Non target in desperate need of help
Hey guys I’m going to skip to the point. I was not the best Highschool student. Ended up in a very non target college. I have a full ride scholarship there though. No one in my family has pursed finance before so they don’t understand the idea of target schools. Is it worth for me to complete 2 years at a non target and then transfer to a target school if I’d like to get into IB, VC, PE? Im a freshman right in my first semester. I just need advice from someone more knowledgeable as im tired of feeling alone in this situation so I came here. I appreciate all of you reading so far, feel free to pm me with anything you need.
Recruiting happens sophomore year so you don’t really get an advantage transferring junior year. If you’re able to transfer after freshman year that’s good, if not you’re gonna have to go through the non-target grind
Issue is all the target schools are out of my state so transferring as a sophomore and setting up everything will he extremely difficult (near impossible with my parents) is there no advantage to going junior year and just doing smaller internships freshman and sophomore year?
Not worth it jr year it in my onion. The easiest way to break in is for your post junior year internship, which you sign for during sophomore year.
I’m a non target who broke in 2 years post grad. So not impossible but just harder.
I transferred to a target from a non-target after 2 years.
You can take a gap year and do off-cycle internships but do your due diligence
Overall was it worth it? If you don’t mind me asking how are you doing in life now? What were the pros and cons.
Yeah I was thinking about still graduating in 4 years. If you’re okay with taking an extra year in school then recruiting would line up if you transfer junior year. Just kind of wasting a lot of money and time
Is junior recruiting the reason you transferred or were there other reasons? Do you regret your choice or are you happy with it? I appreciate your time
A few questions, to better answer your question:
• What is your major?
• How non-target? Could you give us a bit more (additional hints) about the school?
(e.g. is it a state school, small private school, does it have a business school, is the business school AACSB accredited, etc).
Is it so "non-target" that your credits might not even transfer out?
A non-target school isn't necessarily game-over; and honestly, if you have a full ride (4 years), that is something you need to consider, and perhaps work around, strategically.
The full-ride scholarship alone makes it a unique situation, that you might not want to throw away, in the hopes of getting into finance, especially if not a sure thing.
It still might be possible, but might simply require a careful strategy.
• How are you doing so far in your courses?
• Full-Ride Scholarship: Academic / Sport?
• What region of the USA (or country)?
• Focus on getting the highest GPA possible. This will likely determine a lot moving forward.
Your first two years at many/most schools will tend to be General Education sort of courses; which aren't necessarily related to a future finance career, but the GPA will nonetheless impact your ability to transfer, your internships, grad school, hiring, etc.
• This may seem a bit early to ask, but: What makes you seek a career in finance? Is there a specific reason? Perhaps an area of finance / focus area, that you hope to pursue? (I ask, because many people assume that finance = trading stock everyday, but there is a lot more beyond just that).
I'll follow up with a response, after I have a better idea of the scenario.
(I know a few people who made it into Finance from very non-target schools, but a lot of it depends on the details / strategy).
Sorry for the late response.
1. I'm a business major with a concentration in finance.
2. The college is a state school with a business school who is accredited by AACSB.
3. I'm doing alright in my courses so far. I finished my first semester with a 3.5
4. My full ride is from academics as I'm an AICE scholar so I'm granted a full ride to any school in Florida excluding housing.
5. I can work to maintain my GPA as high as possible but my worries come from the lack of opportunity in my area(South Florida)
Growing up I was always pushed to the medical field so I always shadowed and volunteered in those areas but it never felt as rewarding as I wanted. I got introduced to a wealth manager for a BB and I found his career extremely interesting and fulfilling which led me to research more about the field and I found myself here the past 6 months. I just believe I've reached a point where I need to pick a road and commit to it. I really do appreciate your time, thank you.
Dude a 3.5 is not alright for a nontarget, I'm also from a nontarget and the only people who have placed have been 3.85+.
GPA is unacceptably low if you’re not diversity. You probably will get autodinged from any BB/EB just for having a bad GPA from a nontarget. If you either weren’t smart enough (unlikely given scholarship) or didn’t work hard enough to get a good GPA at a damn state school then i think it’s time to seriously consider if you can handle the road ahead to try and break into IB. -nontarget state school kid at top BB
It depends what type of bank you're trying to break into. If BB or EB, it may be worth exploring. I'm also from a non-target but still listed on the top ~30 undergrad business and MBA programs, so somewhat reputable but I did not transfer. In my experience (both watching upperclassmen when I was a sophomore and direct experience) BBs and EBs typically take one kid from a non-target because they know they will grind hard, so you really have to assess your competition at your school's classes & clubs- only a few will make it, if any. Just like someone mentioned above, you need to boost up your GPA as well if you're going to stay (at least a 3.75 to gradudate with distinction), along with getting internships early (ideally your freshman year). If you wanted to go MM, you still need to increase your gpa, but it's more about showing that you're a culture fit since they tend to have smaller offices. Regardless, if IB is the end goal, you should be able to place into a regional boutique with some effort and possibly recruit from there after a year, so I wouldn't get down on yourself and think you're a lost cause. I can't really speak to transferring to a target because I didn't, but it really is all about what you want (BB, EB, MM, or regional boutique).
I really do appreciate your advice. its nice having a ray of sunshine every here and there. The main 2 points I understood are higher GPAs and internships. IS there any area I should focus to intern in or any internship is good?
Yes it’s worth it. Though a lot of recruiting happens soph year you’d still have way more opps at a target as a junior
Feel free to shoot me a PM. Came from a similar background
Would try to apply to transfer anywhere with a solid name (UMich, any Ivy, Duke, etc.) and then once you get accepted out it on your resume and apply to internships ASAP. That way you can hopefully take advantage of your future school while not wasting a timeline. You can also take a fifth year if you need to. Or finish out at your job target and do a MSF.
Would i apply to any internship i see with the schools name on my resume or should I wait for their job fair? I'm just lost on how to secure these positions if I'm not at their fair
Assuming FIU, do you speak Spanish? Do a site search here for FIU and Miami. You will probably do best staying where you are, since FIU actually is a "semi-target" for S. Fla and Latin America wealth management.
great guess but I'm at FAU with a Arabic background. Im always in the lookout for anything in the south Florida area. Thank you
just transfer to FIU, heard some kid there landed CVP
Would FIU be a good choice? I'm thinking of transferring but I'm not diverse and only 40-50% fluent in Spanish so far so I'm worried I wouldn't get much placement. I ideally would like to break into IB or S&T but open to other options.
Can you transfer to UF or FSU sooner than junior year? Those are both solid state schools with a good pipeline to finance. UMiami if your scholarship applies is another good one
Also agree with above, you need a 3.8+. Take easier courses and delay hard ones from now through sophomore fall if you need to.
Finally on jobs - absolutely none of these roles are done through job fairs, you have to network with people (via email / getting them on the phone) starting sophomore year, and then they recruit over Zoom. You won't see any high finance roles at a job fair. Some will have "info sessions" where 1 or 2 bankers comes out and gives a presentation / networks with the kids, but these are mostly at target schools and don't really even help you in recruiting.
My full ride is transferable to bother FSU and UF so it’s definitely something to consider thank you. Ive just Never heard of someone going IB from either schools .
I really appreciate that advice because I did start taking some of the harder math based courses this semester and I should have just left it for later. I’ll make sure to apply that advise for next semester.
Can you tell me more about networking for jobs? How do these things start then
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