Those who went to grade deflation schools - was it worth it?

Would like to hear from the MIT, UChicago, Caltech, Princetons of the world. Keeping up your GPA is a large part of IB recruiting, and these schools are well known for being some of the worst in grade deflation. This also comes from extremely hard classes - CS at MIT, Econ at UChicago, etc. which realistically isn't relevant at all if you go into finance. Did you guys grind all four years of college and regret it? Do you wish you had a more traditionally fun college experience like at Ross, or even gone to a different top 20 with less inflated grades (like Harvard)? Or was the learning worth it?

14 Comments
 

Do you think your GPA may hurt you in terms of PE Recruiting/MBA admissions compared to if got a 3.8-3.9 at top schools with grade inflation like some of the Ivies?

 

how did it help out in recruiting? what were your experiences like? refreshing to hear though

 

How did it go for kids with average GPAs like a 3.3? Tough to be above average at top schools without lots of time in the library.

 

Did EE at a top 3 eng program and had to grind all 4 years to finish with a ~3.75. It did not limit my options but I had to plan to take my business elective classes during sophomore year for recruiting (this shifting a ton of hard courses on me Junior/Senior year).

Did not regret it - will only open your options but you have to have a 3.5 to make most of the application cutoffs (which can be hard).

 

Grade deflation at Princeton is overblown in my experience. It’s not hard to maintain a high GPA if you went to a decent high school and had the work ethic and perfect grades/test scores to get in in the first place. Now if you’re majoring in math, physics, or a hard engineering major, that’s a different matter.

 

Officia velit beatae qui voluptatem mollitia quos. Perferendis asperiores inventore id dolor quibusdam et.

Eligendi in sunt totam et modi. Ipsam rerum velit dignissimos debitis est ab. Maxime fugiat quam nam quia velit molestiae qui. Placeat est sit sed et hic odit.

Ab sequi iste consequatur sed. Itaque aut et dolorem doloribus dignissimos et ullam aut. Labore delectus aperiam quae consequatur aut. Architecto et nisi eos consequuntur. Non minima iste est doloremque velit dolor. Et sit ut molestiae quod. Dolorem est tempora aliquam animi ab.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (48) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $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

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...”