23 Comments
 
"NuclearPenguins"

IMO here's how I would rank them in tiers:

T1 - Amherst and Williams (don't think this is really a debate)

If you get into these IB is probably your safety option. Insane schools that place into elite MBB and buyside right out of the gate. Have a few friends from these schools (grew up in MA) and they are irritatingly smart.
 
Best Response

t1- Williams/Amherst t2- Colgate (esesntially a d1-nescac), Middlebury, Wesleyan, Tufts (not really a nescac) t3-Hamilton, Trinity, Bowdoin, Colby, Bates

Notable: Bowdoin places quite poorly considering its academic reputation is almost on par with Amherst/Williams. My guess is, not too many MD alumni on the street, and its Maine location doesn't really help. Trinity places above its nescac rank due to well-placed alums. Apparently, Trinity has the 4th highest percentage of alumni millionaires in the country. -I'd place a bet that Amherst and Williams on a per capita basis place better than most targets (minus Wharton/Harvard/Yale). Williams sent 6 people to GS IBD last year, and most BBs take 2-3, which is insane given there are 40 people seriously considering banking each year and probably 20 with a relevant internship prior to junior recruiting.

 

You've already applied; no point stressing as there's nothing more you can do.. I'd say Colgate/NYU (non-stern I'm assuming) are a tier above Indiana/Fordham. IU definitely places well but from what I've surmised it seems like you need to be in the IB club to have any shot. However, once you're in the club you are basically a lock for a MM/BB, so that would be the best option if you are guaranteed a spot in the IB workshop (not to mention a much better college experience)

 

Just anecdotally, I go to Williams/Amherst and was really pleased with recruiting opportunities on campus, and even more so with the help I got from alumni who are in the industry. We definitely don't get as many firms (especially EBs) onto campus as the Ivies, but I feel confident saying that the Williams/Amherst VP/MD cares way more about you and your success than the average connection at most target schools. Just my two cents.

 

Tier 1 - Amherst, Williams Tier 2 - Midd Tier 3 - Bowdoin, Tufts Tier 4 - Wes, Trinity, Bates, Colby, Hamilton

Conn

May seem like too many tiers, but it's a clear that Amherst & Williams are a cut above the rest. I see Midd place better than Bowdoin (even though they're similar academically) so I felt like it deserved to be a cut above Bowdoin and Tufts. Wesleyan is probably the best academically of tier 4, but Trinity will have a better network. If you go to Conn, it's possible (kids have gone MM, EB, BB) but its likely to be one kid every 2-3 years.

I'm a recent NESCAC grad so feel free to pm me if you have any more questions.

 

My ranking of NESCACs + similar LAs:

Tier 1 1. Williams / Amherst 3. CMC 4. Swarthmore 5. Pomona

Tier 2 6. Middlebury 7. Wesleyan 8. Bowdoin 9. Carleton

Tier 3 10. Tufts 11. Colgate 12. Hamilton 13. Colby

Tier 4 14. Trinity 15. Bates

Tier 5 16. Conn

I go to a tier 2 school on this list, and have friends at almost every school on this list. In general, kids who get into one school of a tier here got into at least one other school in the same tier / schools in lower tiers.

In terms of banking recruiting, far and away the top 3 schools are Williams/Amherst/Middlebury, with some real distance between the first 2 and the third. From there, the gap widens significantly. Swarthmore and Bowdoin place well into gov't positions, but are fairly irrelevant in IB. Colgate, Hamilton, and Trinity put a fair number of kids in, but largely through networking/connections from home/club (fraternity, lacrosse, etc. connections). CMC and Pomona don't seem to place well into ibanking, but place well into LOTS of other things.

 

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