Should I transfer to a "target-school" for my junior year if I'm already going to a bulge bracket?
So I'm in a weird predicament and wanted to seek advice from WSO, but I haven't found too many other people in my situation.
I've been interested in finance/econ for a few years, and in my senior year of high school, I chose to pursue investment banking. I go to a non-target school but managed to land a great internship my freshman summer. From there, I recently got offers from a few MF PE firms and BBs for my sophomore summer. I accepted a top offer from a BB, and now I'm at a crossroads.
I thought for a while, I would transfer to a better school (Stern/Columbia/Wharton, etc.) for my junior year, so I could maximize my opportunities for networking and recruiting. But...if I'm already going to a bulge bracket investment bank (GS/MS/JPM), why transfer? My school is very non-target (I'm the only kid who has ever gone to IBD at a bulge bracket), but I have a very stable community here, I love my friends, and I'm dating someone.
Does it even make sense for someone like me to transfer? Am I too concerned with prestige? I'm already heading off to a top BB, so does where I go to school even matter? What do you all think? I understand that I'm in a very fortunate position. Still, I'm terrified of making an overly objective decision that could ruin my social life and only marginally improve my professional career. Thanks for the feedback!
apply for the transfer. See if it’s approved. If it is then you face a decision. If not, it’s made for you and you don’t have to live your life wondering.
dont sweat the girl. You’ll find out a couple years sooner if she’s the one if you transfer and she bails. Better to find out now than when you’re getting crushed as an analyst for a couple years.
^ Agree with the above.
Sounds like you've already done well despite not coming from a target school. It also sounds like your life is pretty settled and you're happy. As much as people prestige whore around here, what really matters is your own happiness so act accordingly.
On the flipside, you have a chance to put yourself in a position that will likely open up more and different career and life opportunities in the future. The target school name does matter and even if you go to South Dakota St and earn a BB IBD internship and sit next to the guy/gal that went to Wharton, that Wharton network will continue to pay dividends for decades whether it's buyside recruiting, b school advice, access to c suite networks etc. Apply to the best schools you realistically have a chance to get into and see what happens. Stern, for example, is a school that to me wouldn't be worth uprooting your life for especially if you're not getting significant financial aid. Wharton/Columbia? Might be worth pushing yourself into a new experience. Your life will also change over the course of the next few months so that will give you some time to figure things out. As far as friends go, good friends will still be good friends even if you move away for the last year or two of school. Relationship wise, if it's meant to be it's meant to be. Real relationships often go periods, especially early in life where, one person has to move, distance is a thing, etc. If she's someone you want to stay with while you go through these life events, ask her to do so and see what happens.
Good luck with it.
Yes. Outside of immediate opportunities, your undergrad stays with you forever, and going to a better school will help you with recruiting, fund raising, relationships, etc down the line.
Not sure who gave you MS, but this.
It's not about the school on your resume, that falls to the bottom of your resume pretty quickly. Your school matters for a good amount of time mostly because of the network you build. Having friends from Harvard is better than not having friends from Harvard (obviously). Having the ability to chill at the Harvard Club is better than not being able to chill at the Harvard Club (also obviously).
How did you land that internship freshman summer?
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