MBB From a Non-Target Undergrad?

I am a freshman at the University of Miami Business School and I'm studing finance as an undergrad and honor student. I wanted to know how much the prestige of my school affects my chances of landing a job at MBB after graduation. Is Umiami at all respected as a business school in these fields? I don't know if it makes a difference that there is a McKinsey branch in Miami; I would think that this would make networking easier.


Basically, is it delusional to hope to get a job at MBB with a degree from this university?


I've also considered trying to get a position in consulting at one of the Big 4, I heard it isnt quite as competative so this might be a more realistic goal.

 

It’s always possible. I knew people who worked at rbs in 2008 before the bank quit the US. It took analysts from penn and Yale and second tier schools like duke. But guess what? The analyst class had kids from Miami of Ohio and trinity college and other crappy schools.

Nothing is impossible, you just gotta try to contact someone in the bank through common ground.

Look for school alum, family friends or even someone with roots in your home state.

 
Most Helpful

While these “network, network, network” and “nothing is impossible” posts aren’t incorrect, MBB is very pedigree driven, so if you are not a target for those programs it will be an uphill battle. Not an unwinnable one, but definitely not an easy one either. Networking also doesn’t play the same role in consulting as it does in banking. In banking, networking is a critical role in the process and sending cold emails to connect with people is common. Banking also is more open to non target backgrounds than MBB from what I understand, in part due to the role networking plays. By contrast, in consulting you see more kids get offers who networked minimally or not at all, but went to target schools. 
 

However, having MBB offices in the city where you go to school is actually really helpful because it makes it easy for those firms to recruit at those schools. I know that UT Dallas is actually a target for at least some of MBB just by virtue of being in Dallas (UTD wouldn’t be considered a target normally). No clue whether this is the case for UMiami, but searching through LinkedIn should give you an idea.  
 

big 4 will definitely be more attainable as it is geographically diverse and pulls from a wider set of target schools

 

It’s definitely possible. I go to UF and I got an MBB offer for FT this year.

It’s a lot more difficult to get the interview so you have to really stand out. Make sure you network like crazy too. You want them to know your name when screening time comes around.

From my knowledge, once you get the interview, it’s more or less up to your casing/personality.

It’s definitely doable, you just can’t afford to many slip ups. Good luck!

 

Definitely possible, but a regional emphasis is your friend. At my MBB we have a number of kids from prominent public universities in the area (think big 10), so it's very doable but I'd try to leverage any alumni/personal connections you may have

 

It is definitely possible, but it is going to be an uphill battle. You will probably have more success in transferring to a target school using your awesome grades from Freshman and sophomore year than to do the networking from a non-target. That said - there is more to life than just getting into a certain company post grad, so if you prioritize being at your current school for a host of other reasons, then it is all about getting stellar grades, getting a ridiculous amount of top tier leadership experience, and networking in like crazy.

Follow @crushingcases on Instagram for more consulting content, case study tips, and information on free case study resources!
 

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