Is Vanderbilt a Good School in the Eyes of Recruiters?
Hey,
I'm a senior applying to colleges, and I've recently been highly considering applying early to Vanderbilt, because it is a solid school with good athletics, and I think I'd be a good fit there. The only thing I'm worried about is how good recruitment is there for i-banking, consulting, or other business jobs. Is it a good school for business in terms of job opportunities is I guess what I'm trying to ask, to be frank. I'll be honest and I might as well say it upfront that money is a big deal to me, but please don't give me the normal lectures. I know that I can't be successful if I hate the subject (which I don't), especially in these high-stress types of jobs. So I do have an interest in business, but I also want to know whether there are high-paying job recruiters at Vandy, since if accepted, I'll have to go there. This is the only thing holding me back from applying early, because I have a decent shot at cornell (perhaps more so than Vandy, but my reasoning for applying to Vanderbilt early is that if I apply early, I have the best possible chance of getting into a T20 school, but if I don't, then I have an average shot at best for any top school), which is better anyways. But if Vanderbilt is at least somewhat comparable to Cornell, then I might as well play the percentages and optimize my chances of getting into a half decent school. Besides, if I don't like it, I can either:
a. Maybe land a guaranteed transfer to Cornell
b. Transfer to UNC or UVA (schools I can't get into right now due to my state residence)
thanks for the help.
Could you.. be more specific on what you're asking?
For i-banking, the school you come from matters. If you don't go to a target, you almost have to have stellar grades, extracurriculars, high finance interest, some contacts, etc. in order to even get an interview. If you're committed to maintaining that type of focus throughout your undergrad yrs, then there's no reason why you shouldn't be successful during the job search at Vandy.
My guess is that the consulting firms recruit at many schools, given the regional nature of their structure. I would check with current students or the career office to see who typically comes. My sense is that for jobs in other industries location matters a lot (i.e. Southern schools tend to have more contacts in the oil industry over the Northeast). So beware of that component as well.
It's practical to say go to highest rated school, but Cornell and Vandy have different atmospheres. You may like being at one place over another. If you are confident that you will excel regardless of location, pick the place that will make you happiest. If you want to have the cushion of going to a target with all of its inherent advantages, then do that.
is more of a semi target due to location. thre are 1-2 stuents from vandy in my analyst class
if you have a good shot at cornell i dont see why you dont think you have a shot at uva/unc. they do take kids who arent from va or nc.
apply to (targets with good athletics and big time college feel) uva unc duke vandy usc cal ucla michigan georgetown wake forest boston college texas
best of luck.
Vandy, WF, BC are not target schools.
Hey guys quick update,
I decided that I'm not going to apply ED to Vanderbilt. I don't want to say that I'm a shoe-in for Cornell, because that is far from the case, but I do seriously think I have a decent chance, and it would kill me if I got accepted to Vandy ED and Cornell RD, since I would have to go to Vandy. This would especially hurt because it would only further demonstrate my lack of confidence, which is not good for the business world.
My question is though, let's say that worst comes to worst and I get rejected by all of the top schools I'm applying to (Vandy, UVA, Hopkins, Cornell), and will be forced to go to either Texas or UW. I'm pretty sure that I will be able to transfer into at least UNC (even though I didn't apply there) as they don't consider state residence for transfer admission. Would UNC be good in terms of recruiting, or would I basically have to go to Cornell out of all of these?
Would you really 'have to' go to Vandy...
I was reading an article online about highschool counselors at top private highschools...and a story about a girl accepted somewhere on binding early decision that went somewhere else...(something like did Early Decision to Princeton but then got into Yale--- those examples are not real, don't hold me to whether those schools even have ED or the like)...
So... apply to both, and go with the best choice. Same goes for MBA or JD when you approach those in about 8-12 years.
Best of luck.
By Texas, I assume u mean UT-Austin. Arent they a target? more of a target than vandy perhaps? anyone?
All the major BBs and boutiques (Blackstone, Greenhill, etc) recruit at Texas fafa, both for Houston and New York IBD analyst positions. So yes, they are a target.
i think you're making a good decision
and fyi i have heard that uva does not consider state residence for transfer admission either
Dude, go to college and have a good time. Get good grades and the job will come. I wasn't thinking about half the crap on your mind when i was in school...and i work in BB. Just pick a school you think you like and chill. IF you want to be a banker or consultant bad enough, you'll be one.
