Transfer (edit: decided to stay)

Hi All,

I am looking to transfer from my school (think public ivy like UNC, UT, UCLA not UMICH, UVA) for multiple reasons (I don't want to delve deeply in them). What are some schools that are good bets for investment banking and finance opportunities? I don't necessarily mean internship opportunities, but also the network of individuals. I currently have a 3.9 GPA by the way.

I am thinking of applying to (tough, but hopefully at least possible):
Georgetown McDonough (I like the fact that it's in DC and that it's well-represented in Wall Street)
Brown
Columbia

and as long shots:
Wharton
Stanford
Harvard

What do you guys think? I didn't put Dartmouth or Cornell in there because I don't want to live in a remote place for college.

Thanks in advance.

Edit: ended up staying at my current university and not applying. Thanks for the advice.

6 Comments
 
Best Response

I'm assuming you're a sophomore given that you have a GPA already? This makes transferring a bit more difficult than if you're a freshmen. Not impossible, people do it, but if possible I think schools like to take people who are going to have three years to spend there.

I'm a college student myself, so not an expert on which schools are best represented. I'd definitely apply to the three you are thinking of...of the three Columbia is probably the best, it would be great but it'll be difficult to get in unfortunately. I'm not sure I'd even bother with Harvard, they take like 5-10 people and IMO it's not worth the app. Stanford the same way; the smartest kid I have known in my life, freshmen at a top 5 school w/ 4.0 GPA in tough classes, got rejected as a Stanford transfer. Wharton is almost as bad as the other two. Personally I'd consider applying to UPenn CAS, as the transfer admission rate for UPenn as a whole is much better than for the Wharton school. And you still have access to most of the same resources and alumni, although I'm not sure how that will fit in with your story. I would also try Cornell. UPenn CAS and Cornell are among the easier Ivies to transfer into, along with Brown.

 

I'm a freshman right now. The term here is starting to wind down and I have like a 3.94 average. I'm obviously not saying that I will for sure keep this up, but it looks like I will be able to or at least have one in the range.

 

what's your racial/economic background? Did you go to a private (elite) or public high school? How are your standardized tests? How are your activities and can you explain them well in an essay? Are you a standout candidate or a hard worker? Could you have gotten into any of those schools from high school? (be honest)

and then I'll post back with my thoughts

 

Yeah, I went to a private boarding school in New England. I got a 2280 SAT, I have solid activities, and I think I could have gotten into the schools if I did better early on (my grades improved during the later part of my Junior year and Senior year). I work a lot in mobile app development. I have no racial/economic hooks.

 

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