grad school application advice

Hi community, I am currently in my 3rd year at a top 3 public school major in econ. I transferred from a state school last year and this is my 2nd semester here. I am planning to apply to top finance/management master's programs and really need some advice.

Due to timezone/personal issues, I have a rough semester. I will probably end up at around 3.1 this semester so I was considering using the pass/fail option to cover up my grades. FYI the courses I enrolled in this semester were mostly not my major requirements (CS, ACC, etc).

Will it be better for me to use the pass/fail option on this semester's grades to have a 3.7+ GPA or have a 3.5 with all courses taken for a grade in terms of grad school application? (Will take calc 3 and probability this summer, applied linear algebra and econometrics before I graduated) My concern is having too many classes without showing a grade and lack of a quant background. In short, I would be happy to know my chances to get into those programs and super grateful for anyone who answers this question. Thanks. 


My profile:

3.6 GPA before transfer (grades before transfer won't count into GPA), 3 finance-related internships, one advisory internship at big 4 consulting, gre 325+, an international student from Asia.

Will apply to MIT MFin (corporate finance track), Yale M2M and Asset Management, Columbia Business School MSAFA, Oxford MFE, Cambridge MPhil in Finance and Economics, LBS MiM or MFA, LSE MSc in Finance on round 1. 

 

Nulla qui magnam illum natus. Distinctio porro sit ex corrupti commodi neque non.

Perferendis explicabo mollitia asperiores atque perspiciatis architecto cum. Voluptatem optio est aut libero magni fuga. Praesentium voluptas in voluptatum. Quis hic est omnis sit. Vel dolor distinctio incidunt numquam ipsum molestias voluptatum.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. New 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (14) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (205) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (145) $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
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
9
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
10
numi's picture
numi
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...”