Theoretically, wouldn’t it be a bit harder to break in if you’re a standard Wharton/Ivy kid than a t40?
Hear me out… First off.. THIS IS JUST MY OPINION/current perspective . Don't hate me for it, feel free to state yours below but be respectful. Currently trying to get other input to see if i'm "wrong". Also recruiting right now, I'm just trying to learn.Imo, basically everyone at a school like Penn applies for IB, regardless of major or true desire to be in the field. Companies need to diversify, they can't just hire every penn kid (or can they)…Being at a T40 that's still a "target" but not as competitive for IB/finance makes the competition field a bit easier in comparison to an influx of hundreds of applications from classmates at an ivy widely known ib school…Thoughts? Sorry not the greatest at wording shit
Could be possible
Can a top candidate beet from a lower ranked school beet an ivy leaguer ... Yes
Would I count on this during recruiting ... No
Love the username.
I hear you on the Ivy League saturation in IB recruiting. It can be tough when everyone and their mom is vying for the same positions. But I wouldn't necessarily discount Wharton or other top schools entirely. After all, they do have a reputation for producing some pretty sharp finance minds.
That being said, I do agree that attending a T40 school could be an advantage. You're still considered a "target" school, but with less competition. Plus, you have the added benefit of being a big fish in a slightly smaller pond. It's all about playing up your strengths and differentiating yourself from the crowd.
haha thanks.
i agree!
Sure, in theory, this may be true, but you arent looking at this the right way.
Take the top of the top investment banks. Lets say there are 10 (GS, MS, JPM, EVR, PJT,etc.). Im not here to debate rankings, so just select 10 very strong banks. Of these 10 banks, lets assume each hires 20 interns (not even close to correct I know, but lets just keep it simple). So we have a pool of 200 interns. Sure, it is highly unlikely that of the 200 the majority come from U Penn, but it is however likely that of any uni selected, a higher percentage do come from U Penn than say U Michigan (another great school). Of say the 200 interns, it is unlikely that more than 10-15 attend U Michigan, but it is not unlikely to assume 30+ attend Wharton. So this is advantage #1: schools like Penn will have the highest total number of students at a top bank, which inherently indicates an advantage.
But to your point, there are more candidates competing at U Penn. Yes, the competition is fiercer and you will have a harder time taking a top spot at Wharton. Banks only recruit so many interns from these schools during OCR, and you will have the fiercest competition at Wharton. You are 100% right here. But there are other benefits.
The top 5% of Wharton students will be sought after like VS models, but the rest will still be given strong looks anywhere they network. This is the difference.
The middle of the pack student at U Michigan will have to work just as hard as the Wharton kid to land an offer in IBD, but the Wharton kid will always have the slightly upper hand in terms of pedigree (advantage #2). Both students will have to network, prepare for technicals, and come off as personable. But if push comes to shove and the candidates are viewed equally favorably, the Wharton student is more likely than not to be accepted over the other semi target student.
To answer your question, the advantage of say a Wharton over a U Michigan or UCLA isnt massive, but it is significant. And when you look at the most elite banks, you will have an easier time finding Wharton alumni than say U Michigan alumni. Now, move a step further and look at the MFs. This is where you see an even more meaningful variance between number of Wharton vs. number of U Michigan alumni.
Sorry the wording here isnt great but hopefully my point comes across.
Lastly, I used U Michigan and UCLA because they are both excellent schools and I mean no disrespect toward either.
thanks sm for the thorough answer!
all really good points, really interesting perspective
No - connections/on campus recruiting is light years more important. It doesn't matter if you're the best at technical questions if you can't get an interview because only one or 2 people at CVP went to UFlorida (a top 40 school).
yale would be a pretty good example of the best of both worlds for this. same level of name brand as your other tier 1 ivies but significantly less finance culture. Double edged sword, less competition for those spots allocated to your school, but harder to force yourself to learn shit if you want to be in a PJT RSSG type seat because there’s not many people vying for those seats and most people want BBs. Would expect Brown to be similar.
Went to Brown and would agree. However not having a significant recruiting culture has its flaws. Many of the kids networking at my bank are under-polished and underprepared. Shame really
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