Should I transfer from Emory undergrad?

I am currently a freshmen at Emory University. I like the school, but its a little too small. Are there any schools that you guys would recommend me taking a shot at? To be honest, I thought Goizueta had a better reputation than it actually did, but I wouldn't be that upset going to Emory if it meant that I would be quite competitive for a NYC job post-college.

What schools have better clout than Emory in the NYC financial world, particularly i-banking?

 

I know for a fact there is BB ib recruitment out of Emory. If you do well academically and with ec's/networking, you will be alright. Obviously, if you transfer to any of the schools futuredoc listed above, you could consider yourself at a target as opposed to a semi-target.

 

I definitely think emory is a great school, but based on some of the stuff I've read here it's business school is not as prestigious as I originally thought. That doesn't mean anything to me if it doesn't affect my job outlook in the future, but if it does I'd definitely like to know. My bigger concern would be if I didn't like Emory as much socially. The jury's still out on that, so I'm just trying to keep my options open for everything.

Would you guys consider Michigan, UVA, and Texas to be better than Emory in terms of job placement?

 

michigan ross places very well, and definitely does a better job at placement than emory. i have a bunch of friends at ross and all of them have landed jobs in banking or consulting (MBB) right out of undergrad. texas does a great job with accounting placement if that's the route you want to go down, and it definitely does better than emory as well in terms of accounting. i don't know much about UVA.

 

So these would be the 5 I'd look at if I were to transfer:

Harvard Penn Duke Georgetown UVA

All steps above Emory in terms of job placement? (I'm assuming Harvard, Penn, and Duke are)

 
mdog795:
So these would be the 5 I'd look at if I were to transfer:

Harvard Penn Duke Georgetown UVA

All steps above Emory in terms of job placement? (I'm assuming Harvard, Penn, and Duke are)

all are. including georgetown. i have a friend who went from emory to gtown.

but as i stated before, you'll be fine from emory if you're in goizueta+you network and maintain a 3.7+. if you can't get into goizueta, you're not gonna get into any of those schools as a transfer anyway. You'll also have opportunities to do part-time ibd internships in Atlanta.

at this point, you should wonder if yo'ure going to be happy at emory. that's the big part.

 

I'd look at Cornell if I were you. Its easier to get into than Yale/Harvard, you can't tfer to Princeton (which would rule for you if you could), and its got as many undergrads as Emory has total. The social scene is very "Wall Steet like," as in lacrosse is huge, and many people are in frats. I will tell you tho that the social scene at Cornell is very dog-eat-dog: be prepared for pretentious douchers. You might also look at NYU or Columbia. Columbia is one of those schools where sure many are hipsters, but you'll find your crowd, and you're a subway ride from your internships/jobs.

 
RodneyBro20:
I'd look at Cornell if I were you. Its easier to get into than Yale/Harvard, you can't tfer to Princeton (which would rule for you if you could), and its got as many undergrads as Emory has total. The social scene is very "Wall Steet like," as in lacrosse is huge, and many people are in frats. I will tell you tho that the social scene at Cornell is very dog-eat-dog: be prepared for pretentious douchers. You might also look at NYU or Columbia. Columbia is one of those schools where sure many are hipsters, but you'll find your crowd, and you're a subway ride from your internships/jobs.

agreed. Clearly it's less prestigious than many ivies but Cornell has a solid name, good reputation in the industry for being rigorous, etc.... plus clearly it's way easier to get into than H/Y... Also if one cannot handle the cornell dog-eat-dog frat scene, they should probably avoid high finance as a career choice.

 

Emory is an acceptable place to be so long as you get good grades in the right major, etc... so if you're liking it I don't think you HAVE to transfer if you want to get into IBD. However, if you do want to focus entirely on you career and know you want to be in finance, etc, then I'd recommend shooting directly for undergraduate business schools and ivies, etc... If you're at Emory it's unlikely you'll get into H/Y/P/S, though I don't know your background... Try Wharton, Cornell (AEM), Columbia, NYU (stern), etc... you should likely be able to get into one of those and they'll have way stronger recruiting. If you can do columbia/wharton then you're golden for recruiting. Cornell's AEM also solid though a step down, Dartmouth great if you could get in, NYU is more competitive but still solid, etc.... G-town would work too.

 
mdog795:
i know i created this a while back, but i want a few more opinions on schools:

UT-Austin Indiana UNC

Would these be considered lateral moves from Emory?

UT I think would be a lateral to less than lateral move depending on what you want to do. As it was mentioned above, accounting looks like a good option out of UT, but obviously not what you want to do. IB wise, you will be looking at the BB IBs in the area, so mostly power/energy focus...so consider that.

Indiana...don't know much about it, probably not a good indicator. Possible link to finance jobs in Chicago, but probably a step down from Emory.

