Menlo College (MC)

This Silicon Valley undergraduate business school has fewer than 800 students, but students say this provides them with “small classes that allow students to receive a more one-on-one education.” Menlo’s size also allows it to cultivate a “family atmosphere,” in which “you get to know everyone and the president of faculty is willing to make you pancakes on the weekends with eggs from her own chickens.” Students also find a top-notch education that is grounded in “preparing its students for the real world” through a “liberal arts based” approach to business education “that focuses on corporate social responsibility as the main reason for business, rather than profits.” “Most of the professors [at Menlo] have worked in the field they teach, and are able to give real-world examples of concepts in action,” and they “often assign relevant research or homework” that students can connect to their own career aspirations. Students also tell us that they get plenty of after-hours attention from the faculty: “ I have had a professor on the phone with us until midnight answering questions about a test, and another professor on campus helping us study until 1:00 a.m.” Many students complain that the “facilities are outdated” and need updating, and they wish that the school would offer “better resources to connect with corporations/firms.”

Menlo students are all “about business and sports” as the student body “is roughly 70 percent athletes” who take advantage of the school’s many sports teams and clubs. But that doesn’t mean everyone is the same. “There are students who come from all over the world . . . due to our big athletic department,” one student tells us. And while many told us that students form cliques, most agree that “students are very welcoming.” In fact, most students agreed that “everyone is pretty friendly and open” and “and willing to meet new people and grow their network.” A “high entrepreneurial spirit” on campus means that “most students are driven and have at least one or more leadership positions.” Overall, Menlo “[has] a great environment . . . especially since we are a small-knit community.”

With San Jose and San Francisco minutes away and Palo Alto next door, students have access to a wide array of eateries, bars, clubs, and music venues. “Some people are very focused on fitness and sports while others party and go out,” students say. The school offers “different field trips and guest speakers” as well as social or entertainment gatherings like “Tavern Night,” which usually features live entertainment or dancing, but students find most of their nightlife and weekend fun off campus. “For fun, I travel down to San Francisco or San Jose and walk around and explore. Santa Cruz and Half Moon Bay is relatively close so I like to chill at the beach as well,” one student explained. Students who aren’t lured by the surrounding area “spend time in various clubs and activities set up by our Student Government.”