Can I still achieve a high-paying career?

Here's the rundown. I did pretty shit in highschool but got accepted into all the colleges (non-targets) I applied to. I actually scored a $20k scholarship also!

Unfortunately, my family isn't doing so hot financially and they requested that I go to community college so they can get settled. Thus I pulled my enrollment from state flagship. My family makes $40k a year (4 kids, one in college). I just decided to do this but I am starting to regret it, I already pulled my enrollment from my state-flagship. My parents were just giving me such a hard to me with the fact they're broke and I had to take out private loans. I get to go to CC for free since I did good on the placement test and can jump right into college mathematics. They said I scored high on it.

Am I screwed? I am starting to become severely depressed. I don't want to work as a dishwasher next Summer but rather intern at a private wealth management firm even if it's for free. All my friends are starting to go off to college and they're going to get internships so easily since they don't have the community college stamp hanging over their head. I really can't work as a dishwasher anymore, can I still achieve some type of finance-internship? I just want to better my life and make the best decisions early on.

I want to work in an investment bank, I would take whatever I could get. If that doesn't work I can go into telemarketing at a small brokerage.

As always, thank you!

102 Comments
 

you're a scheister at heart, so you might get a payday, but nothing sustainable. you're gonna get in over your head with people smarter than you and get fucked. and you seem to fail to see the big picture. but you're a kid so whatever, who knows

heister: Look at all these wannabe richies hating on an expensive salad. https://arthuxtable.com/
 

You should really focus on getting into a good school Junior year and do whatever you need to do to get out a loan.

Once you get in Junior year, work hard on getting internships for Junior-Senior year. Get good grades and go from there.

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

I've heard that even if I get a 4.0 GPA at my community college I will still have a low chance in transferring to a t50 school.

I would have to delay graduation also to get a better shot at Junior recruiting since I would be coming in with no GPA

Array
 

you've just heard that? you've made 75 threads and haven't bothered to look into it? the opposite is true. schools have CC quotas they have to fill.

heister: Look at all these wannabe richies hating on an expensive salad. https://arthuxtable.com/
 
Controversial

If you were a stock, I'd sell everything I own and borrow as much as possible to short you

in it 2 win it
 

Kassad what a shit and mean thing to say. I'm trying to seek advice. You are adding no value hence why you were fired from your finance job and now work in IT. Take this monkey shit.

Array
 

Oddly enough, you're doing exactly what the vast, vast majority of people SHOULD be doing but aren't--doing 2 years at a community college (for extremely cheap or, in your case, for free) and then going to a flagship state university. Not only is it not something to be ashamed of, it's something you should advocate others do. Work hard, do well, make some money in an actual wage paying job, and in your summer between your junior and senior year get an internship at that point. You'll be fine.

Array
 
"Dances with Dachshunds" Oddly enough, you're doing exactly what the vast, vast majority of people SHOULD be doing but aren't--doing 2 years at a community college (for extremely cheap or, in your case, for free) and then going to a flagship state university.

Nope.

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 
"Dances with Dachshunds"
"Isaiah_53_5" Nope.
Jesus Christ. You are wrong in literally every single thread I've seen you in.

And why is CC such a great opportunity?

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 
"Isaiah_53_5"
"Dances with Dachshunds"
"Isaiah_53_5" Nope.
Jesus Christ. You are wrong in literally every single thread I've seen you in.
And why is CC such a great opportunity?

Because it's very inexpensive and still allows you to move on to finish your bachelor's at a respected state university. I've always maintained that you don't need to go to Harvard to succeed in life.

Array
 
"Dances with Dachshunds"
"Isaiah_53_5"
"Dances with Dachshunds"
"Isaiah_53_5" Nope.
Jesus Christ. You are wrong in literally every single thread I've seen you in.
And why is CC such a great opportunity?
Because it's very inexpensive and still allows you to move on to finish your bachelor's at a respected state university. I've always maintained that you don't need to go to Harvard to succeed in life.

Sure, you don't need to go to Columbia or Harvard, but it definitely helps.

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 
"Dances with Dachshunds"
"Isaiah_53_5" Sure, you don't need to go to Columbia or Harvard, but it definitely helps.
Sure it helps. But not going to an Ivy League school is not an automatic economic death sentence. According to this piece, 96.5% of the world's ultra HNW individuals didn't attend an Ivy League school. There is plenty of opportunity for us mere mortals.

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/money/savingandinvesting/...

ultra HNW is a different story ... those are the people who have literally shaken up the markets and industry

Ivy grads are quite simply more likely to earn more than their counterparts in other schools:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/09/14/this-chart-shows…

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 
"Isaiah_53_5"
"Dances with Dachshunds"
"Isaiah_53_5" Sure, you don't need to go to Columbia or Harvard, but it definitely helps.
Sure it helps. But not going to an Ivy League school is not an automatic economic death sentence. According to this piece, 96.5% of the world's ultra HNW individuals didn't attend an Ivy League school. There is plenty of opportunity for us mere mortals.

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/money/savingandinvesting/...

ultra HNW is a different story ... those are the people who have literally shaken up the markets and industry

Ivy grads are quite simply more likely to earn more than their counterparts in other schools:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/0...

Do u have any advice for my situation or are you going to post statistics for me to feel worse about my decision?

