Didn't make it to a target. Now what?

Hey guys,

The last of my college decisions came out recently, and unfortunately, I was rejected from every target school I applied to. I'm not really surprised considering that I'm a broke international student, but my goal is to work in IB so this does put somewhat of a hitch in my plans. I'll be attending a satellite campus of a target school this fall (outside the US), and I'm hoping you can help me figure out what I should do next. The way I see it, I have four options:

1) Transfer to a target:
I could try to transfer to a target school in the US/Canada. This will be tough. Transfer rates at top schools are abysmal at best for domestic students in the US, let alone internationals. I could get into UMich or UT perhaps, but affording them will be next to impossible. However, I might just be able to transfer to and afford Ivey's HBA program in Canada, which I hear is a target. But is it worth it?

2) Go to grad school:
My school is quite selective and, as a result, has a very high grad school placement rate, so I'm also considering getting a MSF/MFin/MFE right after I graduate. I want to move to the US and join the workforce ASAP, and these programs could help me accomplish that. I have yet to look into the pros and cons of all these different programs, but I have plenty of time to do that.

3) Get a job and apply for an MBA after ~2 years:
This isn't exactly ideal for a couple of reasons. First of all, it's pretty hard to land good internships (of any kind) in the country I'm going to study in. I imagine it'll be quite hard to find a decent job (I've scoured LinkedIn and only found 3-4 alums in IB), which probably won't help my chances at a top MBA program. Secondly, like I mentioned earlier, I'd like to move to the US sooner than later.

4) Play it safe and just do engineering:
Normally, I'd major in econ or double in math/econ, but if breaking in proves to be way too difficult, I'm fine with just majoring in engineering and getting a masters in my field instead. At some point, I'll try to get an MBA, but I'll focus on efforts on engineering for the foreseeable future. I'd prefer not to do this (since IB is what I'm gunning for), but I'd also prefer not to be unemployed, so I'll do what I have to do.

And that's pretty much it. What would you guys do if you were in my shoes? I'd really appreciate any advice whatsoever.

 

At the end of the day, you are more than your school and major. And, it’s less about what you major in and more on how you can apply it to the role you want. Your cards have been dealt so just work with what you have and make the most of it.

It doesn’t hurt to try transferring out. The worst you’ll get is a no. But, seriously, there is more to life than some job. Life is too short to plan out your life that much because the more you do it the unhappier you’ll be, especially if you don’t attain those goals.

Live in the now, work with what you have, and make the most of it. You only have one life.

 
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