UVA Echols vs. Cornell for finance/banking placement?
I was accepted to Cornell Arts & Sciences as a freshman spring admit, but am taking my fall semester at UVA as an Echols Scholar (their honors program for Arts & Sciences). At UVA, I will have the chance to apply to the McIntire School of Commerce, which will no doubt give me a lot of opportunities and placement in the finance sector, but it isn't a sure shot, with only a 50% acceptance rate. Other pros for UVA include the fact that I'd be paying about $10,000 a semester less, as an in-state student, and the Echols program means I get priority registration for courses (and maybe some sort of intangible mark as an honors student might help me in McIntire admissions).
I plan to double-major in Economics and Computer Science, and the Echols program at UVA allows me to skip past general requirements, making the process easier (and hopefully giving me an edge in the finance sphere?), whereas at Cornell, I'd still have to fulfill all general requirements, making a double-major harder to complete. Is the ivy name at Cornell worth it/will it get me better placement as a student in the university's College of Arts & Sciences? I assume it would be a different story if I was in Cornell's AEM but I don't know about how its A&S placement would compare to UVA's McIntire (or even UVA A&S). Sorry if any of these questions sound stupid - I'm new to this sphere and don't have any family/friends that work in it that I could get advice from.
UVA placement is good; transferring can be tough socially etc. Not worth it IMO unless you actually like Cornell more.
Is UVA a better target than Cornell?
Cornell CAS econ at (PJT/EVR/CVP) here. You will have no problem placing from arts vs AEM, any difference in numbers is mostly self-selection, we send a bunch of kids to JPM, GS, Citi, Barclays, Laz and EVR every year with other banks sprinkled in depending on the year. The class load is a very real consideration though, you'll have to be disciplined to double in CS/econ (maybe consider CS minor, or just taking some classes). I was on a similar track until I decided I didn't want to finish the CS double. Everything worked out, but my GPA would be higher without those CS courses (not great to have a STEM gpa in a non stem major).
Problem I see with UVA is not getting into McIntire although I can't speak to the odds/importance of that; hopefully someone can give some more color. If the difference is akin to NYU CAS vs NYU Stern I think it makes sense to transfer.
It doesn't matter if you go McIntire vs CAS at UVA b/c recruiting is pretty much already done by the time McIntire program begins, and they both share the same OCR.
Thanks for your comment! 2 questions: what does OCR mean (lol) and given that fact that recruiting is pretty much done so early, what can I do to get myself out there other than joining pertinent clubs and taking related classes?
Placement is similar. Go based on where you’d enjoy most.
UVA easy choice esp with echols.
The fact that you got into the honors college and an Ivy League school shows that you probably have the work ethic and intelligence to get to the comm school.
Hmmm.. if you weren't an Echols scholar at UVA it would probably be easier to go with Cornell. Given you'll find similar placement at either school regardless, I would go with the cheaper option.
The UVA kids I've met on the street that were Echols weren't in McIntire half of the tim (YMMV). I get the feeling it probably doesn't even matter if you are one of their Jefferson/Echols scholars.
Regardless, there is no loss here; Cornell places insanely well across majors. Shouldn't be difficult getting IB interviews at all from either school.
Cornell CAS gets the same recruitment treatment from firms as the other "business" majors here (AEM, ILR, PAM, HA, ORIE) so don't worry about that. Though I'd say either university is good enough to get your foot in the door at BBs
Agree with all the other comments re: the schools have similar success rates and its a close call. First and foremost you should definitely not ignore your gut feel for the place. Your success is going to be all about how you actually perform, so if one place sits better with you for one reason or another, that should be a bigger factor than anything else.
If you can't decide based on that, my tie-breaker would be the fact that McIntire is a better finance/business education that can give you an edge in full-time recruiting (if needed) and performance after school.
My experience with analysts has been that the top undergrad b schools (Wharton, Stern, McIntire and I'm sure I'm forgetting a couple others) do tend to prepare the kids a bit better. With PE recruiting starting not long after you begin FT, you want every edge you can get.
Your odds of getting into McIntire are probably better than 50% . . maybe there's a way you can find out what % of Echols kids get in. Not because of a direct bonus for being Echols (I'm sure that's minor) but more that we're talking about a stronger set of applicants that's more reflective of your chances since that set is a closer match to your abilities.
Have you met any non-Mcintire analysts from UVA? Do you think people would be at a disadvantage long term if they don't graduate from Mcintire?
McIntire student here. yes to both. if people want to go into finance and theyre not in McIntire, usually they go econ/stats double. lots of recruiting for banks / pe firms are specifically towards McIntire. there is def an edge if you're in Comm School
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