Array
 

I'm going to get in-character for a moment just to say that I have to agree. In no situation would I say that "it's fine to attend a community college and then a state school" when the opportunity to attend a top 50 school exists. I know a couple people, not geniuses, not savants, just a regular dude and a regular girl with >3.5 GPAs who transferred to NYU after their sophomore year. Debt, especially if you're gunning for finance, is a negligible concern.

That said, it is 100% possible to succeed from a community college, but I don't see the reason to hinder yourself on any basis of "saving money." The advantage one gets from attending a top school for undergrad is irreplaceable. Sure you can attend a top school for a MS or MBA, but even then you'd be at a disadvantage at the application stage. Your network will be more powerful coming from a top school, you'll have better instructors, access to better employers - there's just no universe where I can see skipping an attempt to go to a top school as a good idea.

This is coming from someone who attended a community college and then a state school. Definitely one of my top regrets.

in it 2 win it
 
Best Response
"Isaiah_53_5"
"Dances with Dachshunds"
"Isaiah_53_5" Sure, you don't need to go to Columbia or Harvard, but it definitely helps.
Sure it helps. But not going to an Ivy League school is not an automatic economic death sentence. According to this piece, 96.5% of the world's ultra HNW individuals didn't attend an Ivy League school. There is plenty of opportunity for us mere mortals.

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/money/savingandinvesting/...

ultra HNW is a different story ... those are the people who have literally shaken up the markets and industry

Ivy grads are quite simply more likely to earn more than their counterparts in other schools:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/0...

I'm struggling to even interact with you because you're such a stupid f*cking moron and you've proven it time and again. I'm not sure where to even start criticizing you for your utterly asinine post. But let me start here--the OP didn't get into Columbia, Harvard, Yale, or even Brown. The overwhelming majority of people don't even apply to Ivy League schools because it would be a waste of a $50 application fee. So yes, if the OP got into Harvard, it would be absurd to go to a community college instead of to Harvard. But that's not the case here--the decision is between CC and then finishing up at a state university or 4 years at a state university. Going the first 2 years at a community college is a great way to reduce costs and to get to the same goal.

Array
 

Thanks so much for your response! If I do that, I can get out of my state flagship with only $25-$30k in debt, no private loans for sure. I will have a degree and maybe not the best job but I can live my life where my peers are in $60k-$100k in debt.

Thanks!

Array
 

This is definitely Goldstein. When he was still on his my name is goldstein account, he sent me a PM stating much of the same things, ie having to go to CC rather than the college he was supposed to, family only making 40k a year, and there being like 4 kids in the family or some shit. It's exactly the same story - would anyone like to see screenshots?

 

So you want IB, PWM, or Sales.

You can get a PWM or an accounting internship to help get you in the door for an IB internship. A job/internship in sales would get you into PWM or some RE/tech company you wanna work for.

It's been demonstrated many times over that you can get into IB from non-target schools. Get a solid GPA and use the free resources here on WSO.

Want PWM/Sales? Read sales books and start dialing for dollars. This is a good thread for you https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/ama-a-bored-financial-advisor

No amount of threads on WSO will help. It's all up to you now.

[quote=mbavsmfin]I don't wear watches bro. Because it's always MBA BALLER time! [/quote]
 

You don't get it, I'm not going to a non-target, I'm going to a ultra non-target (community college). I just don't know if my people skills and knowledge can negate the fact that finances forced me to go to CC.

Array
 

My point still stands. I know people who got internships from CC at BB PWM. You can certainly get an accounting internship at a small company near you. You don't need a college degree to work in sales. They literally don't give a shit as long as you can make them money.

Accounting internship from CC? Possible. PWM internship from CC? Possible. Sales job? You can literally drop out and sell cars and leverage that into a different industry.

It's your attitude.

[quote=mbavsmfin]I don't wear watches bro. Because it's always MBA BALLER time! [/quote]
 

Deleted. My bad. He responded to a thread and actually wasn't the person saying it. Sorry OP- if you're serious PM me. It's true- was a CC and did get an Ivy acceptance (low Ivy- but still).

Like the unadjusted- only with a little bit extra.
 

I didn't feel like I made a direct insult to you, may have been the other user. I apologized afterwards because I felt bad, to be honest.

Array
 

Hey man, you sound like me. I also had aspirations of attending a top school, and I did get into a few. But then I had to go to a shit school.

But unlike you, I became depressed and just lost it. I just lost all motivation and slipped into isolation and depression. I fucked up my GPA bad.

I will say this, whatever you do, get a very high GPA. It is going to affect u for the rest of your life. Consider law school. Law schools don't care about prestige. Just make sure: Do anything to get that high GPA.

For what its worth: I work with people who went to top schools. They earn what I earn. So your school is not everything. Keep in touch.

 

Sorry to hear that.

I actually know a lawyer who started off as a typical associate (not from prestigious law school) and climbed. He has his own practice now and owns a shit ton of businesses. I visited his house once and it's crazy, he has a basketball court, pool, tennis court, massive gym and really just everything. Idk, maybe I can get into a high ranked law school. I've heard people say that Law is bad and I shouldn't go into it but I mean if I go to Yale or Harvard Law the name can take me far, do you agree?

EDIT: That would be so badass to work for Wachtell or Watkins. They make so much fkn money I just hope top law schools don't care about my CC.

Array
 

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