend a very prestigious and highly respected school, but I'm sure most American companies won't know that about the school. I know that my ability after I graduate will on par with most graduates from American universities but will graduating from a university in the Philippines cause me to have less credibility when applying for jobs? If I stay here in America for college I will most likely attend a UC school in California, nothing big or prestigious, because my family doesn't have enough money for a private or ivy league school in the East Coast. I plan on majoring in either Finance or Accounting. Well sorry for the long post, but I just wanted to know how big of a role does "what college I graduated from" play when applying for jobs in the finance or accounting field. Any information will be greatly appreciated.

 

does it matter? depends. if you want to be an investment banking analyst on wall street right out of school, you BET it matters.

For most other jobs in the business field, the school doesn't matter too much. If you do well in a pretty decent state school, you will eventually find something you like (just don't get wall street aspirations). Now, some of the better schools are visited directly by many companies to recruit. if you are not going to a school on that company's "list" it is VERY hard to get in. There are still plenty of great jobs in finance and accounting, and if you are truly bright and talented and SHOW VALUE, then you will get GREAT jobs eventually. You can enter a company through their college recruiting, and if you miss that you can still apply for openings in the company and many get hired that way.

Having an uncle or something high up helps, too

This college in the Philipines is a bad idea. while it may be prestigious there, it isn't here, and that's what matters. If I were interviewing a candidate who said that they went in the philipines, I'd first think that it was a phony degree and/or that they took a shortcut through college...either way you will be passed over. Same for online schools...any SERIOUS job will be difficult to get once they find out a candidate went online. definitely go in the US. The only other country that I think you could go to school in and have it be considered equal or better than a US school is a British one.

 

I suggest go to an UC school. It would not be all that expensive.

 

One word: Berkeley! Plus, you'll get to meet Will Hung, which is enough an incentive to go.

 

College in the Philippines is NOT a bad idea. There are several excellent business schools in that country. The Asian Institute of Management is an internationally renowned establishment that you might want to survey if you are really interested. Ofcourse, life in another country will be different than America.

I'm sure you have heard this saying before. "It's not what you know, it's who you know." Good luck.

 

As an ex_exec of a major IT firm, now running my own small business, I recommend you learn grammar and spelling. Your topic heading should read "College advice".

 

He's right. If you want move up in the business world, perfect English is a must. Ghetto talk will keep you in the mailroom so to speak.

While the Asian Institute of Management may be prestigious, it is only so to people who know of it. Those people are few and far between in the US.

If you can get into UC Berkely then do that. Berkely would be better than the Asian Institute of Management because everyone in the US (in the business world) knows it's an excellent school.

 

It depends... sometimes it matters, sometimes it doesn't as much, sometimes it won't make a difference. But no matter what going to a UC university would be better than some unknown school in the Philippines IMO.

 

His grammar and spelling look fine to me considering he's just going to be a senior in high school. Besides, none of our posts are free of grammatical errors. In your own post, you should have said "ex-exec" rather than "ex_exec," and periods should go inside - not outside - quotation marks, as in the case of "college advice."

 

mrfd3s,

Going to an UC would probably be the safer bet. The UCs are generally pretty well-reputed throughout the USA, and your job prospects would very likely be better coming out of an UC than a foreign school. That would be particularly true if you're going into accounting, since accounting principles vary widely from country to country.

That having been said, you only live once, and if you're like most people, you only have one chance to enjoy being a college undergraduate. So, make the most of it. If you really want to go to school in the Philippines, then go for it! You'll have plenty of time down the road to be responsible and make the so-called "right decisions." Some experiences in life are more valuable than landing that prestigious first job, and in my opinion, college is definitely one of the candidates.

At any rate, the school you graduated from is of greatest importance mostly when applying for your first job. After that, it still matters to an extent, but relevant work experience will matter just as much, if not more.