Undergrad Harvard vs Stanford
So I committed to Harvard but got off of the waitlist at Stanford(posted this in consulting as well but want a PE centric answer to know better)
1. For PE out of Undergrad which uni places better
2. I understand placing PE out of Undergrad is insanely hard even from both of these schools any advice or articles worth reading or skills to build up?
3. Any more recommendations about life or whatever
KKR / Bain / De Shaw / Point 72 / Mainsail / Alpine Investors / Citadel all provide internships and or FT on campus recruiting at Stanford
Source: Alumni and connected to undergrad finance community
Is alpine really good have heard mixed things about the fund
Think of harvard as like I'm an old money stud who has life on easy mode. Stanford is im a bright first gen who's excited about what it all has to offer.
you decide where you fall.
del
All the places mentioned in the first comment recruit at Harvard, and a fair amount of PE firms in Boston have analyst positions and recruit at Harvard. Not to say that that doesn't happen at Standford, just speaking to what I know. Honestly don't think you could make a wrong decision. The weather in Boston in the winter sucks but really love the city. Easy access to NYC and excellent hiking/skiing. Some people are annoying old-money types (and if that's you you'll fit right in) but there are plenty of first gen people and people from all levels of socioeconomic background. You'll find your group no matter where you go tbh.
Have you been able to visit? Campus vibes are important, that was something I regretted not being able to do.
Thanks this is very relaxing and helpful , visited Harvard for visitas loved the vibes there(fair bit of old money people but honestly just avoided some of the snobby ones), won't be able to visit Stanford but again loved Harvard.
I mean honestly if you know you like Harvard I'd just commit. I get the draw of suddenly getting into another excellent school that you'd like to go to, but if you won't be able to visit it feels risky to commit to the next 4 years at a place that's, at best, equal to Harvard.
"Excellent skiing"--the hills of vermont are not good skiing. Tahoe is good skiing
You don’t ski snow, you ski ice 😎
I would say the differences in general recruiting advantages and alumni network value are negligible having friends who went to both, for PE specifically I would say Harvard vs entrepreneurship/VC I say Stanford. Do you prefer west coast weather or do you like winter? Proximity to family/friends? Would you be interested in taking short vacations down the west coast or around New England? I would say it's hard to go wrong here so rather than think about job prospects I would give more weight to where you would rather be location/culture-wise.
I had to make a similar choice between a UC school and a school in Boston (but between STEM programs, not finance) and ultimately decided on Boston because of a combination of friends going to other schools in the area, financial aid, love for the full gambit of seasons (grew up in the Midwest), and I vastly preferred the culture of people from New England to California. You're going to be spending some very formative years wherever you choose and since you've already got the best in the world in terms of academia, I would highly recommend you now optimize for personal preference.
It really depends on if you see yourself staying in NYC or the West Coast. Harvard just has a massive network in the city - there’s a reason there is a Harvard club in NYC and no Stanford club. Versus if you go to the West Coast, the sheer number of Stanford alumni will be a lot higher and you’ll have more people you know in the city you choose. Both names are equally prestigious and will open all the same doors in terms of applying to PE and whatnot.
this is biased toward my personal preferences, but I would pick Stanford. Recruiting aside, go somewhere you feel like you would fit in best. College is some of the best years of your life. I am about to graduate in a week and looking back choosing the school I felt I would fit in best and fit my personal lifestyle preferences made all of the difference. Who cares about recruiting if you are going to be miserable and don't mesh with the schools culture and student body. For stanford, I think it offers the best mix of 1) prestige 2) sports and 3) lifestyle (sunny and warm California). I am from california so again biased but I think the student body of california schools are night and day different from east coast. West coast kids in my experience tend to be more chill and relaxed whereas majority of east coast kids are the preppy new englander type.
So I've spent a good amount of time either around or going to school at both of them and they're just so different, just go visit and go where you like better. Both of them will set you up just fine and you'll have a great experience. Life is so unpredictable I wish I could go back and tell myself at your age to just do what you enjoy. If you go to either, work hard, you'll be set for any career you want. If you're attracted to the people and the vibe of one over the other, go there, because those will be the people you'll be in bed with forever.
The student body at Stanford leans tech/vc over traditional PE due to the location - you will have every option out of there, but Harvard is certainly a larger number of kids to PE each year mostly due to interest. If you visited H and loved it (and can't visit Stanford) I would go to the school you know you like.
Harvard, hotter girls at the other boston schools like Northeastern/BU than at Stan/Berk + name carries more weight internationally (Stanford is almost equal in places like China but Middle East for example Harvard is unmatched). Harvard also has an excellent recruiting culture that’ll pressure you into working your ass off, while Stanford largely doesn’t. I would say if you’re into growth/VC or a place like Silver Lake or MS Menlo, lean Stanford, otherwise Harvard
Hey! Was picking between harvard and stanford, now here at Stanford. Finance recruiting here is great--all banks, PE, HF, etc, recruit here--and there's not much competition. Honestly Stanford has made me not want to do finance though--taught me that there are higher callings than private equity, and I think I'm going to pursue those. Life here is honestly incredible--today I went out, did all my work in the sun--I'll say its a lot better than freezing your balls off in Cambridge. Try to visit if you can--pick wherever you vibe with more. There legitimately is no wrong choice. Also I will say, the odds you know what you want to do out of undergrad, even if you're the type of person to get into H and S, is still pretty low. So really just pick wherever you like more!
What do you plan to do if I may ask? Just curious honestly fluid myself might go to law or do something of my own(honestly Harvard has an underrated startup culture like finance at Stanford so not a factor tho)
I was actually thinking about either law or finance coming in, but the startup world has an incredible allure. I will say this, even compared to Harvard, the one thing you have at Stanford is that people will throw money at you to start your own projects and companies. Statistically speaking the way most wealthy Americans become wealthy is through starting your own business, and the freedom and excitement that comes from that is awesome. At Stanford, doing that is a reality and a huge part of why people are here. Even talking to friends at the business school who are ex goldman or blackstone, a lot of them are starting companies for this exact reason.
Here, your professors will have started multibillion $ companies, and you're exposed to this ecosystem all the time. Roomates and friends will start companies and they'll end up being wildly successful on a level that puts any preprofessional career to shame. That's honestly why I've decided to not pursue a preprofessional path--there are bigger things to aspire to, and you only live once so might as well go for it
As someone who went to H, I'd say go to S. I enjoyed my time at H, but S has less competitive pressure to get a top finance job and better weather / social scene. Win-win.
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