Chances for AEM?

Colleges & Universities A-Z Cornell University
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<p>I posted a lot in the general section of CC about this but I wanted to get the opinion of Cornell students/other applicants who browse this forum.</p>

<p>I am applying to a variety of schools, including Cornell AEM, and NYU Stern ED2.</p>

<p>The reason I am not applying to Cornell ED will make sense in a second. </p>

<p>My GPA is very low. It's a ~3.3-3.4 UW. My SATs are 2100 and ACT is 31, retook in Oct - possibly 32-33.
My Math2 is 750 and I have a 700 in Chem.</p>

<p>I took a rigorous course load, labeled as "most difficult" by the GC. She's writing a lot about my situation below. Good Recs and spotless essays.</p>

<p>Basically, my father died before my freshman year. I was a straight A middle school student (99% H Geom and H Alg). Anyways, during my freshman and sophmre years my mother was diagnosed with severe depression and had other health problems. She was hospitalized twice and had two surgeries. I missed countless days because I put my family first. I also was under immense stress and was hospitalized for a day (while my mon was still in the hospital, ironically ). And no, I didn't have suicidal thoughts or depression, I just got sick from the 2 hour nights between school and family.</p>

<p>I always loved technology, and began interning at several technology web firms. In 2009, I opened my own corporation. I manage the taxes, legalities, fiscal matters and some programming. I deal with credit building as well. </p>

<p>It is a profitable five figure company with two owned patents. We do web apps for a few semi private clients and internal dev (patented products). I also have extensive research into the stock market, and I have helped countless seed investors invest small (20K avg) amounts into the stocks with a 20%-250% APY. I use techniques like the CAPM and alpha beta correlation.</p>

<p>My grades were not low because of my company, it was my family situation, and I make that pretty clear. My business opened during the end of my sophomore year, and my junior grades were better (3.5 ish). My senior grades are a 4.0 UW. I have math to Calc2.</p>

<p>Chances?</p>

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<p>As always, with unique circumstances it’s hard to give chances. Your EC’s are awesome for AEM, which I’m guessing you already know. I’m going to cop-out and say your chances are 50/50. AEM isn’t easy to get into and the applicant pool is filled with people who didn’t have any personal issues and also had high achievement. That said, not many applicants can say they started their own company.</p>

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<p>Thank you for the chances, I appreciate it. :)</p>

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<p>I’d say you have very good chances! The EC is spectacular, indeed and you have different circumstances.</p>

<p>Make the essay shine, and I’m sure you’ll be in!</p>

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<p>Thanks! —</p>

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<p>I am sorry to hear of your loss in your family. You must have gone through very tough time.</p>

<p>Cornell AEM will be tough to get in. Its applicant pool is very strong and its acceptance rate is… quite low. (around 15%) Given this background, I still think you have a decent chance but your GPA does raise some concern. I would still apply and see how it turns out, but I wouldn’t put all my hopes onto Cornell AEM.</p>

<p>That said, Stern is also a very competitive program to get into. Honestly, if you can get into Stern, you may be better served to attend Stern over Cornell. Recruiting is top notch at Stern and you will have opportunities to do internships and network in NYC while attending. (And, NYC >>> Ithaca) </p>

<p>I would also apply to other high-caliber business schools with strong recruiting that aren’t as selective as AEM or Stern just in case. Consider tossing an app to UNC business, U Texas business, U Michigan, USC Marshall, Boston College, or U Illinois business. All these schools are very good schools that get lots of top business recruiting that are also very fun to attend, and they are likely to be significantly easier to get in compared to Cornell or NYU Stern. Good luck!</p>

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<p>Yeah, I am doing ED2 at Stern. I am also apping to Ross, UVA, BC, Emory as tougher schools. I really want NYU or Cornell because I want good job placement, I know a ton about the stock market. I turned $300 to 5K in 1.56 years. My GPA now is a 4.</p>

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<p>Job placement is about much more than where you go to school and what major you are. I’m going to clear that up now.</p>

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<p>True, but you’re not going to get the recruitment and attention that you can get from a top univ. Keep in mind that I’m trying to expand my abilities, I already know a lot about finance, stock market trends and other economical aspects. I could learn these at a smaller or lower “ranked” university, but the point is that I am looking to establish my name with a good degree and learn from professors who have direct experience with these things. I can guarantee you that, at NYU or Cornell, there are many more connections. Otherwise, I might as well self study the info.</p>

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<p>O.o, your GPA is now a 4? How did you do that haha</p>

