Undergrad- Claremont McKenna or Berkeley Haas?

Hello,
I apologize in advance if I'm posting this in the wrong forum. Please let me know if you'd like me to repost somewhere else.

I'm coming to the forums here to request some advice on my transfer admissions decisions. I'm currently a sophomore at a California Community College and was admitted to Claremont McKenna College and the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business for Fall 2020. I feel extremely lucky to be admitted to either of these schools and am very fortunate to be in this situation, but nonetheless I'm at somewhat of a crossroads.

I'm interested in pursuing management consulting at an MBB after graduation or trying to break into BB IB. I also think it'd be really cool to launch or join a startup at some point in my career. Ultimately, though, I want to get the best of both worlds in getting a great education with excellent career opportunities. I know that both schools provide the potential for this, but I'm struggling to really compare their relative strengths and weaknesses. Additionally, I know that nobody really knows what the post-COVID job market will look like, but I'm wondering if the close-knit (albeit smaller) alumni network at CMC will be a better bet for getting a good job post graduation.

Thus, my questions are pretty straightforward. What are the relative strengths and weaknesses of these two schools? West Coast? Nationally? Is there a stereotype/difference in prestige/preference between grads from these schools in the "real world" of business? Any other thoughts/insights regarding these two schools?

Again, thank you for any help you can offer regarding this decision. I really value hearing the advice of people operating in the "real world," as it can be hard to accurately compare the merits of these schools when I'm only working off of the impressive but polished information they put on their admissions websites.

Cheers

4 Comments
 

Inventore veniam et impedit omnis dolores autem. Quia inventore quidem qui molestiae. Excepturi sit voluptatem unde non et beatae aliquam. Pariatur aut facere ducimus rerum et placeat aspernatur enim. Cum veniam reiciendis magni reprehenderit ullam et vel. Ratione quia aliquam dolor ipsam est esse alias. Maiores consequatur dolores qui dolorem.

Quia vel minima incidunt cumque aut. Sunt quam ad consequuntur reprehenderit repellat suscipit. Illo ut amet cum. Sit rerum aut quia sunt soluta est. Id quia occaecati id et.

Nemo autem nostrum incidunt illum earum cupiditate. Tempore quos sit perferendis deleniti. Temporibus aperiam atque necessitatibus incidunt accusantium quis.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
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...”