Berkeley
To avoid speculation an investment must be either directly backed by the pledge of sufficient collateral or insured by sufficient assets pledged by a third party. A thoroughly analyzed loan of money backed by collateral with greater immediate value than the loan amount may be considered an investment. A financial instrument that is insured by the pledge of assets from a third party, such as a deposit in a financial institution insured by a government agency may be considered an investment. Examples of these agencies include, in the United States, the Securities Investor Protection Corporation, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or National Credit Union Administration, or in Canada, the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation.
It is harder to break into NYC from SF than the reverse, which is a strike against Haas. Unless I'm really missing something, isn't the Cornell one more aimed at govt. types?
You want to go to IBanking? Study Business/Finance.
For the weather and good networking opportunities in SF, I'd go with Haas.
PAM is more for people interested in government. That said, every BB recruits at Cornell, and you have access to a massive alumni base. You'll probably be fine either way, but I would say Cornell. The weather is absolutely friggin terrible though. Be prepared.
@FinancePun: The major Policy Analysis and Management is basically public policy, you're absolutely right about that, so it differs greatly from a business degree, which doesn't bother me at all as I really like both majors. Although, I am aware that I am going to need to take some AEM classes in order to be competitive for ibanking/consulting.
@Better.Than.You: The "massive alumni base" at Cornell is appealing but don't Berkeley alumni help each other too? Maybe, they are just less successful on average (I have no idea, no offense intended) or don't have as much school spirit.
The financial aspect should not be an issue since all Ivies have great financial aid. I have to send a $400 check in 2 or 3 days for Cornell and I really don't know what to do. I mean, Haas is a top 3 undergraduate business program and I love to study business but Cornell is an Ivy and I love public policy. The difference could be that Haas is kind of like Wharton at Penn, as Haas students tend to get nearly all the best jobs, whereas at Cornell, I have to compete against AEM + Econ majors + Engineers and I also know much less about the College of Human Ecology's reputation than I know about Haas' reputation.... I also applied to NYU but financially speaking, it's not realistic and my dream schools are Haas or Cornell anyway
Any other opinion?
IMO, it depends on what you've done to demonstrate interest in finance/banking/consulting in your first two years. If you haven't had concrete stuff on your resume that shows the pursuit of one of these careers, then go for Haas, because a traditional finance education will be more valuable to you in that situation. On the other hand, if you've got a past internship(s) or club involvement, etc. then you'll be able to have a bit more leeway with what you study. I understand that you can take classes in AEM, which will obviously be helpful if you're in a major that doesn't require those courses as part of its curriculum.
Since you're a junior, I would definitely reflect on what you've done so far in UG. You'll only have one semester at either school before SA recruiting starts, and two semesters before FT recruiting, if the SA doesn't work out. I feel like you could "boost" your resume a lot quicker at Haas (where you'll be taking three to four classes related to finance) vs. at Cornell, where I doubt you'll be taking more than two classes outside of your major.
As far as location, I'd take San Fran in a heartbeat over upstate NY, and I'm no California liberal. Weather in upstate NY wouldn't suit me at all, and San Fran seems a lot more exciting.
Thank you very much westsidewolf1989.
I had one experience after High School which clearly shows my interest in finance BUT it was really really far from a "technical" internship, by that I mean that I didn't learn anything other than eating free pizza and hanging out with other interns. Is that going to be enough to show my interest or is the lack of meaningful work going to kill my chances? At least, it shows that finance is one of my long-time interest.
I looked at all the requirements for my major at Cornell, and I am not going to able to take as many AEM classes as I want. So many classes are only offered either during fall or spring, which makes things a bit difficult.
One solution would to purchase something like "Breaking Into Wall Street" or "Train the Street". Would that be enough to land interviews? Would that be better or worse than taking a bunch of business classes?
I have to respond in a few days so I would really appreciate any help! Thank you
If that's seriously all you did at your internship I would think Haas would have the edge here. The question is if you could talk about ANY meaningful work you did at this position, or spin it in any way to relate to banking/consulting. That's great that it shows your interest, but if you can't spin how the work you did prepares you for banking/consulting in any way, then it's really not too beneficial IMO. Even then, making grandiose connections between low-level intern work and work of a first-year/summer analyst can really only get you so far before you start flat-out lying.
Breaking Into Wall Street/Train the Street isn't going to help you get interviews, it will just help you ace them once you've already got them...unless you intend on putting BIWS/TtS on your resume. I've never taken those courses, so I'm not sure if that's proper resume etiquette or not. I've heard they are very helpful and would prepare you well for interviews, you just have to be able to get them in the first place.
I don't think there's a huge difference in prestige or whatever, Berkeley is probably the best public school in the country and Cornell is a top-tier private school. You can get both banking/consulting from these places, you'll just be in SF for one and NYC for the other. What's your academic background thus far...were you a finance major at your current school/had you taken any finance/math/econ courses?
Live in Upstate New York or San Francisco? Why is this a difficult decision?
I like both New York (+Ithaca) and San Francisco, that really doesn't make a difference for me, even after graduation. If I had to choose though, I'd probably say that I'd rather work in NYC but I am not that picky honestly. I am very easy going and I have constantly moved from one city to another during my childhood and adulthood so it doesn't bother me at all.
The choice is difficult because when it comes down to ibanking opportunities, I feel like (but I am not sure):
-Cornell University as a whole is a better name than Berkeley for undergrad
-my major at Berkeley (Haas) is better
-I have the choice between a "better" university and a "worse" major (for ibanking purposes) or a worse university and a better major/school (Haas)
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