Undergrad Programs Stern vs Columbia

I'm a senior in high school trying to decide between Stern and Columbia, purely for the prospect of ib recruitment. I realize that similar posts such as this have been made but they seem to be either pretty outdated or contradictory of one another. A couple of my concerns are that

  1. Is there significant grade inflation/deflation at either of these schools?

  2. Does it matter that Columbia doesn't have a finance major? I think it has something like a finance-econ hybrid major but I wasn't really sure if that plays a part in recruiting at all.

  3. Which school is more competitive for recruitment? (or are they on par with one another)

  4. Does the prestige of an ivy really carry any weight over Stern when it comes down to solely finance?

And to a far lesser extent, does anyone know if there are any significant differences between the social scenes of the colleges, or are they very similar for the most part?

Thanks in advance

 
KTM:
I'm a senior in high school trying to decide between Stern and Columbia, purely for the prospect of ib recruitment. I realize that similar posts such as this have been made but they seem to be either pretty outdated or contradictory of one another. A couple of my concerns are that
  1. Is there significant grade inflation/deflation at either of these schools?

  2. Does it matter that Columbia doesn't have a finance major? I think it has something like a finance-econ hybrid major but I wasn't really sure if that plays a part in recruiting at all.

  3. Which school is more competitive for recruitment? (or are they on par with one another)

  4. Does the prestige of an ivy really carry any weight over Stern when it comes down to solely finance?

And to a far lesser extent, does anyone know if there are any significant differences between the social scenes of the colleges, or are they very similar for the most part?

Thanks in advance

Are you looking anywhere else? Why are you so worried about IBD recruitment? You already know that both of these schools place pretty well.

Anyway, if I were forced to choose between the two I'd go Columbia in a heartbeat -- NYU won't impress anyone, and Stern is full of fucking grinders. NYC for college seems fucking miserable though.

 
Best Response
  1. Is there significant grade inflation/deflation at either of these schools? Heard NYU has a very tough grading curve and is often difficult to do well. Columbia (and many other ivys) are notorious for grade inflation, not tough to get 3.6+

  2. Does it matter that Columbia doesn't have a finance major? I think it has something like a finance-econ hybrid major but I wasn't really sure if that plays a part in recruiting at all. Doesn't matter, you'll still get top recruiting opps

  3. Which school is more competitive for recruitment? (or are they on par with one another) Not on par - Columbia students get more ops without question

  4. Does the prestige of an ivy really carry any weight over Stern when it comes down to solely finance? Yes - the network/prestige is more important than more people give it credit for. Obviously if you're a standout student at NYU you can get GS TMT / MS M&A and the likes but all else equal the Columbia student will have notably more opps and overall a better 'brand' attached to his/her name.

Think for law school Columbia and NYU are generally on par with one another and for the arts NYU is a top dog, but in all other fields Columbia outshines NYU by a long shot.

 

Temporibus illum et dolorum distinctio asperiores ratione nihil. Nesciunt quisquam praesentium a explicabo. Est non tempora quod alias.

Aut delectus non quia et ea. Enim ea nulla aut tempore officiis veniam voluptate. Dolorem praesentium sint sequi nemo.

Illum nostrum laudantium quae. Facilis dignissimos quis eos cumque tempore vel. Enim dolore corrupti autem aperiam vel assumenda. Error nostrum facilis quo.

Rerum corrupti sit unde eum. Quam quam voluptatem doloribus in numquam eius. Quod deleniti magnam voluptatem nostrum asperiores eos ducimus. Aut voluptatem unde quibusdam similique. Dolore voluptatum quos quis quam exercitationem itaque sint. Ducimus fugit ut sed aut occaecati quis.

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

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

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 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

March 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

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (13) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (202) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (144) $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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
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...”