Could anyone provide some advice for a transfer student?

I'm a Canadian who moved to Dallas almost two years ago. I've done two years of community college and am now transferring in Fall 2017. I'm trying to determine what school I should choose to land a job in Investment Banking.

Here are the schools I've narrowed it down to, along with some additional information:

SMU

  • Half tuition scholarship, and I might be able to interview for a full tuition scholarship.

  • My GPA doesn't reset when I got to SMU. In other words, the 3.8 GPA I earned in CC, as well as the classes, will show on my transcript as equivalent. This could be extremely beneficial when applying for SA positions.

University of Illinois Urbana Champaign

  • No scholarship here, will be paying international student cost.
  • It's closer to NYC.

University of Florida

  • It's a bit cheaper than the other two, but I don't think they place well.

UNC

  • Only got into the Econ program. I have to try to transfer into their business school after a semester or two. That's pretty risky, and I'm pretty dedicated to getting a finance degree.

I'm still waiting on Michigan (Ross), but I'm not expecting to get in, and they force you to do three years at the school. I'd be done in two years at all the other schools.

Here's some potential problems:

  • I'm aware that being on a Visa doesn't open up a lot of doors. It's very likely I won't be able to get an IB position anywhere but NYC or Toronto. Texas and Charlotte firms are unlikely.

  • I may be able to get sponsored for a PR card if my dad gets his this year, in which case, the above problem is sorted out. This is best case scenario, so I'm not banking (ahah) on it.

  • Unfortunately, I didn't get into any of the north-east schools I applied to. They were mainly Ivy. I probably should have broadened my net, but I really wanting to stay in Texas.

  • I'm also going to aim for consulting, as I hear it's easier to get a Visa.

Edited: Formatting.

7 Comments
 

Hi, I will most likely be attending SMU in the fall as a transfer student so I'm curious what others have to say. With a 3.8 GPA, you should apply to the alternative asset program.

 

TBH it's a brutal tuition size but it's not horrible.

[quote="M7 MBA, iBanking. Top MSF grad. AntiTNA. Truth is hard to hear! But... "] [/quote] [quote="DickFuld: Yeah....most of these people give terrible advice."] [/quote]
 

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