I’m a finance student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. I’m very passionate about both finance and science/engineering, but ultimately I want to work in finance and think I operate better at a business school. Is the University of Tennessee, Knoxville a university with a respectable reputation? Would a finance degree from Tennessee be seen as not good enough when compared to other flagship state schools such as Texas A&M. I’m considering leaving this university and applying to transfer to a university with a better reputation. Although the transfer process is complicated, expensive, and time consuming. If Tennessee has a respectable reputation I will stay. However, I could transfer to a different state/public or even a small private to finish my last year or two. Does anyone with experience or interested in finance or investment banking have knowledge on this topic? Thank you so much! I want to add that I’ve always dreamed of going to an Ivy League or private school (such as Vanderbilt) but I’ve never applied. I would consider applying to a private university I could reasonably get into. I live near Vanderbilt but I just don’t know if I would get in as a transfer.
My daughter’s boyfriend is a senior finance major at UTK. It’s a solid program but it is not a direct pipeline to Wallstreet (only a handful of very top schools are). He’s done very well, has a great GPA and had two very impressive summer internships, the second one led to a full-time job offer after graduation at a top bank in a southern city.
I will tell you that his success had very little to do with where he went to college and everything to do with the work he put into maximizing his opportunities. He is a very charismatic, outgoing person and spent a lot of time networking - reaching out to people on LinkedIn who had the job that he wanted and asking for Zoom meetings or phone calls to ask questions about the career and how they got there (not everyone said yes, but a surprising number did). He reached out to friends’ parents who work in finance to ask about their career paths, he networked while in his internships and actually his full-time job offer came from networking with someone in a different department who told him of a job opening.
Sure, if you go to Wharton, the path is much easier, but for people who aren’t at the pipeline schools, you still have to put in the work to get yourself where you want to be. Trying to target a specific college to get you there is a strategy but because you’d be a transfer student, I wonder how much of a benefit that would be for you if it’s a non-Ivy (and even if you transfer to an Ivy, how hard is it then to get into their business programs?)
I also have two daughters who work in finance. One graduated from a T20 business school at a public university. She did not want to be on Wallstreet but easily recruited into corporate investment banking. My other daughter is a senior finance/commercial real estate double major at another public university. She has a very high GPA and had a lot of recruiting interest from companies in the state her university is in. She does not want to remain in that state post-grad, so she networked on her own and recruited into a corporate banking internship and full-time offer in our home city.
Before making the decision to transfer, I would research the placement stats for finance majors at the colleges you are looking at and what that would like for you as a transfer student. At some colleges, the wheels night be in motion for competitive internships from freshman year and you might be late to the party. Maybe not, but it would be beneficial to know before committing to a transfer and a big jump in tuition.
Good luck with your decision.
It will probably be two years at a new school. Many many colleges require at least two years at their college to confer a degree…not one year.
Have you spent time with the career services team yet? If not- get moving.
They will be able to show you where kids like you have ended up in their first and second jobs, can describe the help and support they’ll give you in your job search. You are paying for their help- go get it!
I don’t think UTK is inferior to other state flagships or TX A&M - type schools. If you are generally happy at UT and have friends and are making good grades, I would stay put. Business school prestige (unless you are looking at MIT, UPenn, Princeton, Harvard, Etc) is not going to make or break your future. Your future is what you put into it, and unless you are in a tippy tippy top school, the college you graduate from is not going to determine where you can go.
Thank you all for your answers. I’m planning on staying and finishing my finance degree at UTK. Overall it’s been a great experience and I happy in Knoxville. I think I’m guilty of getting wrapped up in these rankings, which don’t really matter (unless Harvard or whatever). At the end of the day, I agree with the comments made that doing your best and networking will take you far. I’m so appreciative of everyone who answered.
Thank you and congrats on your family’s well earned success. I think Tennessee and other state schools (Auburn, A&M, etc.) provide a great opportunity to network. I think something like MTSU or other state schools that aren’t necessarily flagship are great too. Tennessee Tech. Texas Tech. Schools like that. Overall, I respect anyone who works hard regardless of the degree or where it’s from. I think finance is a great route although sometimes I wish I was taking science classes. That being said, I interviewed a dermatologist in my hometown who told me to do finance because the medical industry is complex and draining. With debt and cost of education, some physicians barely earn enough to make the sacrifice of medical school worth it. He said he was doing well because he owned the med spa we were sitting in. Interesting take. He also has kids who are studying finance. It really reassured me. Engineering is cool too but for some reason I feel more confident in reaching financial freedom with a business education. I’m so appreciative of the time you took to answer me!
Thank you.
Thank you. I’ll probably finish at my state school here. I have just 2 semesters left. So you make a good point.
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