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<p>It’s a 4 this year.</p>

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<p>Oh ok I see.</p>

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<p>Sounds like you want to go into finance/ trading? If breaking into high finance is your goal, forget Emory. (Emory recruiting for IBD and S&T are crap) Not sure about BC’s placement. I hear BC is semi-target and get some recruiting from banks, but no where close to other schools on your list.</p>

<p>Ross and UVA McIntire both have top notch recruiting for finance. Wherever you end up going, make sure to get 3.6+ GPA at college, or you won’t get much interviews when on-campus recruiting season comes. </p>

<p>Finance recruiting-wise, I think UVA McIntire and U Mich Ross are almost as good as Cornell AEM and Stern. Also, the competition for top grades at U Michigan or UVA are much lower compared to Cornell or Stern, IMO. You might find it much easier to break 3.6+ at Ross or UVA because the overall quality of student body isn’t as competitive or talented as student body at Cornell or Stern. (which is a good thing for you) Among these schools, I would evaluate the cost of attendance, personal fit, and location into the equation when choosing where to enroll.</p>

<p>Other schools you may want to consider: Northwestern, Duke, UNC business program, U Texas business program and other Ivies all get top finance recruiting for on-campus interviews.</p>

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<p>Thanks for your thoughtful response. Yeah, McIntire and Ross are up there for me…OOS they are very difficult. I’m not too worried about maintaining my GPA, my family situation is well now and I have a 4.0. My business is very ‘self sustaining.’ I also love math and economics/finance and tend to do well.</p>

<p>As far as cost…no issue. Locations? I love NYU the best because of its proximity and location, thus my first choice is Stern, but Cornell is really close behind. I’d say those are equal. UVA and Michigan are close…I really like UVAs campus but Ross is a slight more competitive I hear.</p>

<p>Northwestern and Duke don’t have a Ugrad business but I suppose they have a finance major? I’ll look into that :). I like NW campus and location too.</p>

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<p>Employers in finance don’t particularly care about one’s major. But, where attends school matters a lot.</p>

<p>For instance, Duke has better placement into Wall Street IBD and S&T compared to Stern by capita, despite not having a finance or business major. Finance firms come recruit heavily at select elite schools and interview students who got solid GPA’s in a wide range of majors. </p>

<p>For instance, some of my friends who majored in government at Cornell are now working as investment bankers at JPMorgan or Barclays Capital. At the same time, I know others from AEM or Econ who couldn’t break into finance from Cornell. So, overall, I think: 1) where you go to school matters a lot, 2) your GPA and resume matter a lot, 3) you need to do well on interviews to seal the deal, 4) your choice of major for finance firms coming out of elite private schools such as Ivies, Duke, or Northwestern don’t matter that much, and 5) But, for non-elite private schools such as U Michigan or UVA, you need to major in finance, econ, or engineering to stand a good chance of getting a job in Wall St.</p>

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<p>Absolutely, I’m planning to major in finance. But these schools (especially the Ivies) love GPA. :(</p>

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<p>Majoring in finance is fine. But, if you want to work in finance, make sure to attend a school that gives you access to finance recruiting.</p>

<p>If you go to schools such as Emory or Notre Dame, and major in finance, your chances of getting interviews in IBD or S&T at banks are significantly reduced compared to what you’d get at Ivies, Duke, or Northwestern. I forgot to suggest another school to this mix. Check out Georgetown. They have awesome business program and tons of Georgetown grads end up with top jobs in Wall St.</p>

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<p>Yeah, I was considering GT for a while. They are really competitive too…but I did bad on Lit (600)…they require three subject tests, haha.</p>

<p>Honesty I doubt even Northwestern would take a look at my app, haha. I am not applying to Notre Dame because of that reason and I didn’t know Emory was so bad at recruiting. But if it’s the only top school I get into (vs. Penn State…) I will hopefully have a small shot.</p>

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<p>^</p>

<p>If you are worried about tough admissions, apply to Michigan non-Ross and UVA non- McIntire. Then, after your first year, you can internal-transfer into these programs.</p>

<p>Then again, I am not sure how competitive it is to get into Ross or McIntire, but my guess is that getting into Arts and Sciences college at Michigan isn’t hard at all. Michigan has over 50% acceptance rate overall, and I think you will get in.</p>

<p>Schools like Michigan and UIUC aren’t hard to get in at all, but they have a lot of finance recruiting, which is a good deal for many who attend. Schools like Notre Dame, Emory, Vanderbilt, or Wash U are highly ranked, but they don’t get much finance/ elite business recruiting for some reason.</p>

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<p>Yeah, definitely. Thanks a lot for the advice. :-)</p>