NYC Semi-Targets

I am currently at a non-target, majoring in Finance and would like to transfer at some point in the next year or so. I don't really want to leave the Long Island or NYC area because I don't really want to be more than a train ride away from home with my father's current health. Plus, NYC has a ton of excellent networking opportunities. I've realized that most of the true targets in NYC, like NYU and Columbia are a bit of a stretch for me, with a 3.5 GPA and limited EC's (although that is about to change.) More importantly, from the transfer forms I was looking at, most targets still look at SAT scores, even for transfer students and my 1100/1600 isn't really going to impress anyone.

I think I have a pretty good shot of getting into Fordham, Hofstra and Baruch. Are there any other semi-targets in the NYC metropolitan area that I should be applying to?

 

I agree with Smitty. If you can pass yourself off as weird try for Gallatin. Just take relevant classes and don't get caught up in the weirdness. Otherwise do Fordham... Regardless, make the most of it. NETWORK NETWORK NETWORK and get some experience on your resume. That trumps most.

"I'm tapped out Marv. American Express has got a hit man lookin' for me." - Bud Fox
 

Haha, I never heard of NYU Gallatin. I just googled it and they all look like artsy hippie liberals. Would they even let me major in Finance at NYU Gallatin?

Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. -Niccolo Machiavelli
 

A handful of kids make it in every year from Stoneybrook, UConn, Penn State, and Rutgers. I'd pick those over the city schools outside NYU and Columbia. However, state school admissions are largely based on standardized test scores and you may not make the cut with those.

I would steer away from Fordham unless you come from money. It is a great Catholic school, but you have a serious risk of graduating $100K in debt with a $50K/year job. That's no way to start a career.

 
IlliniProgrammer:
A handful of kids make it in every year from Stoneybrook, UConn, Penn State, and Rutgers. I'd pick those over the city schools outside NYU and Columbia. However, state school admissions are largely based on standardized test scores and you may not make the cut with those.

I would steer away from Fordham unless you come from money. It is a great Catholic school, but you have a serious risk of graduating $100K in debt with a $50K/year job. That's no way to start a career.

RU is becoming very good at placing ugrads, but their MBA is weak. Stoneybrook is up to you to make it: they are well regarded, but you have to set yourself apart from the crowd.
mike55555:
Haha, I never heard of NYU Gallatin. I just googled it and they all look like artsy hippie liberals. Would they even let me major in Finance at NYU Gallatin?
.....well, if you design a finance curriculum with sick courses, you could easily make the case that you are perfect for banks. Shit, I wish I'd heard of that place when I was picking out colleges. Individualism doesn't mean liberal.....only in right wing thinking does one draw such a conclusion.
Get busy living
 

Thanks for the replies guys. I will definitely look into Rutgers and NYU Gallatin.

IlliniProgrammer:
A handful of kids make it in every year from Stoneybrook, UConn, Penn State, and Rutgers. I'd pick those over the city schools outside NYU and Columbia. However, state school admissions are largely based on standardized test scores and you may not make the cut with those.

I would steer away from Fordham unless you come from money. It is a great Catholic school, but you have a serious risk of graduating $100K in debt with a $50K/year job. That's no way to start a career.

I will definitely take a closer look at Stony Brook, they are less than 15 minutes away from my house. I was just under the impression, that unless you want to do something science related, there are better options.

As far as Fordham goes, I was thinking I should qualify for a decent amount of financial aid, because my immediate family is going through some financial hardship.

laudrup10:
why don't u just retake the sats? if you can't break 1300 with some decent studying then i don't think you're cut out for FO.

There are more important things in life than standardized test scores.

Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. -Niccolo Machiavelli
 

I go to Rutgers and you will get eaten for lunch at the finance club (through which most people get FO jobs) unless you are a star. A 3.5 won't cut it so if you're going to transfer to RU, you're probably going to have to break in on your own.

 
laudrup10:
I go to Rutgers and you will get eaten for lunch at the finance club (through which most people get FO jobs) unless you are a star. A 3.5 won't cut it so if you're going to transfer to RU, you're probably going to have to break in on your own.

A 3.5 won't get you into Rutgers? Is that a joke? It's a good school but it's not That good bud. (I went to somewhere comparable so that isn't meant to be condescending, just realistic).

