I want to work on Wall Street; how important is my undergrad school?

College Search & Lists
1

<p>In terms of prestige; how much does it matter that I go to a prestigious undergrad school? Or does it really just matter how prestigious my graduate school is (for an MBA)?</p>

<p>I want to be an investment banker.</p>

2

<p>Quite important. Most firms recruiting for investment bankers only recruit from specific schools. Usually these schools are listed in the highly/most selective admission category. It is possible to get into the business through “less prestigious” schools, but extremely harder.</p>

3

<p>So both are important? Or just graduate school?</p>

<p>Obviously they’re both “important,” but would I be screwed if I went to a top 40 school for undergrad but not top 20? My state flagship’s business school is ranked in the top 25…is that good enough for graduate school?</p>

4

<p>Since OP is from Ohio, here is the Program Link:</p>

<p>Fisher Futures at The Ohio State University</p>

<p>The Fisher College of Business Office of Career Management has developed Fisher Futures, a unique and innovative program to aid you as a top finance student at Fisher in attaining experience in the investment banking industry. While the application process is lengthy and selective, we invite you to apply to become a member of the distinguished Fisher Futures program.</p>

<p>Once selected to join Fisher Futures, you will receive individual coaching preparing you to compete for a summer investment internship and thus be well positioned to secure a full-time career position in the investment banking industry upon graduation.</p>

<p>Link: [Fisher</a> College of Business | Fisher Futures](<a href=“http://fisher.osu.edu/offices/career-management/student-resources/undergraduate/fisher-futures/]Fisher”>http://fisher.osu.edu/offices/career-management/student-resources/undergraduate/fisher-futures/)</p>

<p>Internship Testimonies</p>

<p><a href=“https://fisher.osu.edu/blogs/internship/tag/investment-banking/[/url]”>https://fisher.osu.edu/blogs/internship/tag/investment-banking/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Best of Luck & Go Bucks! :)</p>

5

<p>many who get hired eventually at top IB do a 2-3 year analyst job after undergrad. Then grad school for MBA and often back at higher level.Harder to get top MBA without top job experience such as an analyst for an IB. Yes, it is rigged a bit in favor of elite schools.</p>

6

<p>Oh that sucks haha, thanks for the information though barrons. You too Sparkeye.</p>

<p>So it really IS important I go to a top undergrad school? That sucks because I probably can’t afford anything like that.</p>

7

<p>bump</p>

<p>10char</p>

8

<p>Yes, going to an elite school is the best route to follow from a probabilistic point of view. If you are from Ohio, follow up on Sparkeye’s links. That would be your best bet.</p>

<p>May I ask how you know you want to be an investment banker?</p>

9

<p>Obviously it’s a bit premature, seeing as I’m still in high school, but good question.</p>

<p>I want to go to graduate school. And I love studying economics/business. And I want to make money. So investment banker seems the way to go. That may seem fickle and childish but it’s true. </p>

<p>Oh and I also have this weird kind of “dream” where I have a beautiful high-rise apartment in Manhattan and I walk to my office on Wall Street every morning. Yes, childish, but it’s a dream so for now I’m sticking with it.</p>

10

<p>That’s ok. I’m sure many like-minded aspiring b-schoolers probably have the exact same vision. Just keep in mind that IBD is not only a tough industry to break into but also very rigorous to perform well in. My cousin is a second year analyst at Credit Suisse, and while the pay is phenomenal, the work load and hours are very, very demanding.</p>

<p>As mentioned above, it helps a lot to go to a top “target” school. Even if a university is highly ranked, that doesn’t necessarily make it a feeder into WS.</p>

11

<p>OSU is not a target school for IB firms Sparkeye7.</p>

12

<p>@rjk, JP Morgan & Chase and many others will tell you otherwise! :)</p>

13

<p>Haha efeens44–I have the exact same weird dream :)</p>

14

<p>How many “target schools” are there? </p>

<p>And steelergolf, I know!! Haha it’s mesmerizing for some reason.</p>

15

<p>Do a search. For WS IBD firms top targets would generally entail all top 15 schools with exception to JHU and WUSTL. After that you have Georgetown MSB, NYU Stern, Michigan Ross, UVA McIntire.</p>

16

<p>^^^^^and no OSU. :-)</p>

17

<p>So should I worry about going to those schools for undergrad of graduate?</p>

18

<p>[The</a> Complete List of Target Schools and Universities | Wall Street Oasis](<a href=“http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/the-complete-list-of-target-schools-and-universities]The”>Comprehensive List of Target Schools for Investment Banking | Wall Street Oasis)</p>

19

<p>I’d take Cornell and Caltech off of the targets list as well amongst the top 15. Go to alumni affairs and careers:</p>

<p>[Cornell</a> University: Undergraduate Profile - BusinessWeek](<a href=“Bloomberg - Are you a robot?”>Bloomberg - Are you a robot?)</p>

<p>Cornell’s undergrad b-school underperforms at Goldman and Morgan Stanley with a total of 2 compared to Georgetown:</p>

<p><a href=“Bloomberg - Are you a robot?”>Bloomberg - Are you a robot?;

<p>Georgetown does a lot better even accounting for the size differential between classes. </p>

<p>Caltech isn’t targeted (same thing happens to Rice, WUSTL, JHU and some other top schools) because most of their graduates choose other industries besides finance.</p>

20

<p>Indiana is on that list but not Ohio State? Seems odd but then again I have no idea. </p>

<p>But the pivotal question is this: do I have to worry about the prestige of my undergrad school or just where I get my MBA from?</p>