Mid/Low Tier IVY vs Top Tier Non Ivy for IB

Not sure about NYC but UChicago and Northwestern are just as good as (if not better than) Iveys for recruiting in Chicago

It doesn't matter which one you pick, whether UChicago, Dartmouth, or UPenn Arts & Sciences. They are all top-tier schools and will place you in IB. 

all very good schools, will get you anywhere you wanna be; id start thinking about which schools are easiest to recruit out of -- some schools are too competitive internally (club apps, resources, alumni:amount of people recruiting for IB). consider those variables

its what you want out of the experience

if you’re committed to the grind and can really get shit done

Apply to Chicago EDII

the issue is all of these schools but dartmouth and duke have ridiculous internal competition.

I’d say take Chicago but it’ll be a hard grind, but their placements are probably on par with Harvard and Wharton at this point if not already surpassing the former.

I go to Duke and would 100% recommend that route if you have the opportunity. Great school spirit and overall college experience, and places very strong. I would ignore what others say about there being no competition, it's intense but provided that you get involved with the right organizations early, you will be fine. That's just my perspective on the top tier non-Ivys – great college experience with similar recruiting advantage.

There is not a single top-tier school where competition for an IB role is not intense.

That’s a stupid assertion. It doesn’t even make sense.

Any of the elite universities mentioned place very well into IB but the idea that these jobs are just handed out is idiotic.

And for the love of God, once you have your choice of a top 10 university, please don’t make the decision largely on IB placement.

Please don't make your decision over IB placement rates. If you want to place well in IB, that's as much up to you than which school you attend. Any of these will set you up great, just pick which one you actually would enjoy most the next four years. If you're truly determined to do IB after college, the resources are there at any of these institutions. I understand wanting to optimize for the future, but you're so young that you probably don't even have a meaningful understanding of what you want to do. IB is not the only interesting career path for ambitious kids. I'd actually make my decision based on which school provides the most well-rounded perspective and is in a location that you think you'll find good for your career and your well-being. All of this coming from a non-diverse non-target with no connections who broke into top EB, so I understand better than anyone the value of IB placement rates.

Another consideration for you should be whether you can actually major in finance vs economics. Econ is probably more stimulating math wise but less applicable. Obviously if you get a Harvard/Yale/Duke/UChicago and study Econ you’ll be fine.

It won't be your school's fault if you don't make it to IB from any of these schools. You should make your decision based on fit.

Dart has insane placement well being chill 1.Dart/Upen CAS 2. Uchicago/cornell 3. Duke/ Northwest 4.Brown Brown is literally the shit stain on the ivy league.

Seems to me you might be skipping ahead…

First things first : go where you’ll be successful.  You’ll only be in the running in a recruiting process if you are thriving as a student .  So make sure the conditions will be there for that to happen.  

Second, it’s a big world out there, and a lot can change in four years.  What you want out of life might look different then, so I would counsel you to avoid focusing so narrowly on IB.  Instead I would think about which among your choices give you broad options of high quality as a graduate.  I suspect most if not all of them will — if you are successful as a student.  

Finally, consider that you only do this once.  So do try to think about the total experience on offer.  I’d encourage you to include in your decision the things enjoy or what fulfills you outside the classroom and beyond the pre-professional track.  You might just find that you’re a better student, and candidate for whatever job, if you’re happy and thriving in total.  There are many many years of grind ahead 

Good luck!

This site is one of the few places where people nerd out and split hairs on school rankings.

If you are fortunate to get accepted to one of the best universities in the country, you have an excellent shot at IB. Yes, it’s competitive but what did you expect when you’re vying for a position desired by kids from said universities?

I promise no one in the real world gives a shit about these weird distinctions / acronyms a lot of you guys make and carry over from your College Confidential days. 

It doesn’t matter kid, if you go to the top 10% or maybe even just the top quartile of best undergrad schools, they will all give you opportunities to interview for the same jobs. All a school can do is get your foot in the door; at the end of the day it’s really about you and not the school you go to (as long as the school is competitive and well regarded). So find a top school whether it’s a public ivy like uva, Michigan, USC, or top private schools like Duke or William and Mary, or Ivy League. What do you want out of your college experience? I can tell you there is a massive difference between a small Ivy school in upstate new York or liberal arts university vs a big state school with football, fun fraternities, etc. you will be miserable if you pick based off of image alone. Not to mention you wouldn’t be a genuine person. You need put yourself first.

Get into one of those schools first bro 😭 ed/rea isn’t even out yet 

As a Dartmouth student that recruited, many of the people that get top jobs are nepo. With that being said, you can still place anywhere without connections.

I would personally take Penn over all these places, Wharton or CAS is irrelevant. The name will carry you further, and it’s a fantastic experience (attractive student body, Greek Life, etc.).

Tier S: Duke, UChicago, UPenn

Tier A: Brown, Dartmouth, Northwestern

Don’t go to an ivy. Overrated experience and these days even Michigan / actually fun schools place the same as HYP while having an amazing student experience.

Also these schools are way better for things outside of finance like research, political placement, etc

Tbh I'd go to Brown in a heartbeat: chill undergraduate experience + solid recruiting + "Ivy" brand. 

Still salty I didn't get in but ended up in the same role I would've gotten if I had gone to Brown.