 
LuckySS:
laudrup10:
I go to Rutgers and you will get eaten for lunch at the finance club (through which most people get FO jobs) unless you are a star. A 3.5 won't cut it so if you're going to transfer to RU, you're probably going to have to break in on your own.

A 3.5 won't get you into Rutgers? Is that a joke? It's a good school but it's not That good bud. (I went to somewhere comparable so that isn't meant to be condescending, just realistic).

Just be mindful that the business school is more competetive with GPA requirements than the general campus.
Get busy living
 

I'm talking about getting a job through the finance club, not getting into the school. Was my language really that confusing?

And OP, who would ever want to hire somebody who isn't willing to study for a month so that they'll have a much better shot at getting into a good school?

 
laudrup10:
I'm talking about getting a job through the finance club, not getting into the school. Was my language really that confusing?

And OP, who would ever want to hire somebody who isn't willing to study for a month so that they'll have a much better shot at getting into a good school?

I already studied over a month. 1100/1600 is the best it's gonna get and seriously don't tell me I'm not going amount to anything, because of the results of a standardized test. I'm a slow reader, shoot me.
Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. -Niccolo Machiavelli
 
laudrup10:
Sorry, I feel just a little douchey. If you do come to Rutgers, pm me and I'll try to help out.
Rutgers kids have a reputation of being scrappy, and fight for what they want. More than a few RU guys went through the military or roughed it up at bars for years before going into finance. You'll be just fine, so don't beat yourself up.

As for the 1100.......this isn't Princeton, don't worry about it, you did your best. I know people that barely got to 1000/1600 and made BB FO. There's a lot of reasons to hire someone.......

Get busy living
 

I'm surprised there's not more SAT score elitism on this forum. I heard a few years ago that one of the bulge bracket investment banks was throwing out all resumes with an SAT score below 1400.

Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. -Niccolo Machiavelli
 
IlliniProgrammer:
Hmmm, I got decent score on the exams, but frankly, it doesn't tell you anything about what kind of employee you're hiring. Smart people get 1100s all the time, but being smart doesn't mean you're good for the job, either.

Agreed. The reasoning behind it was that they had so many applicants that they were looking for ways to take people off the list, regardless of how qualified they were. Hopefully they don't do that when I apply. lol. Although, I'm not sure if I'm cut out for the IBD anyway.

I'd like to work for a value driven hedge fund, but in all honesty, that's an unlikely scenario at this stage of the game. I think it's more likely for me to strike gold in my personal portfolio by purchasing LEAPS on irrationally priced assets and having enough capital to start my own hedge fund, which is ultimately my end goal. As far as the most efficient way to get to that end goal, that's what I'm going to be spending the next 10-15 years trying to figure out.

Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. -Niccolo Machiavelli
 

Getting a little tired of Rutgers people acting like they go to HYP. I am assuming you are a resident of NY? If so, surely don't pay out-of-state tuition at Rutgers. Stony Brook is a great school for the money. Agree with most of the others. Try for NYU, use Fordham and Stony as backups, maybe Pace.

When you are great, people will often mistake candor for arrogance.
 
laudrup10:
Nothing of the sort was said about Rutgers, learn to read.
Agreed. I and a girl from high school both chose Rutgers over Princeton for a number of reasons.

Just so you know.

Get busy living
 

" I go to Rutgers and you will get eaten for lunch at the finance club". This is what I was referring to. We just ended a couple day debate on why Rutgers was not a target and I really don't want to have another. Sorry I even brought it up.

When you are great, people will often mistake candor for arrogance.
 
consulting_rookie:
" I go to Rutgers and you will get eaten for lunch at the finance club". This is what I was referring to. We just ended a couple day debate on why Rutgers was not a target and I really don't want to have another. Sorry I even brought it up.
Good call. It's best not to go back there.

If a person goes to a top 100 school, is smart, and is hardworking, they can get in if they REALLY want. The ivies make it easier. That is all.