UNC is probably lateral-ish. Socially it would probably be better and offer a similar amount of opportunities, give or take.

Emory is a good school and can get you where you want to go if you aren't consistently getting 3.25s. Focus on keeping your grades up and you can get serious looks from all of the well regarded IBs.

Regards

"The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they're ignorant, it's just that they know so much that isn't so." - Ronald Reagan
 
cphbravo96:
UT I think would be a lateral to less than lateral move depending on what you want to do. As it was mentioned above, accounting looks like a good option out of UT, but obviously not what you want to do. IB wise, you will be looking at the BB IBs in the area, so mostly power/energy focus...so consider that.

Indiana...don't know much about it, probably not a good indicator. Possible link to finance jobs in Chicago, but probably a step down from Emory.

UNC is probably lateral-ish. Socially it would probably be better and offer a similar amount of opportunities, give or take.

Emory is a good school and can get you where you want to go if you aren't consistently getting 3.25s. Focus on keeping your grades up and you can get serious looks from all of the well regarded IBs.

Regards

Thanks for the response. The reason I'm transferring out of Emory isn't really academic anymore. I'm looking for a larger school, as I feel somewhat cramped at Emory. I'd also prefer a school with a better social life. I don't think I have a shot at HYPS (I'm pretty sure), but I was considering these schools (if I do transfer).

UMich UT-Austin (if its a lateral move) Georgetown

If I couldn't transfer it wouldn't be the end of the world, but I'm still interested in these schools. If anyone can think of anywhere else I should look at, feel free to post it.

 

more background info, i had a 3.25 last semester (got screwed over in 1 class). do you know if most schools take spring grades into account?

 

Michigan would be a (slight) step up school wise and recruiting wise. Probably a large step up socially.

UT would be a large step up socially, slightly less than lateral school wise but only if you are okay ending up in energy and power focused jobs.

Georgetown...don't know much about. I'm fairly certain that they place fairly well on Wall Street in NYC, or so I've read in the past. Not sure about the social scene.

If you could get into UM, then I would consider going...the other two are sort of a wash in my book. I know Emory can be a bit uptight, tons of Jewish kids and Asians from what I hear. It's anecdotal but from what I heard from previous students is the social scene is less than stellar partly because of the demographics and it was said to be a little cliquish...that came from an intern I had. With that said, I have a good friend that graduated from Emory a few years ago and has done well. Recent A-to-A at a decent bank, really enjoys what he is doing and built some great friendships with a handful of people in his class. They still keep in touch, usually meet up every year and do a trip and range in careers from a lawyer, top IB to MF PE guy, good IB to AM guy...so clearly the school isn't going to hold you back.

Lastly, I think the social aspect of school is important but having a sub 3.3 GPA from any of those schools is going to leave you explaining your (relative) under performance and potentially hurting for IB-esque job opportunities.

Regards

"The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they're ignorant, it's just that they know so much that isn't so." - Ronald Reagan
 

I don't know if I'll be much help, but if your reason for transferring is because of OCR, I wouldn't suggest it. I think it's been covered many times on these forums, but it's relatively easy to break into banking as long as you network hard and practice the technical questions ahead of recruiting season. I would say that if you can break into banking from Wharton, Harvard or any of the target schools, you can do it at a place like Emory.

 

I guess my biggest concern is that I'm all settled down at Emory know what the school offers started making my network around here have decent/strong extra curriculars. Not sure if throwing away all that to go to a better school is worth it.

But at the same time, I am good at adapting to my environment and it would not be hard to adjust to a new college and get myself involved.

 
Best Response

I think I'm uniquely qualified to comment, because I was essentially facing the same situation as you. I did ~3 semesters at a different college (non-uni) and was looking at transfer options, and ultimately matriculated at a top-target.

I am of a different opinion than 99% of most other users who comment "it doesn't matter where you go, just hustle / network etc.". The fact of the matter is that's simply not the case.

There is a material, tangible difference between attending, say, an Ivy, and most any other institution:

1) A seldom mentioned fact on these boards is that if you are truly the cream of the crop, you stand only to benefit academically, and for your personal growth, by putting yourself in the most demanding, rigorous and stringent environment possible. Not only will you grow more and push your boundaries, you will also see whether you can play in the big leagues as opposed to being a big fish in a medium pond. I have a tremendous sense of confidence knowing that I took hard-ass classes where I had to work my ass off and compete against my peers for grades. Yes, it's cutthroat, but so is banking. This will be a good endurance and competition primer for your early years in finance.

2) do not underestimate target branding, alumni networks, and the automatic credibility having an Ivy on your resume gives you. Even if you aren't naturally brilliant and are just a hard grinder, if you have an Ivy on your resume, people will just assume you're legit / super smart. This credibility goes a long way in your career for networking with both alumni and non alumni. The Ivy brand stays with you for life, and it is something you carry everywhere you go- professional life and otherwise.

