Hello all, I am a current college student who has been accepted to Vanderbilt as an Econ transfer and Cornell in the Industrial and Labor Relations school. My deadline is fast approaching and I need to decide which would be better for investment banking. I am interested in mostly BB, preferably in NYC but the location is not very important. I have read many threads on WSO about both of these schools, but not exactly in the situation that I am in. With Cornell, I will not be able to transfer into any other major or school due to their university policy, so I would graduate as an Industrial and Labor Relations major. At Vanderbilt, I will graduate as an Econ major, but I could change it to a different one (but I wouldn't see the point as Vanderbilt does not have a finance major). Both schools are offering generous aid that's pretty equivalent, so it pretty much boils down to which one would have the best prospects of breaking into IB? Thanks for your help.
Trending Content - Investment Banking Forum
| +286 | UBS Tech MD hires Son (from no-name college) as an Intern | 49 | 19h |
| +124 | Is banking in the south more sustainable? | 29 | 15h |
| +101 | The Intern Starter Pack | 17 | 7h |
| +76 | Current State of the League Tables | 28 | 1d |
| +75 | [Official] 2026 IB Analyst Bonus Megathread (with 2025 Consolidated Pay and Perks/Benefits) | 11 | 11h |
| +51 | Perella Weinberg to Cut 10% of Workforce, Including Partners | 33 | 7h |
| +40 | UBS Groups Ranked by Future Outlook | 20 | 2d |
| +34 | Are all Tech / TMT groups sweaty? | 19 | 1h |
| +32 | PWP Layoffs????? | 18 | 4d |
| +32 | UVA McIntire vs Cornell Dyson for IB | 19 | 10h |
Career Resources
I think they're both comparable schools - just go with the one you feel you'd fit in at more
Well I know that I'd definitely like Vanderbilt more, but I feel like Cornell has better IB prospects. But's its complicated more because I would be an ILR student there, and I don't think that would help my chances in competition with Econ majors and AEM students.
Vanderbilt is a great school, that being said, the Ivy League brand name goes a long way. It won't get you the job but 95% of the time you'll pass the HR/resume screen. At least in my experience …
yes, but how much does major matter to ibanks? Because that is whats the deciding factor here.
That's not the deciding factor. It's fairly easy to switch from ILR to Econ or AEM granted your GPA is passable. I know quite a few people who did. I'm guessing it's due to class overlap.
I would take the above poster's advice and go with fit.
So there is no preference :/ I thought for sure that there would be as they might be closely ranked schools they are different in almost every other way.
i thought about this too. Honestly doesn't matter, you will get the same OCR recruitment opportunities as them and whats more important is being at Cornell itself and the alumni network. I looked through linkedin before deciding and literally every school at Cornell besides like the horse school or whatever has kids at BB banks.
I know Cornell would be a lot easier, but how hard is it from Vanderbilt to land a ib job at a bb?
Would definitely recommend choosing Cornell, it doesn't make a difference what school you're in. A majority of kids in ILR do the business minor which requires the important classes for IB knowledge (namely financial accounting and finance) and the rest of it is up to you in terms of networking, interview prep, etc. As some others have said, the Ivy name does look good (not to say at all that Vanderbilt doesn't) and there are a TON of Cornell alums in IB but also on the buy-side
The best part of Ithaca New York is the lack of sun light and the cold weather. Not lets go skiing cold weather, more crawl into bed and eat hot pockets while watching Netflix to escape reality cold weather. Who would want to be in the south surrounded by attractive women. Definitely, choose Cornell ;)
The best part of Vanderbilt for sure :) I'm not contending that Cornell has a better atmosphere, just saying that I feel like it has better IB prospects...
I actually like the atmosphere of both school as well as the curriculums. I know the atmosphere is different but to me both is appealing. I understand that Cornell definitely has an edge due to the location, its ivy name, as well as the history of sending students to IB, my one concern would be my major (ILR), I don't know if banks would be welcoming to that major. Which is why I am giving Vanderbilt very equal weighing. So I still don't really know which school to go to
deleted
But I'm interested in IB primarily, not in other areas of finance. I know IB is on a different level than other areas, so is Vanderbilt accommodating about that?
deleted
,,,,,,,
BTW I pm'd you.
Aut sint qui eligendi culpa sed. In laudantium numquam ducimus qui. Quia dolores rerum eum molestiae minima.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...