West Coast options after East Coast MBA?
I'm admitted to NYU Stern's full-time MBA program for this fall (Class of 2017), and am pretty seriously considering working and living on the West Coast post-MBA. Close to New York in terms of preference (am actually in SF now!) I should probably clarify that I currently live in NYC, don't have any background in tech, and am not planning to focus on tech or VC - though not inconceivable that I could end up in a role in the industry especially at a larger firm.
How much harder do you think finding opportunities in California right after school is, compared to staying in New York, for people attending a school like Stern (right after school that is)? I do see that less than 8% of Stern students end up on the West Coast each year, but of course that doesn’t show how many actually wanted to.
One interesting thing I've noticed in the Northeast is a slight lack of recognition or ignorance of West Coast schools, even good ones, outside of Stanford – very few people I’ve met, other than current MBA applicants and people in tech, know that UCLA Anderson is a solid program for example. I suspect this holds less true for East Coast schools in California, but I don’t have enough experience to know. Is there much of an MBA pipeline into California from the East Coast?
@Betsy Massar" do you have any thoughts as a Bay area resident?
FIrst, did you get into Haas and Anderson? If so, and your goal is to come back to cali after b-school, you made a big mistake. Second, what are your career goals? For consulting and F500, there is pretty decent MBA pipeline for west coast offices. I don't go to Stern, but I just finished at an east coast b-school and looked seriously at finance jobs in california. It's very difficult (i can't speak for other sectors) since most non-banking finance jobs don't go through ocr. So you have to rely on your own network, alumni network, and hustling. If you are at a cali b-school it's that much easier.
East coast schools to west coast banking/trading (Originally Posted: 07/02/2007)
Almost all aspiring bankers/traders at elite east coast institutions seem to be very focused on securing a BB position in NY. How do east coast target kids fare when trying to get out to LA/SF for banking/trading?
basically doesn't exist.
Anybody else?
I speak for banking and say that it can be done. If you're a student, just get a summer offer in NY, network with whatever group you want to head out to, and if you get a full time general offer it shouldn't be too hard to go out there, especially if tech is what you're looking to do.
SF and LA ibanking positions are generally filled with Stanford and Berkeley folks. A few elite easy coasters, but that's rare.
Rare due to lack of interest in the positions on the part of east coasters or lack of interest in east coasters on the part of the banks?
Rare because everyone back East drinks the same NYC Kool-Aid while at school (i.e. if I don't end up in NYC, I'm a failure).
There are plenty of East Coast kids here in LA that are just as brutalized as analysts (think UBS and GS), except they don't get to live the afterhours life due to (1) 1:30AM last call and (2) having to drive everywhere.
Bottom line is that you can do exactly what you do in NYC if you live in LA/SF, except there won't be as many of you whining at the same time (but hours do tend to level off after the first couple of years).
Thanks for the info. Do you know how many analysts top banks take a year in California? Less competitive than NYC? Comp the same?
The west coast offices are generally much smaller, but they see less deals so the experience isn't as great.
As far as competitiveness goes, if you can't make it on the east coast coming from an east coast school, you aren't going to make it in cali coming from an east coast school, because those offices are generally filled with alumni from stanford and berkley (and the occaisonal USC kid if you are at HLHZ).
People say Stanford and Berkeley alumni get the west coast jobs; which is true, but I think the east coast kids want to stay in NYC, so they don't even apply for west coast jobs.
I'm sure a Cornell/Dartmouth/Columbia alumni has just as good a chance as a Stanford/Berkeley/USC grad on the West Coast.
I'm an east-coaster who currently works at a westcoast BB firm and its definitely possible. It helps if you are from the westcoast to begin with (I'm not) but its also possible to convince them to do it.
Helps to express an incredible interest in technology and silicon valley :)
I'm from west coast going to east coast school, no problem going to SF BB...
that being said, what some poster above drinking the nyc kool-aid is def. true.
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