Hello. I recently got into UT economics COLA as an OOS student. I was wondering if joining BEOP (Business Economics Option Program) will help me get McCombs's resources and a likely IB internship?
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Based on the most helpful WSO content, UT Austin's McCombs School of Business is highly regarded for its strong placement in investment banking (IB), both in Texas and New York. However, the Business Economics Option Program (BEOP) is not explicitly mentioned in the knowledge base as a direct pathway to accessing McCombs' resources or securing IB internships.
That said, McCombs has a robust network and reputation, and students from UT Austin, even outside McCombs, have been able to break into IB through networking and leveraging the Longhorn alumni base. If BEOP provides access to McCombs resources, it could be a valuable step, but your success will also depend on your ability to network effectively, maintain a strong GPA, and gain relevant experience.
If you're aiming for IB, consider joining finance-related organizations, attending networking events, and connecting with alumni in the field. Additionally, transferring into McCombs or pursuing a dual degree might provide more direct access to structured IB prep programs and recruiting opportunities.
Sources: Rice University vs. UT Austin McCombs Undergraduate, Should I transfer to Emory from UT-Austin McCombs, Best schools for Texas IB/PE, What can I do to optimize my chances for IB at Texas A&M?, The Comprehensive List of Transfer Friendly Schools For Investment Banking
Honestly, not really. The main differentiators between Econ and McCombs are 1) the on-campus recruiting via RecruitMcCombs, 2) McCombs’ name recognition and 3) access to clubs like WSFM. As a COLA student, you’ll have to apply directly through firms’ career pages, LinkedIn, etc., leaving your resume in a stack of 500+.
With RecruitMcCombs, firms are coming to the campus strictly to interview and hire a select number of applicants from McCombs in particular (especially true for Houston IB). While the resume stack is still large and the selection process is still competitive, applicants have a much higher chance of getting a first round, at the very least.
If you can, I’d recommend internally transferring. I was an external transfer COLA student myself, who then transferred internally to McCombs. I ended up at an EB in Houston, although I did get first rounds for NY banks. Internally transferring is very difficult, and you’ll need an extremely strong GPA (3.8 being the absolute minimum) and extracurriculars. I applied with a 4.0 and got in, but I heard that other folks with 4.0s were denied.
I hate to say it, but I’ve only ever seen one person with a UT Econ degree working full time in IB. That doesn’t mean it’s impossible, but understand you’ll be fighting a massive uphill battle. If you can’t transfer internally, you should start networking ASAP to the greatest extent possible. Houston/Dallas/Charlotte are likely your best options. But nothing is impossible as long as you work hard and don’t give up.
Know that’s a lot of info at once, so feel free to DM with questions.
Disagreeing somewhat here. Being an econ major isn't as easy as being in McCombs - but not impossible. TBH I'm not sure how much McCombs helps I know plenty of McCombs kids who say RecruitMcCcombs is kinda useless, I think networking matters more for IB than having access to recruit McCombs. Cold applying to banks thru RecruitMcCombs isn't going to get you anywhere, just like cold applying thru whatever other application site isn't going to get you anywhere. Your ticket in is going to be networking, which you can do well irrespective of major, and access to mentors/upperclassmen which come through clubs. You can recruit for clubs like WSFM, IBA, etc as an econ major. I'm currently recruiting and have referrals at several banks in NYC and Chicago (you are NOT limited to Dallas/Houston/Charlotte as an Econ major), didn't even bother to do Houston, and I'm econ and non-WSFM. Admittedly, I don't have an offer yet, but don't let anything stop you as I believe it's 100% possible to recruit for IB in any city without access to McCombs resources. Even as a non-McCombs student you can reach out to McCombs counselors for advice if you have an interview or superday coming up, and the guidance you get from clubs is more valuable than McCombs career counselors IMO. With that being said, I still recommend you internally transfer like the guy above says, will make your life easier. If internal transfer doesn't work out tho don't feel discouraged - you can still do it, I don't think it's as much of an uphill battle as commentor above says. You can DM me if you need anything else, hope this helps.
One of the main selling points for target and semi-target schools is the on-campus recruiting. Cold applying thru RecruitMcCombs makes a world of difference and anyone who called RecruitMcCombs “useless” probably wasn’t competitive enough to land interviews through the platform. WSFM accepting non-business majors is absolutely news to me — I graduated a few years ago but I could’ve sworn it was exclusive to McCombs kids when I was at UT. I also wasn’t a part of WSFM or any of those Wall Street prep clubs though, nor did I do any networking. I got my offers by having a 4.0 + 2 internships (one of which I did have to network for) + extracurricular leadership. I got an interview for almost every bank I applied for through RecruitMcCombs and had at least 10 first rounds as a result, but FWIW, 90% of my peers with 3.8 GPAs (including BHP kids) got 1 or 2 interviews at best. It’s possible that it’s even more competitive now than it was.
