Hey guys,
so I’m trying to plan out my school path. I’m in community college in California currently and I want to study economics and become an investment banker. I’m looking at schools that banks recruit at and I can’t get into any of them for my bachelors ( USC, Berkeley Haas), so I decided I need to pursue an MBA. Currently looking at NYU Stern and University of Chicago Booth. My idea was to try and transfer out to UC Irvine or UCLA in the next year or so get my bachelors from there and then go on for my masters degree. Would I have a good shot at getting in to those schools from either UCLA or UCI and hopefully 1 internship on my resume. Would I have a good shot at getting recruited at a bulge bracket bank for either an internship or a position after graduating from Stern or Booth?
You will not “transfer” to an MBA program. You will apply directly to it.
Good MBA programs expect at minimum two years of increasingly responsible professional experience before you apply. Provided your grades, GMAT score, letters of recommendation, and work experience are all excellent, where you go for your undergrad degree doesn’t matter much.
how would I be able to get a professional experience if I can’t get hired anywhere since most banks want either a bachelors from a top school or a masters degree?
You don’t need to work at a bank prior to going to a top business school. You just need some type of professional job that you excel in. Top b-schools are looking for people that have leadership potential. You can go to work in any field, get promoted once or twice, take your gmats, and then apply. I went to an ivy league b-school. All students had at least two years of high quality work experience prior to admission.
I went to Booth and many students who wanted to get into IB weren’t Analysts before that. In fact, my experience was that most BB IB Analysts were looking to get into PE/VC or MC and not trying to go back to the Goldmans of the world.
My understanding is that banks generally hire lots of Analysis (i.e., undergrads) and less Associates (i.e., MBAs), so the odds are in your favor coming from a UC undergrad. There are quite a few non-BB firms that I am sure will be happy to hire a UCLA grad but you may need to be flexible on where you are located and/or the specific department you work in. Muni bond sales vs. prop trading (for example) will have different tolerances for a name-brand degree. Even BB firms that might not recruit specifically on campus will not trash other applicants. No one in this day and age can afford to pass up possibly talented staff if they are persistent and qualified.
Hmmm, my best friend is an EVP at Wells Fargo for Southern California, and say they do heavy recruiting at both UCLA and UCI. Where are you getting this information from or whom?
Gotcha. In that case, he should know, that if he wants a “real in”, IBs and Hedge Funds, cull many of the UCs, including the UCI and UCLA in the applied mathematics department. Far more of those folks obtain entry level positions than most other majors.
@boolaHI I’m trying to transfer with either econ or finance. from what i read these are the majors to go with for hedge funds and IB. whats your take on that?
Depends on your vision—so, Applied Math majors are very qualified for trading, and in many instances, sufficiently qualified for quant work. More germane question, is where do you see yourself?
