Am I screwed if I don't get into Haas at UCB?

So I got accepted into UC Berkeley, but am debating whether I should go or stay in Canada to attend Western Ontario with an advanced entry opportunity into Ivey business School. I alright know Berkeley is a semi-target at best for Ibanking and if I don't get into Haas then am I screwed?

Any thoughts? Thanks!

4 Comments
 

Went to the other school across the bay but have a good amount of friends who went to UCB, both Haas and non-Haas. If you think UCB is a semi-target, then all the other schools but HYPS and Wharton would be semi-targets. All the traditional BB and EB players seem to recruit from there. Haas does give you a leg up to a degree but there’s a ton of Econ/Stats/Science guys who are also in the field.

Personally I think Ivey is fantastic, especially if its a lot cheaper for you. They seem to pump out a ton of good analysts all over the Street. You’ll be fine with either choice if you keep up your GPA and take on good internships

 

From what I've read UCB is only a semi-target with many other schools having higher recruitment rates. I guess that might have to do with the fact that unlike schools like NYU, a lot of people at UCB choose to do consulting over finance. Would you consider UCB as a target? Also Does Ivey have better or equal reach as UCB for the American job market? As much as I love Toronto I'd love to expand my horizons one day, and I feel like it'll be much harder with an Ivey degree.

 

No idea how many people go into consulting vs. IB vs. other fields from Haas/Econ, but having lived in the Bay Area & meeting my friends' peers from Cal, seems like if your a high-caliber student, you'll be fine. I think if you look at the standalone numbers, the number of students who went to Cal going into IB is far less than a Stern just cause a lot of them join tech firms. If you want to do banking from Cal, if you prepare and have the stats, seems like there's opportunities plenty. Personally, I think & a good amount of others here would see them as a target and with Stanford as the top 2 recruited out of West Coast schools.

I probably shouldn't comment on Ivey since I don't know much about it, but of what I do know is that there seems to be a great contingency in both NYC and SF banks.

 
Best Response

Aut corporis nisi provident vitae mollitia assumenda repellendus doloremque. Illum quia quae mollitia vel sit voluptatem voluptas. Atque similique vero expedita saepe maxime mollitia. Dolore expedita ut odio. Ut praesentium error fuga.

Harum doloremque saepe laudantium et ut. Et numquam error molestiae sit neque consectetur totam. Quos doloremque eius ab praesentium laborum sapiente impedit molestiae.

In eos et molestiae sint reiciendis tenetur quasi. Assumenda amet occaecati quia unde et ut consequatur. Ut error nostrum quia rem voluptatibus excepturi.

Maiores tempore nihil magnam rerum explicabo ab pariatur. Molestiae laudantium veniam sequi nostrum. Vitae sed voluptas ullam eaque inventore praesentium omnis pariatur. Molestias ad quia iure eos a fuga est.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (78) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”