Am I screwed?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>So to start, I've really neglected my studies in high school and haven't really thought about the future. Now I'm about to begin my senior year and I've got to choose a college.</p>

<p>The problem isn't that I don't have any options, but that the options I've found usually don't get people into the field I'd like to be in. I'd like to be an investment banker.</p>

<p>So my main question is what is the most prestigious school I could get into with my current stats? I'd also like to know if I should retake the ACT to get a better score and if I should take the SAT. Is it even possible to get into investment banking with my current high school stats?</p>

<p>Some background:
GPA: 2.8/4
ACT: 28
SAT: Didn't take it
Race: White
Religion: Jewish
Parent's immigrated from Russian a year before I was born in Minneapolis. Going to a community college in place of my senior year of high school through the PSEO program. I'm up for going anywhere in the states, don't really mind if it's rural or urban. Live in minnesota.</p>

<p>I think I can get into Carlson at the University of Minnesota if I play my cards right but I'd like to know if I can possibly get into a school that an IB recruiter would deem a better school?</p>

<p>Not sure what else to add, if more info is needed, just ask and I'll respond right away.</p>

2

<p>You’re never screwed. Look forward. You’re a late bloomer. </p>

<p>The question is “What do I need to do to become an investment banker”. </p>

<p>Google it. </p>

<p>Questions I have:</p>

<p>What made you decide that you want to be an investment banker?
You don’t seem to like long hours working now. Is that what you really want (not a criticism, just a question)?
Are you male or female?
What is your current financial situation? How much can you afford to pay for college - ask your parents?
How is your math?
How is your writing?
How can you be sure that you’ve turned your academics around?
How committed are you?
How is it that you are spending your senior year at a community college given your current grades?
There is a huge social component to being an investment banker. I would think being a senior in HS would be better. Also, your community college grades will track you forever. Your HS grades won’t. </p>

<p>The 2.8 GPA is going to be a problem, but it’s surmountable.
The 28 ACT isn’t bad. If you think you can raise it, it can only help. Same with SAT. </p>

<p>It’s not clear that you have a shot now at schools where IB recruiters recruit.
If you can get to 32 or get to 1400 (CR+M), that would put you into a realm where you might be able to reconsider. </p>

<p>Working backwards, you probably will want an MBA from a school where IB recruiters recruit. </p>

<p>To get that, you’ll need a at least two years of high quality work experience designed to prepare you for a top MBA program. </p>

<p>To get that, you’ll need to put yourself into a position to get that. Excelling at Carlson can probably get you that along with getting internships. </p>

<p>Basically, you need to get yourself into a college where a state’s best students will go also, and then compete with them to be near the top of your class. That will get you prestigious internships which will help you meet people who can help you get prestigious jobs, etc. </p>

<p>However, to compete with them, you need to get your academic game up to where they are. They are currently ahead of you. You might benefit from some tutoring. You need to learn how to set your standards at the top and get A’s. You might benefit from a post graduate year at a high quality boarding school. </p>

<p>Just throwing out some ideas. Good luck. </p>

3

<p>Thank you, I sincerely appreciate that really well thought out response.</p>

<p>Answers:</p>

<p>What made you decide that you want to be an investment banker?
I co-founded a game server with my buddies that had ~1000 active members and ~50 staff members below me at one point. Over time, I realized I really liked dealing with the financial and business aspects of the server rather than the in-game stuff. I kept working on it for about 3 years solely because I liked the business, not the game. So I began looking into business careers and decided that I liked the financial stuff the most and would like to continue learning about it and making a career out of it.
You don’t seem to like long hours working now. Is that what you really want (not a criticism, just a question)?
You’re totally right about that, I used to hate doing work for long hours in the past. Not just in school but at my job as well. Overtime I’ve kind of been hit with reality and how close I really am to the next leg of the future (meaning my post secondary education and ultimately career) and have been put into sort of a survival mode. I’ve always had a certain perception of the future for myself and I’ll do anything I have to in order to get there. Now I work 8 hours shifts at my new job as apposed to the 4 hours shifts I was working at my old one.
Are you male or female?
Male
What is your current financial situation? How much can you afford to pay for college - ask your parents?
My parents have agreed to pay for half of however much it would cost to go to Carlson. They would have the same agreement for me if I were to go to any other school. I myself don’t have much money and only earn ~$10,000 a year which is mostly spent on gas, food, etc. I will most likely follow in my sisters footsteps and take out some loans.
How is your math?
I believe I’m proficient in math. For the past 9 years of my life I’ve gone to a math center called Kumon. I’ve completed their entire program.
How is your writing?
English is one of the only classes I consistently got A’s in. I’ve always thought I was a good writer and essays have always been my favorite type of assignment at school.
How can you be sure that you’ve turned your academics around?
I feel eager to learn more about business and finance rather than loathing the thought of going back to school. I’ve only felt eager to be in a few classes and I’ve done very well in all of them.
How committed are you?
I’m ready to commit the next 6 years of my life to becoming an investment banker.</p>

4

<p>Well I have absolutely no knowledge of IB, but I wanted to say that your description of your involvement in the game server, and how it influenced you, is quite compelling. You’re indeed a good writer. Wherever you apply, I’d suggest you try to include something about that experience and how it shaped the career path you’re now hoping to follow. perhaps in one of the essays and certainly in any interviews. </p>

<p>Hopefully others will have some more specific school advice for you. Good luck!</p>

5

<p>Given your desire to be on the business end, you might want to look at Babson College, which is a very well respected business school. I’m not sure about their admission statistics, and it’ll probably be a reach for you given your academic scores. But your story about your business sounds quite compelling to an interviewer and definitely use that as the central theme of your essay.</p>

6

<p>So it doesn’t really have to be investment banking. It doesn’t have to be Wall St. It could be Chicago. </p>

<p>It can be any lucrative financial career.</p>

<p>That’s a very attainable and rewarding goal. </p>

<p>It sounds like you want to learn what you want to learn and have little patience for the “academic”. I wouldn’t recommend studying at a liberal arts college. </p>

<p>That’s very common. You’re going to have to grit and bear it a little even if you major in finance. </p>

<p>You could go to a number of instate colleges and study finance and accounting that could set you up in the midwest financial industry. </p>

<p>Getting that ACT up will help you get into Carlson. I don’t know if it’s a shoo in. </p>

7

<p>IB jobs are way more than 8 hours a day. Can you get by on 4 hours of sleep 7 days a week for years on end?</p>

<p>There are far more business jobs than those in IB, however.</p>

<p>You can try for Carlson or Babson (which is terrific for entrepreneurship).
Your CC GPA will be far more important for transferring as well, and UMich, UVa, UNC, and other state schools as well as Cornell and USC take a lot of transfers. Not sure about getting in to b-school at those places as a transfer, though, though it’s evidently possible for Ross and AEM (though you’d need 3 years to graduate after you get in at those places).</p>

8

<p>I agree with the others. I’m not going to tell you that you don’t really want to be an investment banker, but I will say that from what you say I think you’d be limiting yourself unnecessarily if you focused solely on IB as a goal. If you really do have a talent for business finance, you’ll have a lot of opportunities open up for you. </p>

<p>My main advice would be to continue being involved in the business and finance side of your game server enterprise – or if that’s finished, think about what else you’d like to start up. You know something about running that kind of business now; you should continue to build on it, not only this year but once you’re in college. Running your own business shows initiative, motivation, being a self-starter, being committed to your own ideas, understanding that if you don’t do it, it doesn’t get done. These are traits that employers look for. And nothing motivates a person to work hard and succeed like being genuinely passionate about whatever it is they’re working on.</p>