UC Berkeley Vs UMich Vs Tufts

I'm trying to choose one of these three schools for undergraduate education, I hope to get into venture capital or Investment Banking in the future. I know tufts does not have an undergrad business program, so I'd probably double major in IR and Economics and get a minor in Entrepreneurial Leadership.

I got a 10k Scholarship to Michigan, Tufts and Berkeley are both 55k.

My admission to Ross at Mich and Haas at Berkeley are both not guaranteed and I'd need to apply into them after my freshman and sophmore years respectively.

 
Best Response

I am a current student at Michigan. I would say if you like a big school then you should focus on Michigan and Berkeley and pick whichever one you feel most comfortable with. Berkeley definitely has some positives (great weather), but I would never give up my experiences thus far at Michigan for anything. I am headed to watch the Final Four this weekend in Atlanta. Probably not something that you would experience at Berkeley and definitely not at Tufts.

With regards to banking, you should consider where you would be most interested in working full-time. If you are dead set on being in California after college and doing banking in SF or LA, you should probably go to Berkeley. Most of the banking jobs that you recruit for at Michigan would be for in Chicago and New York with a very small number in LA and SF. It would not be impossible from Michigan, just probably not as easy as from Berkeley.

Don't worry too much about getting into Ross. Even if you do not get in after freshman year, you can still break into banking. That's what happened to me. It takes a little extra work, but it is definitely possible. But you definitely would want to try to get into Ross.

 

I'd say to a large degree it depends on where you want to work in the future. If it's on the east coast, then Michigan makes sense. But if you want to be on the west coast or you're interested in the tech scene, Berkeley has a very strong advantage here.

And to what ibizzle said, there's very few people who go straight into VC from any school. But I definitely know several people who have done it from Berkeley, one of the advantages of working so close to Silicon Valley.

 

no it doesn't matter at all that jamie dimon went to tufts. it depends where you want to end up after college, but if you are indifferent then go to berkeley for vc/ib. both umich and cal send the same amount of kids to ib, but cal sends more kids to top ib groups, buyside (pe/vc), consulting and tech corp fin.

 
BankorBust:
no it doesn't matter at all that jamie dimon went to tufts. it depends where you want to end up after college, but if you are indifferent then go to berkeley for vc/ib. both umich and cal send the same amount of kids to ib, but cal sends more kids to top ib groups, buyside (pe/vc), consulting and tech corp fin.

Yeah, but I bet going to Michigan is a lot more fun. Berkeley is full of grinds.

 

I probably want to do IB if possible, but eventually get into VC. So tufts should be out of the equation? How hard is it to get into ross as a sophomore? Does haas get recruited from east coast banks?

 

If VC is on the post-banking agenda, then you should go to Berkeley (even non-Haas can get you there). This site has a really strong east-coast tilt, so they immediately say Michigan because it has such a larger presence than Berkeley in New York. HOWEVER, if you want to do VC (or Growth Equity), you need Tech banking experience and in this space, I've never even met a Michigan alum. Easily ~30-40% of all junior bankers in SF, where the Tech groups are, went to Berkeley (Yes, Boston has a smaller Tech banking scene too, but Michigan doesn't really have a presence there either). Michigan is an excellent school, but for your stated objectives it isn't the right choice.

“Millionaires don't use astrology, billionaires do”
 

Hmm, the problem I see with berkeley is that haas is exponentially harder than ross to get into. So by going to berkeley I'm risking more to get the same reward (A b school education ranked #3 in the country). Other than VC, does Berkeley have any benefits that michigan does not?

Also, how much does it matter that berkeley seems to have more prestige/name recognition outside of banking than mich does?

 

I was choosing between Berkeley and Michigan and I chose Berkeley. Honestly doesn't make much of a difference. They are both great schools. Personally I think Berkeley is just better for me. If you get rejected from Haas, then you just go for Econ, which is also ranked within top 10.

 

Molestias quia maxime tempore ad dolor incidunt. Aut atque repellat nam a.

In est saepe ex nam. Dicta tempore voluptas id. Distinctio placeat officiis facere est corrupti. Exercitationem quasi autem voluptatem enim.

Iusto ipsa aliquid incidunt ut nulla enim. In blanditiis esse qui. Non ex eum dolor cupiditate minus. Atque est magni voluptatibus exercitationem magni consequuntur. Aspernatur necessitatibus modi dolorem asperiores perspiciatis. Quae eos quae atque accusamus enim beatae. Esse dolorem libero quia enim at.

Career Advancement Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. New 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (14) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (205) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (145) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
9
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”