Hey guys, I'm a high school senior trying to decide between these two colleges. My post-college goals are finance-oriented. I have to make my decision by the end of the month. I haven't had the chance to visit either.
| +44 | Wharton Huntsman Program vs Yale vs Dartmouth | 53 | 18m | |
| +33 | Umich Ross vs Rice vs Notre Dame Mendoza | 17 | 2d | |
| +29 | LSE BSc Economics vs Cambridge BA Economics | 9 | 11h | |
| St Andrews vs LSE vs Middlebury | 19 | 1d | ||
| +26 | Succeeding at Penn CAS? | 8 | 10h | |
| +26 | Target School Kids Stop Complaining | 6 | 2d | |
| +25 | LSE MSc Finance vs Oxford MFE? | 8 | 7h | |
| +23 | Washu a target school now. | 46 | 23m | |
| +23 | Imperial College Finance Masters' | 5 | 3d | |
| +14 | Engineering vs Business degree? | 7 | 2d |
Career Resources
Get instant access to lessons taught by experienced private equity pros and bulge bracket investment bankers including financial statement modeling, DCF, M&A, LBO, Comps and Excel Modeling.
Seeing the title I was going to say for sure UVA. But it seems like you've done a pretty great analysis yourself. I just did a quick LinkedIn search for WUSTL alumni at all of the EBs. They're pretty well represented in that they have an analyst or associate at all of them, but it seems like they send maybe 1-2 a year to each, and then a bunch to Guggenheim which is an up and coming EB. Didn't search for BBs since way too many people are in BO/MO, but it's probably pretty good.
Not sure what the business/finance majors at both schools entail, but at least at my school it required a lot fewer credits than most things in STEM for example, and had a lot of open elective requirements. Assuming that's the case, either or, I'd probably try and narrow down your choice of IB or tech by the start of your second year. Be a CS major at both schools for the first year, get a decent internship for your summer (way easier to get freshman internships in tech than banking), and if you like it, stay, if not, switch permanently to finance and use your CS classes as elective credits. Most of what you'd have taken your freshman year would have been gen eds anyways that you'd have to take regardless. Don't double major because GPA matters a lot for IB and tech.
But banks recruit sophomore spring to end of summer, so you need to be sure you want to do IB by then. But back to your school choice. Normally I'd say UVA for sure, but in your case I think you'd be fine either way. UVA would probably be more fun, better placement, but way more people competing. WUSTL would probably be a nicer overall experience due to it being smaller and more close knit. There would be fewer options for recruiting, but less people going for the jobs. Also you'd have to network way more as I doubt very many banks come to campus to visit.
You seem to have thought a lot about this so just choose whichever one you think is better.
Caveat: I'm going to display a lot of personal bias based on what I'd want in a college, but some thoughts below:
I had these two schools in the mix back when I was in your shoes. I ended up choosing my state flagship (not UVA) due to cost, but would have gone to UVA if I cost were not a factor.
In my opinion UVA offers one of the best all around college experiences in the entire country. Large school in a college town that really revolves around the University, which means it will be a super fun 4 years with all the parties, girls, activities, etc. you could possibly want. Championship-caliber basketball team and at least some fun football traditions. Great business school program where you can learn the fundamentals if you know that's what you're interested in. Prestigious enough that all the major banks, consulting firms, and big tech companies will recruit there and for the rest of your career it'll be a strong brand for you to have. Better weather than most highly ranked schools. There's certainly a lot to like. At my current firm I know ~30 or so UVA alumni and without fail they all really enjoyed their college experience.
WUSTL is a fantastic school as well and you certainly can accomplish anything/everything from there, I just think UVA offers a better overall package. You really cannot make a wrong choice here though.
.
For what it's worth, I don't think WashU is more prestigious than UVA in any material sense. Especially on the East Coast, a good portion of people will probably think you went to school in Washington state at first glance. In the world of Finance the UVA name carries at least equal weight and credibility as WashU despite any difference in rankings on US News.
Congrats on the two excellent opportunities, OP. Your did good research and I echo the comments upstairs. UVA alum seem happier than the WashU alum. Education quality is high and career development support is strong: UVA gets my vote.
current uva student going through recruiting...I definitely echo everything above
.
You write that you may be go overboard partying at uva. Go to where you feel you will be successful academically. As much as you read on this site about going to a "target" school. It does not guarantee success. As someone with many friends at UVA just going there does not guarantee a top "job" . You will still need to work hard academically and have a little bit of luck.
Another vote for UVA here - one of the few schools that gives you everything you'd want in a college experience (great academics, sports, social scene) + better weather than the Midwest. I don't think recruiting will vary much between ths schools as long as you maintain a 3.5/3.6+. I wouldn't worry about the out of state factor at UVA, it's a big enough school that you'll find your place.
As someone who didn't get into UVA and did get into WashU, I'd have picked UVA any day had I gotten in. McIntire is a true target and WashU is not really known for business.
Possimus alias eos repellendus cum incidunt cupiditate. Asperiores rerum voluptas rerum cumque cupiditate. Quia qui quia ipsam libero dicta quo est. Voluptatibus vel omnis ipsam consequatur perferendis qui consequatur.
Excepturi odit expedita voluptatum facilis. Accusantium et natus ut et ratione necessitatibus quo. Molestias dolores est deserunt dignissimos aliquam hic sint. Laudantium saepe labore placeat sit deleniti voluptate consectetur.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...