Anyone Off The Waitlist Yet?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
1

<p>Just curious... I say this written and it was dated 5-10-2007
Did he really get off the waitlist? I thought admissions wasn't
letting anyone know till after May 15th????</p>

<hr>

<p>05-10-2007, 06:55 PM #1<br>
samuel32035
New Member</p>

<p>Join Date: Apr 2007
Threads:
Posts: 10 just got off the waitlist from columbia: tough decision now </p>

<hr>

<p>so.....My problem is where to go???? Berkeley or Columbia University???
I'm in Berkeley school of letter and science and Columbia SEAS. one is liberal arts and one is engineering school. where should I go??? </p>

<p>my intended major is economics, physics, computer science, mathematics. any two out of the four. and I really wish to be in NY because it seems to me that NY has a lot to offer. But somehow I also feel that Berkeley is extremely strong in those majors in which I'm intended to be in... can you please give me some advice and pros and cons?</p>

2

<p>why would you go to an engineering school if you dont want to major in engineering? unless you are hedging your bets on being able to transfer to cc....</p>

<p>either way, you still havnt heard anything yet so not to sound too harsh but why get your hopes up?</p>

3

<p>I went to an engineering school without wanting to major in engineering.</p>

<p>I'm good at science and math. I don't love it. Never have. I majored in applied math, which (once I got good at it) required a minimum of time from me to do the work, and which wasn't real, true, "get your hands dirty" engineering. And then I got jobs in the business world.</p>

<p>Don't hate. :)</p>

4

<p>I applied to CC</p>

<p>Our incoming class remains full, which leaves us with the regrettable task of releasing the vast majority of students from our waiting list so that you may go forward with your plans for the coming year. We are confident that the college where you will matriculate this fall will be made richer by your academic and personal contributions.
.
.
.
.
just got the email :(</p>

5

<p>Applied to SEAS, just got this email today:</p>

<p>In my prior correspondence, I promised you more news concerning your candidacy for Columbia University. As things now stand, we have filled our class and cannot be sure that we will have places to offer to any more students. </p>

<p>We have officially released the great majority of our waitlisted candidates, but we are holding on to a small group of students should any additional openings occur. I understand that this may serve only to prolong your suspense; however, we would like to offer you the opportunity to have a place on this extended waiting list. Of course, there are no guarantees that there will be any further movement, and we must emphasize that the chance that we will be able to offer you a place at Columbia is small, but we are offering you the option of holding on just a little longer. We will continue to keep you up to date on your status through the month of June.</p>

<hr>

<p>hopefully I will be selected out of this "small group".</p>

<p>Denzera, do you think Columbia's Financial Engineering program holds
any merit if one is trying to go into business, more specifically
investment banking? My brother at Merrill Lynch tells me the grad school
FE program is one of the best in the nation, but I have little clue as to
how much value it holds as an undergrad major.</p>

6

<p>Yep - oh well.</p>

7

<p>fhimas, perhaps you read my post incorrectly,
but my letter does not say Columbia will not be accepting
any students off of their waitlist. Rather, it says that
I am still in a small group of people who were kept on the waitlist
and that they will keep me notified through the month of June.</p>

<p>On another note, I would appreciate it if people would answer
my question about financial engineering leading into investment banking.</p>

8

<p>
[quote]
Denzera, do you think Columbia's Financial Engineering program holds
any merit if one is trying to go into business, more specifically
investment banking? My brother at Merrill Lynch tells me the grad school
FE program is one of the best in the nation, but I have little clue as to
how much value it holds as an undergrad major.

[/quote]

sure, an undergrad FE major can get a job in ibanking. of course, so can econ students, operations-research students, math students, or anyone who happens to think analytically in their classes. In fact, there are plenty of liberal-arts majors working at investment banks who happen to be extraordinarily smart, personable, and have studied enough finance to be able to answer the relevant questions.</p>

<p>Now, the question of whether you actually want to be doing investment banking after college is a much more fair question than what you're giving it. I guarantee - without knowing you at all - that you have absolutely zero idea what an analyst at a BB bank in an M&A department is doing, and what their lives are like. Keep an open mind and be sure to try a bunch of things (even if your summer internships are in finance) during your 4 years at school.</p>

9

<p>Oh yeah... congratulations juhanedang. I was one of the ones who was 'released.' </p>

<p>juhanedang - if I may ask, are you a boy or a girl? Additionally, in what region do you live? Unfortunately, the wait-list is not really based on who is most academically qualified (not meant to offend - it's the truth) but based on what students Columbia needs to fill out their class. They start by choosing boys or girls, then go to region, and then check to see who's contacted them/demonstrated interest. Apparently, a lot of males from the midwest decided to go to Columbia. </p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

10

<p>skraylor here is the email....</p>

<p>"Congratulations! The Committee on Admissions joins me in the most
rewarding part of this job — informing you that you have been
selected for admission to Columbia University in the City of New York. As
a member of the Class of 2011, you will be a participant in an academic
community wealthy in intellectual and personal talents of every kind. We
are fully confident that the gifts you bring to our campus will be unique
and valuable and that your abilities will be challenged and developed
here." and there are more words...</p>