I’m also not trying to discourage this kid and I didn’t say that he was limited to Houston/Dallas/Charlotte by any means, just that it’d be easier for him to land interviews for roles in those cities. That’s true for everyone at McCombs given that you’ll be up against true target students for every spot at reputable NYC banks. I’m at an EB now, I interview kids for SA spots, and can tell you that we 100% have an interview quota for McCombs students but we’ve never interviewed a COLA student. I’m sure we would if they networked hard enough and had a perfect resume, but I haven’t seen it yet.
The thing is, as many surface level restrictions you see with McCombs students vs non mccombs, there's almost just as many if not more once you are in the school in terms of differentiation. What I mean by this is that it is simply NOT enough to just be McCombs or even BHP. Your Frat/Finance team/nepo connections matter way more in terms of placement, like is the case with many other schools I'm sure. It's also not enough to simply just be in WSFM/IBA because other connections/clubs are what will make the difference. It's evident that some firms almost "restrict" their spots for members of certain clubs/pipelines when it comes to UT recruiting.
Yeah, 100%. That’s the game. But you can’t let it discourage you if you’re unable to get into McCombs, or those elite clubs, or if you don’t have a rich daddy or uncle, etc. I grew up middle class with parents that worked outside of finance, no nepo connections, didn’t even try for the placement clubs, etc. I just wanted it more than the people who knew it’d be handed to them no matter what, and I think that’s what gave me a little edge.
Hate to boast here, but when I was trying to transfer into UT, people scoffed at me and said good luck. Got into UT, went to orientation, told my advisor I wanted to transfer into McCombs, and she literally laughed and told me I shouldn’t even try/should be more realistic because no one gets in, and other students scoffed again when I told them my goal. Same thing when I told people I wanted to recruit for IB as a double transfer starting off 2 years late. But I did it, and now all of those peers who had 0 faith are hitting me up and shit asking how they can break in from their mediocre jobs. The takeaway here is that people will tell you shit is unrealistic or impossible, but it almost never is.
I think you're a bit of an outlier here, Idk anyone who's gotten 10 interviews without networking even in McCombs. Maybe it's because you only recruited Houston and most people Ik along with myself are recruiting NYC, but regardless that's not the standard anymore. Also, the person who told me that RecruitMcCombs is "useless" is going to an EB In NYC so I think he knows what he's doing lol but he might be wrong. I think things have just changed now and the timeline is more accelerated and more competitive. Just like you, I'm an external transfer into COLA, but by the time I'm even eligible to apply for McCombs internal transfer I'll already have my offer. Most of my peers at McCombs have had r1s so far, I haven't yet but also that's because all the banks that I have referrals at haven't started their non diversity processes yet so I'm not too worried. Maybe I'm just coping lol but I think things are just different from now and when you recruited. Regardless, if you network, McCombs or not, getting interviews should be possible so don't feel discouraged whoever is reading this.
Also wanted to say - I do admire your story as a double transfer and breaking in, I can sympathize with it a lot as an external transfer coming in without McCombs resources, not even knowing what IB was until after arriving at UT and feeling behind compared to everyone else. Glad you could make it in and hoping I can do the same!
Hey, sorry to comment on a old thread but I’m a recent internal transfer to mccombs and was wondering if you had any tips for recent transfer regarding how to approach IB recruiting.
I think my firm already finished recruiting, so apologies if I’m replying too late. Only real advice would be to check your degree audit and see when you’re tracking to graduate. Depending on when you transferred, you might be slightly behind, and you’ll need to plan accordingly if so. In my opinion, you’re better off graduating a semester late so that you can recruit in the next cycle; it’ll effectively give you an entire years’ worth of prep, classes, and whatever leadership exp. you can build in that time. You’ll end up with a huge advantage.
Otherwise, I don’t have much advice other than prepping like crazy and focusing on conceptual understanding vs memorization. Obviously know your fit-based questions cold and have your story down (under 2 min ideally). Know 1-2 deals for each firm, another 1-2 general m&a deals, and focus on expressing interest in the overall story (rather than parroting off technicals that you don’t actually grasp, i.e. multiples and such, but be ready to answer q’s about basic ones). Overall you really don’t have much of a disadvantage—recruiting starts so early that most non-transfer kids have 1-2 business classes, max, under their belt (could be misremembering my timeline here).
Thanks for taking the time to respond. With the transfer my graduation got pushed back a semester so I guess it worked out for the better. I’ll be sure to start prepping.
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