UVA vs. Villanova (VSB) Investment Banking
I am between these two schools for IB.
I am out of state for UVA so tuition is expensive.
I have a $15k a year merit scholarship at Villanova and I am in the honors program.
I feel slightly more comfortable at Villanova but I feel comfortable at UVA too though I am worried being out of state.
I was admitted to Notre Dame Mendoza too but when I visited I just didn't feel it was the school for me.
Also, I was waitlisted at Penn. If I get off of the waitlist then I will go to Wharton no questions asked.
However, at this point my question is, how much better is UVA (Mcintire) than Villanova (VSB)?
Both great schools, congrats. Yes, UVA has somewhat better recruiting prospects and more alumni in IB, however if you excel at Villanova, no IB options would be off the table for you. Certainly, there are Villanova alumni at every bank you would be interested in working at. Also important to note, you will most likely have the best experience, have the highest GPA, and get involved in the most EC's at the university where you feel most at home.
Good luck with the decision.
obvious Nova alum here.
UVA is going to place better on the street. Nova isn’t a horrible option though, especially being in the honors program.
ND is the best of the three because of the cult behavior of alumnus. Campus is love or hate though (id personally never go).
Ask UVA to try and match the scholarship. Might be able to squeeze money. Everything is negotiable.
Ya I was definitely on the “hate it” side of the Notre Dame. I'm not confident UVA will match the scholarship as they don't seem to give merit scholarships to out of state students.
UVA >> Villa
but honestly top kids in uva make it to banking so if you feel like you cant be top go to villa and network
How do I know if I’ll be a top kid though? I go to a decent public high school with a class of 400 kids. I was valedictorian and have a 1500 SAT. I also started a few clubs and a program that feeds food insecure kids over the weekend in my community. However, after being waitlisted at Penn I was awoke to the fact that in reality my high school is small and there are a lot of people out there who are smarter than me.
Those are pretty impressive stats. I'm surprised you didn't get into Penn directly. UVA sends a lot of kids to IB every year and is a target school. Villanova is known on this forum as a semi-target, but still sends kids to IB every year, just not as many as UVA does.
If you can afford it (and I mean if) go to UVA and take advantage of your talent and the better opportunities afforded you. When you get there, haul ass and don’t waste the opportunity.
Quick two cents: I wouldn't overlook Villanova here. IBD placement out of VSB has been steadily growing over the past few recruiting cycles - GS added Villanova as a core target this year and nearly every bank now makes visits to campus. VSB's M&A Society is undergoing a major overhaul as it attempts to create a Sophomore IBD Workshop that aligns with (and improves upon) IBD programs such as Indiana's.
It ultimately comes down to the campus feel you prefer since the two schools have vastly different cultures: would you prefer the smaller feel of an Augustinian university that emphasizes community or a top state school with a major Greek scene? Also remember that only one of them seems to know how to win basketball games in March...
Not trying to sway you over the people providing well-informed advice to take UVA, but with the scholarship and honors program, I highly recommend that you deeply consider Villanova.
what does "core school" even mean? for like BO roles? linkedin doesn't show many villanova alum in IB at GS
Villanova now has a member of HR directly tasked with dealing with Villanova students applying to GS (as opposed to having nobody within HR "looking out" for a non-core school's applications). I believe GS has around 20 of these schools, so it was a major step forward for Villanova to reach that level. VSB has typically been a feeder for the Big Four, but it's making major strides toward attaining much better prospects for IBD recruiting.
so they're for BO roles
It's for all roles. There have been a bunch of FO placements at GS from Villanova over the past few years and this number has continued to increase.
I'm not attempting to prove that Villanova places better than UVA or some other traditional target. I'm just pointing out that with proper networking, OP can break into anywhere from Villanova and he should definitely consider it with his scholarship money and access to the honors program.
I mean I see like 2 people in the past 3ish years that have gone to IB at goldman.
A senior MD at GS in fixed income is a Nova alum. He’s on the board.
Fixed income and equity society all place on the street.
UVA is better, but as with most everything on this site, you have idiots giving advice.
Nova is 1.5 hours from NYC and 15 minutes by train from Philly. Plenty of opportunities to intern, both in Philly and the main line and go to NYC to be network. The school is well ranked, everyone knows it from two NCAA championships in three years and the business school places very well. MM banks recruit for IB and BB firms pull kids through the two mentioned groups, networking, frats and professor recs.
Not to mention the transformative expansion that is occurring across from Lancaster.
But alas, the virgin army that is WSO knows everything, while having experienced nothing, and has opined on the “correct” choice.
I was worried this thread would become hostile. I know that whether or not Nova is a target is debatable and I’ve seen other threads involving the same conversation getting hostile. I know that networking is a huge part of investment banking. I do have a close family friend that is a MD at Barclays. I have been in frequent contact with him. He said similar things such as that UVA is represented more on the street but Nova is recruited at as well and it is more important to feel comfortable.
I honestly have a closer relationship with Vanderbilt, John Hopkins, Georgetown than either of the schools I went to. I’ve been out of both UG and Masters so long I don’t give a fuck.
It’s simply sad that someone asks for advice and you have people who have zero first hand experience opining as if shit is fact.
I know the adcoms at UVA very well. Top school and absolutely a target. But Villanova does extremely well for dynamics that can’t be shown in a ranking.
Okay, thank you. It's going to be a tough choice for sure.
Go where you want to go. If you put in work you will be successful. Enjoy college
So what was the final decision?
I decided on UVA
UVA or Villanova? (Originally Posted: 04/05/2013)
I am choosing between these two schools for Undergrad and am having a pretty difficult time. UVA obviously has a better reputation but Villanova has offered me 17k a year to go there. So while UVa might make getting a job easier, it will force me to take out considerably more in loans.
Is it really worth the money to attend UVA or will I be able to achieve the same level of success at Villanova and perhaps put that money to better use?
What is the difference in cost between the two? I'd tell UVA about the scholly offer and try and get some money out of them.
Nova places kids in FO positions at BBs and MMs. IB and ST jobs go to the top 5-10% of business students, so if you work hard you can definitely do it.
I wouldn't turn down 80k for that narrow marginal benefit. Villanova is a great school, and I'd go there.
Go to Google and type these in to find alumni:
"Greenhill Villanova Linkedin" "Morgan Stanley Villanova Linkedin" etc.
I will be at Villanova's MSF program starting in June. I really liked it and chose it over several other top programs. For your own sake, do not let money influence your decision. Scholarships are nice, but you should make placement and likability of the school your number one and two criteria.
Good luck!
McIntire undergrad bschool is supposedly one of the best in the nation. I hear UVA is ridiculously fun as well.
UVA all the way, ever thought about calling them up for more tuition?
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