Ok I’ll cut to the chase. I’m a current sophomore at the Isenberg School of Management (UMass Amherst). The business program is decently respected in Mass and sends a lot of kids to the Big 4 Accounting firms every year. However, on campus recruiting for finance is terrible & nonexistent.
I’m networking my ass off and I’m getting involved in everything possible at the school in order to land interviews but I’m 95% sure that transferring is my best option in order to hedge risk and maximize my interviews.
Here are stats & accomplishments as straight forward as I can get them.
-2020 combined SAT
-Expected 3.8 GPA after this semester
-Will have 2 strong recommendations after this semester from business law + accounting teachers
-Campus involvement chairmen of fraternity (trying to networking on linkedin with frat but not alot of alumni in IBD)
-School champion of KPMG international case competition (going to semi-finals on january 26th in Boston)
-Interned at State Street bank freshman summer
-Interviewing with Liberty Mutual financial analyst program this week for soph summer, will be networking for a local M&A IBD internship also
-Involved in school run clubs (Made analyst report on Pfizer-Allergan merge. Still working on it, will have DCF, precedent transaction comps, comparables comps, etc…)
-Did volunteering event with Frat (7,000 people pledging bone marrow)
Schools I’m applying too this winter for fall 2016
UVA
UMich (Ross)
USC
Villanova
Columbia
Cornell ilr / hotel
Northwestern
Georgetown
All of these schools would cost 25K-30K more than my current school each year, but I believe its worth it long term.
I want to know what the best move is for me at the moment. Do you guys think its worth it to transfer to one of these schools given my current situation? Which one do you think is optimal / highest chances? Or try and keep networking at my current school and pray I can land an interview? I’m also one of the only kids interested in investment banking in my class at my school.
tl;dr
OP has exhausted resources at current school and wants to transfer to better school to hedge risks of not getting an interview. Wants to know what to do, so is asking internet.
Thanks everyone, any advice is appreciated. Please be blunt and straight forward.