So, freshman at a non target. Story's brief; I chose the school because of its price, location, undergrad b-school, etc. I did get into some semi-targets here and there, but then again they were $20k more per year. Regardless, I'm at a non-target and that's that.
I am doing extremely well. I can easily (and will) finish above a 3.7/3.8 here for my first semester (and most likely beyond). It's relatively competitive here (obviously could be more competitive), but my school isn't necessarily known for pumping out analysts. That's where my dilemma comes in.
So far, I've loved the people I've met here. Made some good friends so far, my classes are easy, the girls are beautiful, and I like the school so far. And surprisingly enough, I have faith that my school might be on the level that U of Richmond or Bucknell is by the time I'm ready to graduate. Thing is, my sociopathic/greedy side wants to transfer to a school like Yale (where I happen to be a triple legacy) and make a run at becoming an analyst at a BB/MM, or become an analyst at a hedge fund or equity research firm. Obviously shown by the people on this site, there is a large space for non target graduates to go into IBD, HF, whatever it may be. However, it is clear that it is more difficult to get that foot in the door. I've been reading all the threads and forums about how to do so from a non-target given that I choose not to transfer.
Again, I'll most likely have a 3.7 or higher by the end of my first semester. Should I choose to transfer, my #1 school would be Yale considering I have incredible and fortunate connections there. I'd also probably look at other schools as well, but it would be a matter of looking at all targets or semi-targets. Believe it or not, through a connection at my church back home I scored a full time internship at a boutique investment bank in my hometown for the summer after my freshman year, so it goes to show non-targets are good for something, right?
I wouldn't mind giving up the partying lifestyle and the 24/7 fun my school has to offer if it means a MUCH easier path come job search time. It's a matter of whether it's imperative that I should look into transferring. Any advice on the subject would be helpful.
it's all about what you value more. And within non-targets, there are tiers. ie. if you bust your ass @ Penn State, you'll be more likely to end up at the same place as those Ivy kids, and your ROI is MUCH higher cuz you paid much less tuition and have no debt. But if you're at something like Blue Mountain State, then if you value career more, GTFO of there!
Unless your family donates significant amounts of money, a triple legacy doesn't mean that much. Assuming you applied in HS, do you think you've changed significantly enough for them to not ding you again?
Believe it or not, I chose not to apply in high school. At the time, I had no idea what I wanted to do (now knowing I want to go into IBD and the likes of finance), so I just applied to schools I liked on the surface: Bucknell, Richmond, F&M, Lehigh, Nova, etc. I hadn't considered the whole "IBD" thing and the competition from ivy's.
Do you have Yale stats though? Good GPA/SAT scores are bare minimum to even be considered as a transfer, since they accept ~20 per year. You need a good story, which I don't really think people here can help you with.
What kind of non-target are you at? It matters a little bit. Athletic conference is fine, don't need to be super specific.
If you want to get into high finance, you should absolutely look into transferring. What were your stats coming out of HS? That depends on if I would recommend transferring after freshman or sophomore year.
CAA (Colonial). It's a small (ish) liberal arts university. And what exactly do you mean by high finance? Also, graduated high school with a 3.4 and decent SAT scores (not great, not terrible).
You have like a 1% chance of getting admitted at Yale usually. So with triple legacy and assuming a good SAT score you have at best a 5-10% of getting in. They probably take 10 transfers a year so unless you can come up with a better reason to go than "I want to work for the Goldman Sachs" you're probably not getting in.
I would spend the first two years at your university, enjoying it, saving money and getting good grades. Then transfer for your junior and senior years into a better school.
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