I am a Junior in high school and am wondering which college would be the best for an aspiring start up entrepreneur. Also is a computer science or business degree recommended?
Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
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Re: Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
#2Stanford.
Computer Science.
Good luck.
Re: Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
#3Harvard. Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, Mark Zuckerberg.
Re: Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
#4Whichever college allows YOU to grow creatively, socially, and intellectually. This college is not necessarily Harvard, Stanford, UCLA, or Somestate University.
As far as a degree, whichever you enjoy the most. Don't focus on the product; rather, HOW you reach it.
Re: Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
#5Harvard. Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, Mark Zuckerberg.
Gates and Ballmer are part of the same good fortune, and I wouldn't be so quick to throw accolades on Zuckerburg.
That being said, Harvard is probably a pretty good place to be.
Re: Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
#6Stanford. Computer Science. Good luck.
From what I recall, Stanford accepts roughly 1% of applicants to the Computer Science program, compared with just over 10% for the University as a whole, making it one of the most competitive programs in the nation.
On a side note, my alma mater, the University of Southern California, accepts roughly 25% of students as a whole, and a slightly lower percentage of computer science students (though I can't find specific numbers).
I can't speak to knowing a large volume of entrepreneurs at USC, but I do know a few. The school itself has been making an impressive dedication to increasing entrepreneurship, however, especially in the Viterbi school of engineering. Mark Stevens, of Sequoia, recently funded a center for technology commercialization designed to help students build businesses out of research projects, and there are several student groups devoted to similar pursuits.
Los Angeles is also not the valley, but it turns out that it is a decent alternative, I would say at least as much so as any other major city in the U.S.
I'm not saying you should go to USC necessarily, but I enjoyed myself while I was there. One thing is certain, though, it is very different from Stanford.
Re: Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
#7Stanford. Computer Science. Good luck.
Stanford / Harvard / MIT. I'd give the edge to Stanford because it's in the middle of entrepreneur heaven. You could also major in Symbolic Systems instead of CS.
Re: Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
#8Whichever college allows YOU to grow creatively, socially, and intellectually. This college is not necessarily Harvard, Stanford, UCLA, or Somestate University. As far as a degree, whichever you enjoy the most. Don't focus on the product; rather, HOW you reach it.
...A not-so-subtle way to make one look "wise" without an accountable response. Not useful.
Re: Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
#9Harvard. Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer, Mark Zuckerberg.
Sergey Brin went to the University of Maryland. Larry Page went to Michigan. Marc Andreessen and Max Levchin went to the University of Illinois.
This not to say some schools aren't better than others, but when people do great things it's usually because of who they are rather than where they went to college.
Re: Ask YC: Best undergraduate college for hopeful startup entrepeneurs
#10Stanford. Computer Science. Good luck.
From what I recall, Stanford accepts roughly 1% of applicants to the Computer Science program, compared with just over 10% for the University as a whole, making it one of the most competitive programs in the nation. On a side note, my alma mater, the University of Southern California, accepts roughly 25% of students as a whole, and a slightly lower percentage of computer science students (though I can't find specific…
From what I recall, Stanford accepts roughly 1% of applicants to the Computer Science program, compared with just over 10% for the University as a whole, making it one of the most competitive programs in the nation.
That may be true for Ph.D. students, but not for undergraduates. Undergraduate applications are reviewed without regards to major. You'll have an equal chance of getting in whether you express interest in CS or English. The Stanford admissions website confirms this. [1]
The Ph.D. program may have acceptance rates approaching 1%, although I don't really think it's that low. Also, the master's program accepts a significantly higher percentage of applicants than the doctoral program.
[1] "All applicants apply to Stanford through the Office of Undergraduate Admission, not to a particular school or department within the University, and Stanford does not give preference to any major." http://admission.stanford.edu/applying/1_8_faqs.html