<p>Hi, I was recently accepted to both Dartmouth and Northwestern. Which would be better if I hope to work on Wall Street in the long run? Not sure exactly what I want to do as a career, though. At Dartmouth would study economics, math or a combination of the two, and at Northwestern I would study Industrial Engineering and possibly econ also.</p>
<p>Possibly interested in finance/Investment banking.</p>
<p>Should I be studying something else?</p>
<p>Any thoughts appreciated, thanks.</p>
<p>Dartmouth College.</p>
<p>My daughter was originally interested in Dartmouth also - until we heard more about their quarter system. The key thing we learned about Dartmouth is that it truly is on a quarter system. Every student is expected to attend Dartmouth in New Hampshire during the summer between their sophomore and junior year, that means that during both your sophomore and junior year you would take a term off between September and June or you would be at school, in classes, for 2 solid years with little break. Most kids would find that a bit too much! Plus Dartmouth strongly believes in traveling abroad so if you did that for a term or two you would be off campus then as well. My point is, that makes for a tough social life since for your sophomore and junior years you never know who will be on campus and who won’t be on campus. That may or may not be important to you, it was to my daughter.</p>
<p>Both schools are great and there are no definitive answers to your questions, just opinions based on very little fact. I guess the only other thought I have is that if you don’t really know what you want to study NU would probably have a greater selection of options than Dartmouth.</p>
<p>@sportschamp7, if you are quite certain about being in finance/investment banking and want to work in the Wall Street, then Dartmouth has the edge since its alumni network is pretty strong in the Wall Street (more than other schools). If your interest is more diversified (engineering and the like), then NU has the definite advantage.</p>
<p>Dartmouth College</p>
<p>Dartmouth College</p>
<p>Dartmouth College</p>
<p>Dartmouth is one of the 5-6 best schools for careers in investment/finance.</p>
<p>You do know that there are important factors to consider about a school other than which one’s more prestigious. How about fit? Do you want Hanover, NH, or Chicago, IL? 4000 undergrads, or 8000? Do you want Ivy or B1G?</p>
<p>Shouldn’t Dartmouth be the obvious choice ? Or is this a joke?</p>
<p>John Maynard Keynes said – “In the long run we are all dead.” So, viewed that way, it makes no difference at all.</p>
<p>But as to the question – Ignoring all of the valid points about the experience one will get at one school vs the other, there are some who believe that there is an “Ivy League Cachet” which gives an advantage. There are others who will point to the excellent job placement record that Ivy Peer schools (such as NU) have and say that the advantage is minor, if it exists at all.</p>
<p>People are passionate on both sides of the question.</p>
<p>northwestern bests dartmouth in econ. Not sure about the other areas.</p>
<p>“northwestern bests dartmouth in econ. Not sure about the other areas.”</p>
<p>Though NU’s econ department ranks 16th while Dartmouth’s rank 24 ([Rankings</a> at IDEAS: Economics Departments](<a href=“http://ideas.repec.org/top/top.econdept.html]Rankings”>Economics rankings: Economics Departments | IDEAS/RePEc)), such rankings are for graduate school and research output.</p>
<p>For getting into prestigious econ PhD programs, Dartmouth and NU are indistinguishable, since I both programs are quantitatively/theoretically rigorous.</p>
<p>For getting Wall Street jobs, getting into top law/business/medical schools, Dartmouth has the edge. (<a href=“http://www.inpathways.net/top50feeder.pdf[/url]”>InPathWays - Discover latest hot new trending topic, insights, analysis)</p>
<p>Based on my research:</p>
<p>For academics, NU offers more (econ, IEMS, MMSS, Kellogg certificates which offer master-level finance/managerial analytics courses).</p>
<p>For direct pipeline to Wall Street, Dartmouth is better.</p>
<p>IvyBear,</p>
<p>Just a comment on that WSJ feeder table: the percentage for Northwestern is artificially understated because 1/3 of its students are in specialty schools (education, communications, journalism, and music); very few of them are prelaws/premeds and they are also less likely to get MBA in comparison to those in the liberal arts college, especially econ majors.</p>
<p>Re: #3 and the quarter system</p>
<p>The Dartmouth D-plan does allow the student to set up which 12 quarters s/he has “on” and which 3 quarters s/he has “off” (instead of the usual all summers “off”), but with the restriction of not expecting to get a plan with four fall quarters “on”. This is likely for load balancing, since fall quarters (or semesters at other schools) tend to be more heavily enrolled.</p>
<p>Other schools use spring admission for the same load-balancing purpose.</p>
<p>An earlier poster mentioned sophomore summer at Dartmouth…that is a favorite term of many many Dartmouth kids. The weather is beautiful, and the atmosphere on campus is wonderful. Also, it really gives you a chance to bond with your class. There really is not an issue with kids having off terms and friendships. In fact, D was “on” when many of her close friends were “off.” It allowed her to make some great new close friendships. She loves the D plan. Don’t particularly love a class? It’s over in 10 weeks. It does move fast, but the kids who are admitted to Dartmouth can handle the load. And you only take 3 classes at a time, which is also very nice. In terms of finance, Dartmouth’s corporate recruiting is outstanding. Many, many top companies come to campus, and many of them are DM alum. They love to hire DM kids. Both are wonderful schools, but if you are interested in finance, Dartmouth is an ideal choice.</p>
<p>Hey guys. Thanks for all the responses! What do you think I should study though?</p>
<p>I agree with your choice to study math/econ if you decide to go to Dartmouth. </p>
<p>If you decide to go to Northwestern, I’d recommend Econ-IEMS dual major program + Kellogg certificate.</p>
<p>Have you done a lot of research on what IB really is? What do associates actually do? What kind of person they look for? They are still pretty competitive and not easy to get. If you don’t fit the type they look for, even going to Dartmouth wouldn’t help you much.</p>
<p>I also think IEMS-Econ + Kellogg cert would open more doors in more variety of areas outside the IBD.</p>
<p>So I think the decision largely depends on how sure you think IB is for you.</p>
<p>If you want high end careers (hedge funds, investment banking, sales & trading, etc.), Dartmouth has a big advantage over NU. Elite employers usually hire from a few elite schools (e.g. Bridgewater: [Bridgewater</a> - Meet Our People: Bridgewater Employee Profiles](<a href=“Home — Bridgewater Associates”>Home — Bridgewater Associates)).</p>