Texas is a great school and opens a great network across the country in various professions
I am currently a Vanderbilt junior econ major, finance minor (no finance major here) applying to i-banking internships for this summer. Vanderbilt is a target school although not as much as the ivy leagues obviously. One of the problems I have had with landing interviews here is my low gpa (which was mainly because i was premed freshman year and screwed around too much that year) We do get recruiters from GS, Merrill, Wachovia, BofA, Bain, Morgan Stanley, as well as other regional banks. Last semester a team from Wachovia including an MD and a VP took a small group of us out for a Titans game here in Nashville.
I have no idea what cornell is like but I think I can safely assume you will have a better social life here. Everybody is work hard play hard. It is said that Vanderbilt does not inflate grades like other ivies which makes it harder for us. (we have the lowest avg GPA out of comparable schools - ivies, duke, emory, etc) I have been interning for Wachovia for wealth management since the summer and got declined for an interview for Wachovia I-banking, most likely because my overall GPA was a 3.08 (my maj is 3.28, my min is 3.7). From what I have read, UVA seems to get more recruiters than Vanderbilt. (UVA was my #1, I went ED but didn't get in) But transferring sucks, it will be much harder to make friends as a transfer.
To summarize, yes we get big names here. If you work hard, you can surely get a job at a big firm. I enjoy the people here because I am surrounded by smart people who like to have a good time. I am from texas and declined UT because I felt that I would party too much as it is too easy to get carried away over there. If you can't get into UVA, definitely pick Vandy, you won't be disappointed.
sorry this is sloppy, im caffienated out and wired here in the library. hope this helps.
Bumping this thread so I don't have to create a new one.
I'm interested in middle market banking or strategy consulting (outside of M/B/B) in either Dallas, Charlotte, or Atlanta. I've heard Vandy is core for those "southern" cities. Can anyone confirm this?
All of the southern schools -- Emory (Wells is a large recruiter + good representation on Wall Street), Vandy, UVA, Duke (probably the most opportunities), Wake, UNC, UT (from what I have heard, UT as an undergraduate is great for IB).
.
Vandy was the time of my life. I wouldn't have traded that experience to have every bank across the globe recruit.
If you're smart, hard working, and have a decent personality, you will get recruited. It's as simple as that.
One of the good things at Vandy, unlike the HYPs, is that not everyone has a Type-A mindset and wants to go into bakning. Only a handful of people really wanted to go to finance, versus half the school (which is what you would see in the Northeast). So competition is thin.
Is Vanderbilt a good school for consulting? (Originally Posted: 10/22/2012)
I know vanderbilt isn't really that much of a target for IB, but how is it for consulting?
I go to Vanderbilt. Some of the information you find on WallStreetOasis and CollegeConfidential is outdated; McKinsey, Bain, and BCG are all coming on campus this year (as well as smaller boutiques). Bain probably takes the most interns/analysts of the big three. I think the one limitation of going to Vanderbilt versus, say, Penn or Dartmouth, though, is that recruiting is definitely centered around Southern Offices, i.e. Dallas/Houston/Atlanta/Miami. Also, I don't have much personal experience with this, but I think Vanderbilt has gotten significantly better with banking recruiting in recent years; we were the number one school in terms of summer interns at BAML this year (followed by Penn and Dartmouth, I believe), and I know kids in our student investment fund also interned at Barclays and Goldman. Feel free to PM if you have more specific questions.
Additional trivia: Bain and BCG were both founded by Vanderbilt alums, interestingly; look up Bruce Henderson and Bill Bain. Bain actually serves on Vanderbilt's Board of Trustees.
^ thanks for the info. pm'd
Vanderbilt recruiting (esp for banks) is pretty good. As mentioned, it might be focused on Southern offices, but it's not unheard of. Reach out to alums who work at firms you're interested in. They can help you and guide you, even if there is no official Vanderbilt recruiting team.
^^Yes, BCG only comes to campus on some years. I believe they only took one full-time analyst this past year from Vanderbilt, in their Boston office.
No, Vanderbilt is not a "good" school for consulting. Almost no consulting firm considers them a target and you will be stuck in the Human Capital Arm of Deloitte unless you are an absolute standout candidate at Vandy. I would aim for UVA instead if you are serious about getting a strategy consulting job,. Bain, BCG, OW, and McKinsey all hire a lot of UVA kids. The same goes for Michigan.
Sometimes the less selective school actually offers you better opportunities. That is definitely true in the case of UVA and Michigan vs. Vandy.
