<p>Location should be a factor if one prefers an urban environment over a small town. Boston College is by no means a slouch in finance. Many of their undergrads work in investment banking, portfolio management, banking and other finance positions:</p>
<p>Class of 2011, Median salaries by top ten fields of employment
Employment field Number
reporting
Median
salary Salary range
Investment Banking (Mergers and Acquisitions) 16 $70,000 $50,000 - $125,000
Investment Banking (Corporate Finance) 20 $70,000 $32,000 - $75,000
Consulting 43 $60,000 $38,000 - $72,080
Accounting (Public) 24 $55,000 $52,000 - $62,000
Auditing (Public) 18 $55,000 $52,000 - $59,000
Financial/Treasury Analysis 19 $55,000 $42,000 - $65,000
Portfolio Management/Brokerage 19 $55,000 $40,000 - $70,000
Marketing - Sales 12 $50,000 $30,000 - $100,000
Teaching 33 $40,000 $12,000 - $53,890
Research (Technical/Scientific) 12 $32,250 $26,000 - $55,000</p>
<p>While Richmond and DC have finance communities I don’t think many people would use the term “substantial” to describe the level of activity. The type of work done in the DC area is usually financial transactions that are too small to be profitable for NY firms. DC and Richmond are definitely small ponds in the seas of the financial world.</p>