Get busy living
 

I wasn't implying that Rutgers is a target. Target means on-campus recruiting. But here's why he wouldn't have a good shot getting into FO from the finance club and why I said he would have to break in on his own. We only refer the top 5 or so kids in each class to our alumni contacts. They usually get FO internships leading to jobs. Since most of the 22-40 year old alums came through the finance club, we are their first point of contact for Rutgers kids. Our recommendations will usually get priority over other kids. These kids are probably much better candidates than the OP and he likely won't get referred. Those who get a FO job through other means are usually studs who thought they could do it on their own and he would be competing with them as well. Thus, my statement is not far-fetched by any means.

But also note this implies that if you are target material and driven, then you probably have at least a 75% chance of getting a decent FO job at Rutgers. So it's a good choice if you wanna do finance!

 
laudrup10:
I wasn't implying that Rutgers is a target. Target means on-campus recruiting. But here's why he wouldn't have a good shot getting into FO from the finance club and why I said he would have to break in on his own. We only refer the top 5 or so kids in each class to our alumni contacts. They usually get FO internships leading to jobs. Since most of the 22-40 year old alums came through the finance club, we are their first point of contact for Rutgers kids. Our recommendations will usually get priority over other kids. These kids are probably much better candidates than the OP and he likely won't get referred. Those who get a FO job through other means are usually studs who thought they could do it on their own and he would be competing with them as well. Thus, my statement is not far-fetched by any means.

But also note this implies that if you are target material and driven, then you probably have at least a 75% chance of getting a decent FO job at Rutgers. So it's a good choice if you wanna do finance!

Do RU a favor, and stop promoting them. I spent some time there, and they don't want competition. Stay off the radar on these types of debates, they only hurt you.
Get busy living
 
International Pymp:
1100?

I'm sorry for disappointing you, but I'm pretty good at stealing the best ideas from the smartest people, if that makes up for anything.

Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. -Niccolo Machiavelli
 
Best Response

PM me if you have questions about Fordham. You can totally get FO roles from the school with a little networking. I had interviews at BoA, MS, even Google, so its def possible to land something (I got to superdays but couldn't convert to an offer). My roommate is going to IBD at a BB next year and I know plenty of other kids that broke into trading.

looking for that pick-me-up to power through an all-nighter?
 
laudrup10:
It certainly does if you're fast enough.

Why should I let the federal government fuck me on taxes? I try to never let those fuckers get more than 15%.

Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. -Niccolo Machiavelli
 

It's not necessarily about being driven and smart. I'd put more emphasis on people skills; things like who you're friends with, who you play golf with and who you're related to make a big difference. Most of the stuff in finance really isn't that hard to learn.

Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions. -Niccolo Machiavelli
 
mike55555:
It's not necessarily about being driven and smart. I'd put more emphasis on people skills; things like who you're friends with, who you play golf with and who you're related to make a big difference. Most of the stuff in finance really isn't that hard to learn.
^ true, but that's typically not the case at Rutgers, and especially if it is: why would someone come to the student group for help with recruiting? Why would a bunch of ballbusters that don't have that kind of edge help a slacker who is connected? Remember, it's a private group formed to overcome the deficiencies of the career services office, and is based on merit, good will, and well....shit, do they like you?

Most of the kids getting FO out of Rutgers are a combination of rocket scientist, party animal, and bloodthirsty viking, and typically know what financial hardship is....they fucking WANT IT. So, if there's an exception, so be it, but I wouldn't bank on it. That's the only point I'm making......

Get busy living
 
mike55555:
It's not necessarily about being driven and smart. I'd put more emphasis on people skills; things like who you're friends with, who you play golf with and who you're related to make a big difference. Most of the stuff in finance really isn't that hard to learn.
Well, it depends. If you're a quant, a programmer, risk manager, or you're a trader, perhaps even a research guy, results and specialty trump everything else. Do you really want to depend on people skills to get a job? My view is that everyone has a god-given intrinsic talent or ability that allows them to produce something of unique fundamental value regardless of whatever other folks think. That's what you should be aiming for. Especially when you're a non-target kinda guy. I got hired in for my intrinsic skills when it came to algorithms, math, and joining that with finance- in spite of extrinsic reasons- same with most non-target guys.

It's a lot easier to sleep at night- and you wind up feeling a whole lot more powerful and being a whole lot more powerful if the reason you have a job is intrinsic rather than extrinsic. Find what it is you're good at and play it for all it's worth- and don't forget to smile and be nice.

 

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