Strong vandy hate from a dukie. jk I know Vanderbilt is a target for Deloitte and Bain. Bain is the only one of MBB that does OCR I believe every year, and BCG comes in good years.
good point on uva and michigan, always wondered why those public schools got so much ocr. but it's only their bschool, and getting into mcintire or ross is not a shoe-in by any means.
Sorry if I came off as harsh but I don't see any point to sugar-coating responses on a site meant to give honest responses to users. If you're smart enough to get into Vandy, you're probably good enough to get into a school that's targeted by a lot more consulting firms.
does anyone know how vandy's recruiting for ib compare to their consulting?
Vanderbilt good for IB? (Originally Posted: 05/26/2012)
Hi all,
I am a freshman at Vanderbilt and am currently gathering information about IBs. I have some questions: is Vanderbilt considered a target school or a semi-target school? Is it good for IB? What GPA do I need (currently 3.91)?
Thank you!
Vandy is one of the top two academic powerhouses in the South and boasts the same prestige as UVA, Georgetown or NYU in those finance boutiques' eyes.
Brother you are in good shape-- Vanderbilt is at least a semi target and I think some people might say that it is a target. Keep the GPA up and network!
You'll be fine.
You'll be fine.
Harvard is the Vanderbilt of the North.
Thanks guys. I just read some comments on this forum that Vanderbilt is not good for IB. If so I would probably consider going to law school after I graduate
PM me for more specific details
I have a friend that graduated from Vandy then went to an elite boutique. He also worked for the White House, but his network is from Vandy. Network hard and keep the GPA stellar. Best of luck!
There aren't a ton of Vanderbilt grads in banking, but there are a few. The ones I have worked with have been really good. Most were engineers, so I would probably recommend you go that route.
Vandy attracts a lot of the Southern banks, notably Stephens, Harris Williams, SunTrust Robinson Humphrey and Avondale Partners. I also know that some of their guys can get into remote offices of BBs in either Chicago or California.
It's a target for BAML, Wells, Barclays, SunT, Harris Williams, Stephens and a few other small banks. It's a semi-target for everything else, dependent on the economy (i.e. GS and JPM will come on campus in good years). If you keep up the GPA and network, you'll have a very good chance of landing at a BB. The key is networking, since Vandy has a very strong and supportive alumni base.
I go to Vanderbilt and am interning at a BB this summer; amongst my friends, I know people interning in NYC offices for Goldman, BAML, DB, and Barclays. I would say that even if some BB's (i.e. Barclays) don't actively recruit on-campus, the friends I know working there as SA's this summer suggested that the school reputation seemed to be looked on very favorably during the interview process (even if they had to fly to NYC to interview for the positions). BAML is definitely your strongest chance; they mentioned during an info session that Vanderbilt is one of their three core schools (along with Penn and Dartmouth).
Long story short, network hard, ask advice from upperclassmen, and you'll be more than fine.
@twp392: Thank you so much! Just curious: is it realistic to get an SA position in one of the BB or top boutiques in the summer of my sophomore year? When did the recruiters come on campus last year?
@THE PsYcHoLoGy, re-ib-ny, NestoGrande, ginNtonic: Thank you guys so much!
I'm a senior at Cornell who had got a boutique SA position last summer and now has a FT offer from a top 10 firm. I can tell you that recruiting is top notch here and that BB's definitely take a lot of kids from our school.
Cornell is also a lot of fun when you're not working your ass off.
i met maybe the weirdest kid ever from cornell
I banged maybe the hottest little 20 year old from cornell.
Why is BC not considered a Target?
In short, yes, as a Vandy grad you would definitely be a viable candidate; you just have to do well and demonstrate a profound interest in finance.
Having said that, it is always wiser to choose a school that is more of a target (assuming both of the schools in question are of equal value to you).
Post recession Vandy is only a target for southern banks like suntrust and stephens. If you're in it to party hard core though its not a bad deal
This is not true. Several BBs target Vandy and recruit on-campus. So do some top MMs. I have heard that there was more before the recession though, so that part may be true. If you wanna party hard, it's an awesome deal.
I know this is an old thread, but I don't want that bad info out there.
I agree with bizou according to my contacts. I became friends with a couple of Vandy guys through one of my final rounds. From their perspective, if you are a stand out student, you will have a shot everywhere through alumni connections, although not many top IBs recruit there. They used to be a country wide target, pre recession, and could now be considered more of a regional southern target.
With regard to partying, Vandy is definitely known to carry the work hard, party hard mentality which makes for a well-rounded college experience.
In summary, great academic institution, but so much for IB.
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