Is Brown University a Target School?
Hi,
I’m a rising senior from Texas, and I’ll be attending Brown University in the fall. I’m going to be studying economics, and I’m looking to break into top-tier investment banking, private equity, or venture capital firms.
Brown as a school has a lot of prestige, but I’ve heard it’s not the best for finance. I’ve seen mixed things about on-campus recruiting, and I’m not sure if there are alumni at the top banks.
This post really boils down to two questions:
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Is Brown University a strong target school for IB/PE/VC? How does it compare to other targets?
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What should I do to maximize my chances of breaking in? Clubs, internships, other opportunities?
Thanks everyone. I really appreciate it.
Based on the most helpful WSO content, Brown University is indeed considered a strong target/semi-target school for investment banking (IB), private equity (PE), and venture capital (VC) firms. Here's a breakdown to address your questions:
Is Brown University a strong target school for IB/PE/VC? How does it compare to other targets?
What should I do to maximize my chances of breaking in? Clubs, internships, other opportunities?
In summary, Brown University offers a solid platform for breaking into high finance. Leveraging the school's resources, actively seeking internships, engaging in relevant extracurricular activities, and networking effectively are key steps to maximize your chances of success in the competitive fields of IB, PE, and VC.
Sources: Brown University is by far the most underrated Target/Semi-Target, Brown University is by far the most underrated Target/Semi-Target, Advice for undergrads going into IB interested in PE, Which school should I attend to get into Investment Banking: UVA Mcintire or Brown?, IU Kelley Top Target or Semi-Target?
Bump
Goldman, Centerview, MS, BofA, Barclays, and some smaller boutiques all come on campus for first round interviews/screening. In terms of VC/PE, Insight Partners takes a bunch of Brown students as well.
JPM/UBS/DB as well as Qatalyst, PWP, and Evercore don't come on campus but usually give out a few first rounds/superdays.
There are alumni (especially at the senior levels) at pretty much every top bank and if you start early with networking, they're usually willing to get on the phone with you. Not many people at Brown are super interested in IB starting from freshman year so my main recommendation is to get involved in the investment clubs (BIG or SRIF or VWV for VC) and lean on the upperclassmen and alumni network for advice and recruitment help. Feel free to PM
Thanks for the info/advice! Will PM once my account becomes old enough (another day I think).
Pretty good on campus Hamas recruitment program. Not as strong as Harvard though.
Bump
Brown is a target but you can’t simply throw in a resume and assume you’ll get the roles you want. This applies to every school in the entire world. The average student at Harvard or Wharton isn’t miraculously landing one of the very few BX spots just for going to a school. If you can’t break in from Brown, it’s on you and not the school.
Senior at Brown here - congrats on your acceptance. Echoing the above. People that want to break into the field and put in the work tend to succeed - don't let the occasional Brown hate on wso discourage you. We usually have a fairly strong GS IBD pipeline, whereas MS prefers to hire for AM/PWM rather than IB out of Brown from what I heard.
Can highlight that a couple new finance clubs were founded in recent years, incl. Quant Trading @ Brown, Private Equity Club, Bruno Finance Society. So while the % of the student body interested in finance is definitely lower than elsewhere, you can find your crowd. As the another poster noted, BIG (Brown Investment Group), SRIF (Socially Responsible Investment Fund), and VWV (Van Wickle Ventures) are the most established names. Can't go wrong with any of these.
Alumni are very responsive.
Feel free to dm with any specifics questions.
This has already been discussed.
Would rather work with a non target from Alabama State than someone from Brown.
Both carry non target syndrome but at least the girl from Alabama State is probably dumber, has a better personality, and is sluttier/has sluttier friends.
So there ya go - Alabama State is more of a target than Brown.
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