Dealing with Family (and Friends)

My story is a little different than most peoples. My family has been hugely supportive of my business school pursuit. Especially my dad, who went so far as to purchase the online version of US News Best Graduate schools for me and has already started purchasing "XY Business School" clothing from the schools I have been admitted to even though I have not yet made a decision on where I'm going.

My parents are two extremely intelligent people who came from disadvantaged backgrounds (mom = recent immigrant family, dad = single parent home). They worked there way through college and eventually masters degrees at local schools, and made it all the way to upper-middle class/upper class status. Now days they live in a community where everyone else went to Harvard/Yale/Princeton/Penn/etc... They are proud of what they achieved, but I think they are still a little self concious of thier roots. My mom moreso, as here sister ended up marrying a rich Wharton grad who has sent all thier children there for undergrad b-school. Consequently there was a lot of pressure on my younger sister and I to go to a top notch colleges. I dutifully complied, though I think my mom almost had a heart attach when I turned down Princeton (a real Ivy, with real live rich people) for Cornell (a psuedo-Ivy for nerdy engineering kids like me). My younger sister went the opposite route (though she is actually smarter and more accomplished than me) and attended the school see enjoyed the most on here visit - the University of Delaware.

I had the misfortune of graduating from Cornell in 2001, post-dotcom bubble and post 9/11. I struggled academically in the extremely competative environment at Cornell's engineering school and only managed a 3.0 GPA (not as bad as it sounds, 3.3 is Dean's list) which really knocked my self confidence. Though I did an engineering co-op my junior year, the dotcom company I interned at went belly up and reciended my full-time job offer before I graduated. I tried to join in on-campus recruiting, but I was too late to land one of the very few jobs available. Six months out of school I was living out of my car in Ithaca with no money and 70K plus of student loans coming due. I eventually landed an engineering job with the NY state government about eight months out.

Meanwhile in Delaware my sister was thriving. She was on full scholarship and was one of the top students in her class with a near 4.0 GPA. She graduated in 2005 and immediately went to work at as a paralegal for a large NYC law firm. In her first year she made over 80K (a bit more than I have ever made in a year as an engineer), and today is lead paralegal at the same firm. The firm has agreed to be pay a good portion of her lawschool or business school tuition (which ever she eventually decides on) if she gets into a good school next year.

Our very different undergrad experiences have made me really question the value of a top degree from a "name" school. When I started applying to b-school, I was basically only considering the affordable, local programs. My parents and my wife have been huge motivators pushing me to reach higher. Now that my b-school application process is coming to an end, I am very happy that they did push me. I've gotten in to a couple of excellent schools, and even managed some scholarships. Meeting the current students at those schools really made me realize how much I enjoyed Cornell, and begin surrounded by sharp eager minds. I'm thrilled to be headed back to school next fall.

I'm glad to have learned early in life that its me, and not my school, that has and will make me a success. Good luck to everyone next fall wherever you are headed. I know you will all do well, because though success comes from passion not pedigree, everyone here seems to have that passion and the pedigree to boot.