UGRAD - Wash. U Olin, Emory, UNC, or IU Kelley Direct Admit

I posted this on another thread, but I will re-post for reference. Also, feel free to message me to discuss the IU Program as I am 3-4 years out as an alum.

Going to IU is quite a big gamble on getting into the IB Workshop and much of the recruitment process, aside from GPA (even this can be manipulated based on what classes you take in what order), isn't something you can control considering much of getting in has to do with subjective measurements (Business Frats / Greek Life Connections which is predicated on what high school you went to and who you were friends with). For example, the minimum GPA to even apply for the IB Workshop is a 3.60 GPA and every year multiple candidates will gain admission while being significantly below this threshold mainly if they are a Diversity Candidate, but also through business fraternity / social fraternity connections. Also, a 3.80+ candidate can get axed over a 3.50+ candidate due to being an "optimal social-fit" - I.E. you play lax and got into one of the 4-5 well represented Greek Organizations freshman year.

Furthermore, all the top banks will ask the professor that runs the program for his "recommendations" on which candidates to interview and he will provide "recommendations" based on a few criteria (firm preference / GPA / mock interviews). Do you really think he'll recommend a 'Non-IB Workshop' candidate for the 1 Goldman / 1 Evercore / 1 JPM spot considering he is incentivized to achieve 100% student placement? -Answer: No

Is it possible to get offers without the workshop? - Absolutely, many do it every year, however, it is SIGNIFICANTLY more difficult and your prospects will 100% decrease to the point where if you are able to receive an offer to an MM bank such as a SunTrust / BMO / Piper Sandler / Baird without the Workshop, you would most definitely be guaranteed a spot at a BAML / Barlcays / Citigroup / MoCo etc if you were in the IB Workshop.

With that being said, the TOP job placements at IU are actually on par with the top placements at any Non-Harvard/UPENN schools (UCLA / UVA / Georgetown / Emory / UNC / WUSTL / Cornell) with a few kids joining the Blackstone / PJT analyst classes. However, much of your fate at IU is unfortunately decided your freshman year based on what fraternity you join and your relationship with the IB Workshop Professor / Upper Classmen.

With all that being said, despite placing ~80+ candidates/year, as an alumni I would have to admit to IU being a 'Non-Target' school because there are so many 'what-ifs' involved when evaluating a candidate from the school (ex: being a straight white/Asian male will make it categorically more difficult to place into the IB Workshop / Finance Societies).

Also ~80 placements in a Kelley class of 2,000+ every single year (when I graduated around 2016-2017, many of the 'average to above average Kelley students' had no clue as to where they would be working post-graduation as an 2nd semester senior) is quite weak. A target school is classified as a place where someone NOT in the top 5-10% of the University can still gain a relatively selective position.

In all, IU Kelley is a GREAT option if you are unable to gain admission to a 'Prestigious-University'. Doesn't seem like you have this problem, so you should be choosing between WUSTL / UNC / Emory