HBS vs. GSB for transitioning to buy side
I'm in the very fortunate position of having been admitted to several amazing b-schools, including HBS and Stanford GSB.
Which one would you say offers better chances for transitioning to the buy-side?
I'm aware that transitioning to the buy-side without prior buy-side experience will be challenging, but I'm curious to hear thoughts about which school might make the transition relatively easier compared to the other.
Thanks!
HBS alum here. My gut tells me that for PE/buyout (excluding VC) roles, HBS has an ever so slight edge over GSB - but I don't have any hard numbers to back it up (just based on anecdotal evidence from my section and class and people I know who went to GSB). You are absolutely right that transitioning to the buy side without buy side experience will be challenging, but there are always a few who will be able to do it. There were at least two in my section who managed it - which if you extrapolate to the entire class would be about 2%... One of my section mates who managed to break in was formerly in the public sector. No private sector experience, let alone buy side experience. Worth mentioning the guy was a bit of a sociopath though... The other section mate was much more chill / laid back (at least on the surface). Pre-MBA he was in Big 3 consulting, but he managed to get into a top quartile MM fund, but with a very sweaty and horrible culture (he actually ended up leaving this job for another gig at a slightly smaller but comparable MM fund)
Thanks - these are helpful anecdotes and I appreciate the perspective. It makes sense that HBS might have a slight leg up in traditional PE/buyout. On the other hand I’ve heard that at GSB I might experience lower competition “within the school”, and given how funds might have 1 spot for GSB and 1 for HBS (or something similar) my chances might be better at GSB - particularly as a non-traditional candidate. Do you think there’s any merit to this line of reasoning?
I think the idea that firms have quotas is a misconception. Most firms are happy to fill their ranks with one school. My group in IB (GS/MS/JPM), pre-MBA PE, and post-MBA PE had huge swaths of people from a small handful of schools. No firm is saying “oh maybe we should reserve a spot for X”.
I went to HBS and so I’m biased but I think HBS is a clear winner when it comes to non-VC buyside. If want to do anything tech related, GSB all day but HBS is stronger in finance for sure.
I know you said you don’t have any numbers to back up your statement but it’d be interesting to have an idea of how many people tried to break into buyside roles, as far as you know?
how in the world did you get into both HBS and GSB?
FWIW, I'm at a T15, and we have people interviewing on buyside who haven't been on buyside. It's possible. Work your ass of networking (it's not a formal recruiting process usually), go to the stock pitch competitions, and learn how to model and pitch a stock on your own. Congrats
Thanks for the encouragement!
I feel like it was definitely a combination of unique background (surfaced through essays), great test score, and very strong recs.
I am in a similar boat. I think HBS is slightly better for PE and HF recruiting.
Currently at GSB (but was admitted to HBS also). Your chances from either school will be exactly the same. There are almost no funds that wouldn’t interview you because you were at one school over the other.
some data:
Viking took three interns last year, two from GSB, one from Wharton. This year they took two from HBS. 2 years ago they took 8 from GSB, 1 from HBS
Elliott took 7 interns last year I think, 5 from GSB, 2 from HBS. This year 3 interns, 1 from GSB and 2 from HBS
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