11

<p>I sincerely hope that juhane does not intend to work in M&A... if you really want to go into investment banking, I would rather look into S&T which has much better hours (and you actually get to have a life, too). IBs come from all sorts of backgrounds, so I would not worry about getting the "right" degree.</p>

12

<p>Denzera, your guarantee seems to be not so guaranteed.</p>

<p>I have a brother who was the only one to get into MER from
PSU during his year a few years back, as a foreigner no less,
thanks to his paid internship he landed over the summer there,
and his wife who just got into GS after working two years at Deloitte. </p>

<p>He used to try to be all helpful and bring over a lot of Vault
documents that contained information on IB as a whole.</p>

<p>I think an analyst uses math to analyze if a transaction is
worth it or not. I think you call it valuation? Also, he meets
with clients in order to analyze stuff for them and meet their needs.
Also, he provides analysis of different data and stuff for any and
all clients he might have. That's about all I remember but
there are many other duties if I recall correctly.</p>

<p>You see, I'm not just going "Ooh, big bucks, hooray! IB is for me."</p>

<p>I have put in some amount of thought and research into this,
and I really believe that it might suit me pretty well. I will still
experiment with different classes at college and then decide
if it will truly fit me, but for now, investment banking seems good
to me. </p>

<p>I did also hear that IB people come from all majors. My brother even
told me that his company like people who can reason, regardless of
their major. He told me that IBs like to see a background in applied
math or engineering. However, I didn't want to take just my brother's
word for it, which is the reason why I asked the question on this forum.</p>

<p>It seems that what my brother has told me is mostly true.
I would really like some additional input on how I can prepare myself
as an investment banker, among the millions of advices I need anyways :P</p>

<p>Also, I am a male, Korean, residing in the state of Virginia</p>

13

<p>
[quote]
skraylor here is the email....</p>

<p>"Congratulations! The Committee on Admissions joins me in the most
rewarding part of this job — informing you that you have been
selected for admission to Columbia University in the City of New York.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>i dont get it...all i asked why he was a) applying to an eng school, and b) why he is getting his hopes up if he hasnt heard anything...</p>

14

<p>
[quote]
I think an analyst uses math to analyze if a transaction is
worth it or not. I think you call it valuation? Also, he meets
with clients in order to analyze stuff for them and meet their needs.
Also, he provides analysis of different data and stuff for any and
all clients he might have. That's about all I remember but
there are many other duties if I recall correctly.

[/quote]

Some of that is roughly accurate.</p>

<ul>
<li>valuation models? Sometimes. You're given the models and expected to keep the data up to date, and you get yelled at if one thing is a little off.</li>
<li>meet with clients? not as an analyst. you'll never even see a client. MAYBE at the associate level, although it's the VPs (the next level up) who are really interacting with clients and offering advice. The very best 3rd-year analysts may be invited to work on deal teams, but they're still going to be largely grunts in the process.</li>
<li>analysis and data for clients? Uh, yeah, but at the request of your crazy VP or MD who will arbitrarily tell you to do stuff as he's leaving at 6pm, which will then cause you to stay until 4am, get 2 hours' sleep, and then come back in at 7am to tidy it up and get copies.</li>
</ul>

<p>What he's not telling you is:</p>

<ul>
<li>the percentage of stuff he does that is utterly useless, will never be looked at or appreciated, and serves to pad an appendix for a presentation somewhere. the MD bills the client for it, of course, but it never sees the light of day.</li>
<li>the hours that analysts at investment banks work. there was a recent article, cross-posted I think in the MBA forum. oh</a> yeah, here it is. that experience is mirrored by, i would say, 8 out of the 10 friends i'm still in touch with who work at i-banks... some at the real estate desk, some in bond trading departments, some in M&A.</li>
</ul>

<p>
[quote]
You see, I'm not just going "Ooh, big bucks, hooray! IB is for me."

[/quote]

you'd be amazed by how many people dive blindly into it, with the same thoughts in the back of their head. all will deny it, but it's still true for many of them.</p>

<p>every industry has a paying-your-dues phase, but ibanking in particular chews up recent college grads and spits them out. there are many other areas in the financial services industry which A) are more interesting, B) more fun, and even C) have pretty good work/life balance.</p>

<p>look into equity research. look into hedge funds, if you're smart enough. look into S&T, as mentioned here, or investment-management funds, who do occasionally hire analysts. there's a lot of great stuff out there.</p>

<p>how to prepare yourself? Just get summer internships in finance and you'll educate yourself, really.</p>

15

<p>afasdadadgsgkgso</p>

<p>heard about the hours. Sad to see him get thinner and thinner.</p>

<p>Anyways, thanks for your detailed description + helpful information.</p>

16

<p>non-SEAS waitlist or CC waitlist?</p>

17

<p>Extended waitlist for SEAS; 20 students or less left...</p>

18

<p>
[quote]
if you're smart enough. look into S&T,

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I read this quickly, didn't see the little period, and thought "***."</p>