3) You will increase your odds of breaking in significantly/-do not underestimate target OCR. I simply don't believe those that say your odds are equal everywhere if you do X, Y, Z. They're not. Take it from me. I was a non-finance major at my new school with a pedestrian gpa of 3.4. OCR was tremendous at my school, with every BB and many MM and EBs having a presence. With a few fall and spring internships, I was able to land an SA spot which helped me convert to a job for FT recruiting. There is no way I would have been able to land internships and break in from a non target as a non-finance major with a 3.4.

4) top graduate schools (MBA), if you so choose to attend down the line, become that much more attainable.

TLDR: Branding and OCR go a very long way when you are trying to break in and early in your career (and later on, but not so much). You will have more room for error and networking won't be a must to break in. I didn't network. Choose wisely and give yourself the best chance.

 

hello this was so extremely informative! could i have your opinion on a high school senior choosing between duke vs full ride at emory?

im interested in consulting mainly but also probably will want to explore finance. thanks so much!!

ps point one really spoke to me i like being surrounded by strong peers and hope that it'll push me but i'm not sure if it may just end up taking a toll on my mental health.

 

I recently transferred into a target from a small liberal arts college that might be considered a "semi target". There are definitely way more recruiting opportunities, and if your activities (work exp and ECs) are impressive enough to get you through the small transfer acceptance rates at these places, I think there's a good chance you'll have had as easy of a time for recruitment as I did.

All this being said, if this is your ONLY reason to transfer, I strongly recommend you stay where you are. The other posts in this thread basically cover it; if I had stayed at my old school I'm pretty confident I would have broken into IB eventually if I put in more effort. Transferring was a very draining process. Not only the apps, but choosing a school and having to say goodbye to the friends I made. In hindsight, it's the people I've met so far at my current school, the bigger size, and the improved academic experience in the areas I want to study that have made me happy I transferred, not the OCR really.

 

iggs99988 is right.

My bank recruits at several schools, Emory being one of them. I have interviewed and spoken to several Emory students, and they have all been sharp. It's clear that Emory provides a high quality education. That being said, I would most definitely transfer.

This idea that you should just go anywhere and then hustle is naive at best. Think of it this way. If you're a star baseball player and get contract offers from the Yankees and Astros, who would you choose? Would you choose the Astros because you can hustle and maybe win a World Series, or would you choose the Yankees who would give you the comparatively better shot at winning the World Series? Emory is a great school, but why would you choose it over another school that places head and shoulders above Emory? As someone who was heavily involved in recruiting this year, I can assure you that the effort we put forth and the students that we select for interviews from targets vs. even semi-targets is a night and day difference.

Apply to all the schools that you have a shot at transferring two as well as one or two reach schools. If you get in, transfer and don't look back.

 

Have you been to Durham in the last half decade? The city has gotten a lot nicer, it has a huge artisanal vibe and there is a lot of redevelopment going on downtown. As a college or grad student Durham is a great place and I think every alum has fond memories of their time there. In addition Duke laps Emory and all of the other schools on your list of likely acceptances in terms of recruiting for both sell side as well as buyside.

Of the list I'd go Stanford=Wharton> Duke=Columbia>>Cornell>NW>GT>Brown. The recruiting at Brown sucks and I don't think Georgetown offers much of an advantage over Emory. Stanford and Wharton are both phenomenal, that's more of a question of whether you want to be in CA or PA and whether you want an undergraduate business degree. Duke and Columbia are peer schools, do you want to be in NYC or a real college campus? Cornell is a cut beneath those two and NW below that in terms of recruiting. Georgetown doesn't appear to be any better than Emory for recruiting and the comments I've heard from friends who attended Brown was that it was a weak spot, it's at best a semi target.

 

The list is more like.... Stanford=Wharton> Duke=Columbia=NW>>Cornell>Brown>...........................Gtown

Gtown is no where near Duke. Duke is a top 10 school. Georgetown is barley hanging on its 20-30th spot ranking in the USNews ranking. It econ department is horrible and its buisness school is sub 30.

Geogetown has a 17% admissions rate Duke has 11% and it's applicant pool is 10x better . Georgetown is where applicants that get rejected from schools like Duke go.

Emory and Georgetown are closer in the same bucket but I personally think Emory is a LOT better. Emory has a top notch medical school. An almost top 20 B-program. Georgetown doesn't even have medical school. Unless you get into the other schools, believe me transferring from Emory to Georgetown would not be a good move, you would be going back.

And yes you are really undervaluing Emory because I view it in high regard and I go to a top 10. I would stay where you are.

 

You're like the Trump of these message boards. Anyone should go look at your post history, literally all of it is just trolling. Actually pretty funny when read as a continuous joke though, so big props on that.

 

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