Rising college freshman looking for advice on major

I am currently a rising college freshman who will be attending Carnegie Mellon University in the fall. I am trying to get into investment banking or quantitative finance. Currently, I have a few different options in terms of my major and the degree I get and i am looking for advice on which major would get me the greatest job opportunities in the field i listed above.

Option 1 - Applied/computational math major
it is worth mentioning that I would also receive a master's degree in mathematical sciences with this option. I am also able to graduate in 3 years with a B.S. and an M.S. both in math because of the amount of ap credit I have
Option 2- Statistics and Machine Learning major with a minor in math
With this major, I would be able to graduate in 2 years with an undergrad degree
Option 3 - computational finance major
this is a very competitive program that I have to apply to get into. Each year cmu only takes about 10 people, however, I heard the job placement and recruitment is very good. I would be able to graduate in 3 years if I were accepted into this program

Assuming I get a high gpa and develop a good network with each option, which would be the best to break into a quantitative finance job?

1 Comments
 

Sunt quia omnis sunt sed omnis aut eveniet. Perferendis unde nisi eligendi repudiandae dolor. Voluptatum sint cum exercitationem assumenda.

Odio velit quam earum ad. Ullam qui omnis sint fugit dolor nihil. Voluptates unde quo voluptatibus blanditiis ut rerum occaecati.

Commodi optio dolor tenetur ut voluptatibus sunt voluptatum eligendi. Molestiae quia est enim et ea ut voluptatem iure. Laboriosam nihil maxime ipsam beatae totam dignissimos. Modi provident ad labore cumque impedit. Molestiae mollitia ut ut.

Velit incidunt atque distinctio sit. Possimus sunt voluptatem aut maiores quis. Deserunt est praesentium nulla odio.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”