To transfer or not?

Hey guys so this is my first post on the forum. I have been reading the forums on and off for the past year or so. I am kind of at a crossroad. I currently go to Appalachian State in NC pursuing a risk management and insurance degree as well as a finance and banking degree. I am looking to go into some type of IB or PWM. I cannot decide between the two. I am a sophomore. My question is should I try to transfer to Duke for next spring? Currently too late to get in for the fall. I know that Duke is a target school. Would that help my chances to break into IB or PWM? Or should I stay here and finish out and continue to network to break in? I do have connections in wealth management and some in IB through my father who is in wealth management. I also have connections that I found on my own. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

If your father is in PWM also, I don’t think either school would matter since you can always leverage his resources.

If you want to break into banking then Duke would surely be a better target than your current school. Breaking in from your current school will require more networking, relevant experiences and extracurriculars than going to Duke.

 

I wouldn't just consider IB/PMW. Your undergraduate name carries a lot of value. Are you interested in PE or a top MBA? Being at Duke, while not guaranteed, will certainly help if you choose to go down those paths in the future.

 

I would like PE but from what I understand those jobs are extremely hard to get straight out of undergrad. As far as the MBA goes, my plan was to try to get into a top-tier MBA straight out of undergrad. I have been reading through and seeing that getting an MBA is becoming less attractive vs breaking in and getting two years of experience instead.

 

IB > PE > MBA is the path you should be thinking about.

Top MBA straight out of undergrad is nearly impossible & not beneficial. You will be over-qualified for entry-level positions but under-qualified for post-MBA positions.

Getting to a MF (megafund) is difficult but possible. Going to Duke will open doors to top IB's thus increasing the chances of making to a MF. There are still other PE jobs out there, not just the MF's so keep that in mind.

 

If you want to do anything in high finance, transfer to Duke ASAP. Banking will be almost impossible from Appalachian State from my perspective.

With an over 70% acceptance rate, 23-27 ACT midrange, and 1100-1270 SAT midrange, Appalachian State is going to garner no respect and if I saw a resume from there I wouldn't even think twice about tossing it in the trash unless there was a near perfect GPA.

 

That is kind of a bummer, the problem is that if I transfer I will most likely be put back at least one semester because unfortunately Duke does not accept many transfer credits. Thanks for all the feedback, I am going to talk to a few connections I have in the IB business (mostly MDs) and see what their advice would be as well. But I am thinking the same thing, most likely gonna have to transfer.

 

Just looked at their website and the deadline was March 15th. Transferring would actually put me back at least one year because you have to have a minimum of 2 years there to earn a degree. I’m thinking it may just be better to try to network my way in vs losing a year. If I am going to lose a year I would rather just stay where I am and get an MBA from Duke or another target school. Plus double majoring has to at least count for a little something. If I can’t swing a BB bank I at least think I can get into a middle bulge bank with networking.

 

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