Is there an advantage to going to an EB so u stand out a little more during MBA applications? and how much does the name of the bank matter (like does MS vs BofA change your chances?)
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From my understanding, and the data points that I have, once you’re at a BB/EB, your role (front office vs back office) carries more weight than the name.
Obviously you hear about a lot of GS and McKinsey ppl placing in HBS/GSB, but that’s all because a lot of those kids already had better stats going into those roles. You’ll also find plenty of Credit Suisse, Barclays, BAML, etc alum in those schools.
You also have to factor in what you do after banking. Certain PE firms have strong ties to HBS/GSB and regularly place a handful of associates in each class.
But, even if you place at MS and then Carlyle, there’s no such thing as a guaranteed admission at HBS or, especially, GSB
From what I have seen if you place at an UMM/MF you have a >75% chance at placing at H/S. Nothing is guaranteed but you will be as close as they come.
This is so inaccurate it hurts lol. I’m at a MF and I promise that 75% of associates at MF’s (and especially UMMs - I don’t think you realize how many firms fit in that bucket) do not place into H/S. Statistically that makes no sense.
A lot of kids have the misconception that if you do 2 years IB + 2 years at a solid PE firm, you are locked in for H/S. The world is a lot bigger than finance and these schools only take a handful of ppl that follow these paths. And the people they do take are clearly standouts among others with similar pedigrees
Reaction to this comment is excessive. 75% too high but anecdotally it does feel like UMM and MF folks get into H/S quite often. If people are gonna throw MS and call the comment “so inaccurate it hurts”, how about at least providing a better estimate
This guy lmao. You love your estimates. I’ll never forgot your horrible takes on COVID-19. It’s like you close your eyes, choose a thread, and think of what you can do to make it a waste of time
I’m glad others have noted the issues with discussion in this thread. Admission to business schools, especially HBS and GSB, is so ridiculously competitive that I caution against any sense of privileged thinking.
Admission teams don’t care if you were at Evercore, Goldman or J.P. Morgan past ensuring that you served in a front-office role at one of these name brands.
Once they’ve guaranteed that, they throw your ass into a group with all other financial services professionals. Each school has a set number of seats “reserved” for those with investment banking/private equity experience, and many of these people are your new competition. As you can imagine, these programs, and many others, attract extremely impressive candidates.
Your newfound competition may have worked at a MF abroad while simultaneously feeding the hungry and working on research to develop a COVID-19 vaccine. All of this after two years with Goldman, an undergraduate degree from Harvard, and the “best” boarding school education. Oh, yeah, and your newfound competion’s uncle is a major donor to HBS/GSB.
Hyperbole? Absolutely, but you get my point.
Similar to everything in life, most of our day-to-day is left to calculated chance. Stay humble, monkeys.
No. Private equity is not the best way to gaining admission to GSB. Better than the other roles you listed? Maybe. Your professional experience is ONE component of a truly HOLISTIC review of one’s candidacy. I hate to be the bearer of bad news.
You want to go to GSB? Move to Africa, work with an NGO in advancing the causes of repressed communities, transition to a managerial role at said NGO, secure impressive recommendations, and destroy the GMAT. You’ll have admission teams begging for you to join their institution. Many outside of WSO value experiences outside of “the path.”
WSO is a phenomenal platform for all of us, but we must remember that it can also be a dangerous vacuum that ignores many of the realities of the world.
Doesn’t have to be Africa - these days GSB is offering fellowships to people who go work in the Midwest after graduation.