<p>As you can tell Im very interested in IB. Unfortunately many colleges dont have an elite UG business school. Places like Columbia, NW, etc have a BA in Econ, which is what most ppl choose. But I'm a math person and I feel like the literature/humanities based core may be a little overwhelming for me, and so I've been leaning more towards IE. Do IE students receive the same attention as econ majors? Do banks actually like applied math/science more than theoretical majors (like Econ)?</p>
<p>To be honest, when they’re looking at your resume they don’t really care that much about what your major is - people get into IB all the time from all sorts of backgrounds. You need to focus on getting a high GPA (engineering is usually regarded as being harder than econ), network your ass off, and try to get some sort of finance experience. ‘Prestige’ is really important, and many IBs would take an ivy english major over an engineer at a much lesser known uni, so connections are essential in your case.
It will be hard, as it is for everybody, but with a high GPA and an relentless drive to make connections and network your way in, it’s possible.</p>
<p>But I’m saying that literature-based cores might be more difficult for me. I like reading things about finance, politics and even US History books. But reading novels, not so much. I hate analyzing literature. I’m just so objective-minded, I feel like there should just be a right and wrong answer for everything. That’s why I’m leaning toward IE for schools that dont have at least a BS in econ as opposed to the BA. So would IE at Columbia and Northwestern be better for me? I know its “hard”, but literature is “hard” for me (though I got a 660 SAT CR, for what that’s worth)</p>
<p>My dad (who’s worked in finance his entire life and is currently at a top bank) said that engineering majors are definitely wanted, providing you have the right GPA, school other stuff. They appreciate the analytical skills and recognize how well they can serve you in business. His favorite CEO that he’s worked under was a civil engineering major from West Point.</p>