All green lights with full support.
3 Likes
This is the only murky area. He is the only recruit wanting Stern and the coach said he is confident he would get in and they would push hard. We are still waiting for some sort of confirmation, but my son would not ED without Stern being all but assured.
3 Likes
I may have worded it clumsily, but he is not going to school to play sports. Just that his sport is his only real focus outside of school. Not worried about Greek life or parties or outdoor clubs, although we are hoping he expands his interests during college.
3 Likes
I know! Iām amazed he hasnāt really shown a preference one way or the other.
Neuroscience to banking? Fascinating.
He has talked to kids on the overnights and camps and seems satisfied with the answers he has received regarding time commitments. His thinking is what else is he going to do? We probably should have told him there will be girls at college!
As far as his contributions, it would be summer employment. We wouldnāt expect him to work during the year. We just believe they should have some skin in the game.
3 Likes
There seems to be concern that this student wonāt actually pursue IB.
1 Like
There is a pretty fulsome discussion on IB placement by @catcherinthetoast. I canāt seem to be able to locate that thread.
The point that is worth emphasizing if we are talking about the IB type positions that are paying 6 figures for college grads is that even for top of the line feeder schools, competition is fierce. GPAās need to be greater than 3.7/3.8 in what are perceived as rigorous courses/majors. Grades need to be even higher as you go down tiers of schools. On your Sās list, Iād only have Stern and Chicago as tier 1. NYU without Stern is not tier 1.
My friendās son who was recruited by NYU was not guaranteed Stern (he got in), but make sure you have a clear understanding from the coach if he can assure you S Stern. If he can only assure NYU and he has to ED, then Iād only choose that route if NYU is still his favorite.
4 Likes
Yes. Just on my part. Oldest son started an investment club in high school and still ended up disliking the cutthroat nature of Tepper. His friends that went into banking arenāt exactly enjoying the industry right now. I see this kid as a similar personality, but hasnāt really shown the same level of interest as the older brother other than reading books and such. When asked (and we stress itās ok for a 17 year old not to know what they want to do) he is adamant it is what he wants. He gets along with everyone and even socializes with kids and parents from other teams at tournaments. Iām just not familiar with banking (outside of The Big Short and Wall Street) so I donāt know if that personality fits if that makes sense.
That makes perfect sense. Thank you for your thoughts.
I think it is time for a serious talk with your S. It is great to say āI really like them allā but now it is time to weed out. I know it can be hard to eliminate excellent options, but the fact is that he can only accept one offer. Have a frank discussion with your S covering topics such as the team, college location, college size, available curriculum, etc. He should also consider which school(s) he could be happy at if he could no longer play his sport (ābroken leg testā). Let your S lead the conversation. There ARE enough differences between the schools that HE needs to start narrowing things down.
They are all fine options albeit with very different strengths and environments. His post-graduation success will have more to do with what he achieves during college than anything else.
2 Likes
Thank you for this. Iāll be sure to show him your post. Iām just trying to get as much information as possible for him to make a decision he wonāt second guess. He struggles to pick a restaurant so we know this is going to tough for him especially since he has built relationships with the coaches.
Most everyone has to leave some excellent college choices behind and it IS hard. But once a decision is made he needs to put the other options in his rear view mirror and only look ahead.
2 Likes
IB is a tough slug as your older son and his friends found out. A good show to watch is the first season of Industry, especially the bits about the public school kid in IB. Before your S starts driving his decisions based on IB vs where he will have the best academic and sports experience, he should talk to his brotherās friends on what the job as a junior banker entails. I say this as a former banker in a bulge bracket firm. Itās a challenging job in a good way, but there is a lot of soul sucking tedious work, especially for juniors.
4 Likes
Concerning as life is, in large part, about decisions.
What is your sonās vision of what he wants from & during his college experience.
Either he wants NYU or he doesnāt; admission to Stern is unlikely to satisfy one who wants the full college experienceātraditional campus and all.
To state the obvious: NYU is the polar opposite of Washington & Lee even though both schools can lead him to where he wants to go. But, the journey is important.
P.S. I did not intend to direct this to happy1; intended for OP.
2 Likes
So many people come to this site either saying that they, or their child, intend to get into IB. Then we see posts down the road that they majored in something not relevant to that. Itās a pretty cutthroat world to get into, and to stay in.
My son considered several different majors before declaring. He was happy to be at a university that offered choices he was interested in. He thought about IB, earned a BSc in Econ and is now in a related field. The biggest turn off for him was talking to older friends who were in IB and hearing them say that the highlight of their day was ordering Grub Hub at 2 am. That completely turned him off because he valued his time too much.
I think if your son is dead set on that path, @BKsquared has good advice. If he isnāt set on that, he should choose the place where he thinks he will like the culture and students the best. If he gets injured and can no longer play his sport, which sadly happens all too often, he wants to be in a place where he can thrive.
5 Likes
Agree with this. It can be a miserable slog akin to early career white-shoe lawyering.
It might be helpful to understand what he means when he says IB. Most kids are thinking Corp. Finance/M&A, but thereās other parts of an Investment Bank. Does he want to be a āDeal Guyā and end up Private Equity, at which point he does Corp Fin or Capital Markets, or does he want to end up running a hedge fund where heād do Asset Management or trading? This may inform the decision further, as the quanty-ness of Chicago and NYU set up better for trading, in my opinion. Plus exchanges in those cities for internships.
Also a difference between doing it after school and doing it for a career. There are lots of finance paths after college that set you up well for B-School and a career in banking after. Hell, you may be better off not doing finance at all and getting industry expertise after school and layering the MBA on top and be a sector guy.
I donāt envy you, OP. Kids have no idea what they want. Again, I suspect itās M&A (at which point I would think all of them can provide a path), but you should see how they react to watching āIndustryā as @BKSquared suggested if they havenāt already. Thatās more Sales and Trading, which is a lot less on the all-nighters (except when entertaining clients) but a lot more on the Pepto.
3 Likes
When my son was being recruited at Stern, coach commented that he was asked to get in anyone with Stern potential before July 4th. That may have been bs but fyi.
2 Likes
Some great questions that I never would have known to ask. Iāll share them with my son and see if we canāt start narrowing some things down.
2 Likes
Heās also going to run out of time at some point no? Before coaches move on?
2 Likes
If you get a minute, let us know what he decides. And congrats again on the options!
2 Likes