<p>Hi, thank you for all you expert out there reading this post. Yes! I am a very confused college freshmen currently enrolled in USC Marshall business undergrad, yet I find the academics here not challenging enough (i know this sounds bad....but I got 4.0 without trying too hard). My friend in Dartmouth told me that I still have a good chance at transfering to an ivy league school. Now here is the dilemma. I would really want to apply (even though it is less than 1 month away), but i heard that they do not provide transfers financial aid, and I really need money!</p>
<p>Here is my question,</p>
<p>My dream is to be able to go to HBS, or top 10 MBA program around the age of 25. Do you think that transfering is worth it for me? Even it means having huge amounts of debt? Would it make a huge difference where I go do my undergrad?</p>
<p>By the way, my major is accounting/finance, and would like to work for top IBanking companies like Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley..... </p>
<p>Please give me some advice..... Should I try apply to Dartmouth, Cornell, UPenn (Wharton) for the sake of my dream? Is it likely to happen? Thx so much for ur help!</p>
<p>I thought Dartmouth was pretty good with financial aid?</p>
<p>If you have to sustain an enormous balance of debt then I would not transfer. Undergrad is not worth it.</p>
<p>Focus on keeping the 4.0 and make good connections at USC. a 4.0 is always good to look at plus you have an enormous amount of resources at USC and the LA area.</p>
<p>Focus on getting good grades and seal the deal on some competitive internships later on. With experience and grades you can get into top mba programs which is the time you should consider taking a loan.</p>
<p>Don't transfer. Take advantage of the perceived easiness of your program, double major in something offbeat or that just interests you, do lots of extracurricular leadership things, get strong internships, and/or start a business. That'll get you into at top 5 b-school for grad school. At Dartmouth, you'd always be playing cattch up and not stand out anyway.</p>
<p>Disregard all above advice if you really just hate USC.</p>
<p>Keep in mind, you may in fact have a better chance of getting a top job out of college (which is the most important factor for top MBA programs). I've heard Marshall does really well with getting top west coast jobs. I'd just apply to a few of those schools, see which accepts you, then make the decision on which school would best position you for a top job out of college.</p>
<p>Thanks for your advice, but I forgot to add that I am a international student, so applying for financial aid just kills my chances......</p>
<p>also, at USC, i am currently double majoring in Finance and Accounting, would that help improve my chances landing at IB jobs in Wall Street? Would it help more if I transfered?</p>
<p>I believe USC has pretty good placement in LA, but not so much in Wall Street. Talk to I-banking firms and find out what they want in undergrad majors. There are plenty of USC i-bankers in LA. Go out there and call them. They'll know a heck of lot better than random CCers -- and never listen to the opinion of just one person with this kind of thing. Oh, and don't tell the alums you want to transfer out of USC. Just ask them what you need to succeed to get into i-banking or a top b-school.</p>
<p>You have a 4.0 at Marshall. You will get interviews for west coast positions at most of the top banks. From there, it's about how well you interview. If you want to work in their NY offices, you are going to have a much tougher time and thats where transferring to an ivy would help.</p>
<p>Have you considered working for a venture capital firm upon graduation? Generally, IB consists of making "pitches" to investors to get them to invest in companies the firms represent.</p>
<p>If you work directly for a venture capital firm, you are essentially making suggestions to the venture capitalists on which investments to consider as valid and worthwhile ones and which ones are not so good. You can make just as much (or even more) if you can get connected with some of these firms. California has more venture capital companies than any state besides New York. Most can be found on Sand Hill Road in Palo Alto. Talk to your professors and they can clue you in on how to go about making connections. </p>
<p>(P.S. and promise you'll help my son with his classes if he successfully transfers to USC's Marshall program this year).</p>
<p>Just kidding--well, okay, not true, I'm kind of serious.</p>
<p>cool......thx for ur advice Calcruzer, no problem, I would be happy to help your son, is he coming to visit the campus on the Marshall Explore program?</p>