Finding Colleges

Well, for nepotism/cronyism’s sake, (as much as I’d hate to say it) going to an Ivy League school will increase your chances of getting a job exponentially. I’d be willing bitch for hours about how this is total crap but…that’s neither here nor there. Many investment banks will look for the Ivy League schools before anywhere else and those students do get special treatment. It is beginning to change, however, because people are finally realizing how useless it is to hire somebody who went to Harvard and doesn’t have any sort of business degree. No offense to the Harvard folk but a dude with an anthropology degree shouldn’t get preferential treatment over my finance and accounting degree.
But let’s say you’re not irritatingly rich and didn’t every extra-curricular activity in high school while still holding their 4.0 GPA…when you’re looking for colleges, picking ones that specialize in the right fields is obviously a big plus. I go to Bentley so I’m a little partial to their education (I can bitch to no end about this school but I still think I’m better prepared than a vast majority of people coming out of college and even people already in the workforce for a few years) but it’s a good example of what I’m talking about. Bentley is a specialty school: specializes in business if you didn’t know, especially accounting. Other schools around, like Brandeis and Babson to name a few in my area, are the same way. They specialize in business and basically put you in the position of needing virtually no training when you get a job, not to mention the simple fact you spent 4 years at a business school networking with people who are looking for jobs in the same place.
If you can’t or don’t want to go to a specialty school, go to a school with good business programs and major in those. I believe it’s UGA (or Georgia State) has the 2nd best Real Estate Finance program in the country behind Wharton. So, if you want real estate finance, look into that program there. Look for other schools with similar properties like this.
Okay, so let’s say we’re past that stage of finding colleges and you’re already there, you’re half way through your English major, and you realize you don’t want to be an English teacher when you graduate. Fret not. Do basically the same thing you did in high school and apply your searching skills to finding a grad school. Get/keep a good GPA and over-prepare for taking the GMATs (GMATs being the business SATs). From there, get a decent score and move into a grad school that has some great business programs. I could recommend Bentley (if you do want to go to Bentley grad school, shoot me an email and I’ll tell you what classes you want to take).
As a side note when picking your colleges: there is always a debate about this type of stuff and I’m gonna take a side and tell you not to go for you MBA right out of school. It’s nice to have, yes, but people don’t really respect it as much you might think. The MBA degree is designed for people who have been in the workforce for a while and have office experience. Getting a masters (which is different from an MBA) would be a better idea. Doesn’t have the stigma of “you got your MBA right out of school…why?” but still makes you vastly more educated for a job. Getting a Master’s is like the equivalent of double majoring in the same field which looks GREAT.
But I digress….
Back to recap:
1.) Try for the Ivy Leagues because they do get special treatment.
2.) If you can’t do that, try for specialty business schools because they will prepare you the best for a job in the finance industry.
3.) If you can’t do that, go to a college with a good business program and major in business related subjects.
4.) If you’re past these options and already in school for something unrelated to business, find a grad school and get your masters in finance/accounting.

One last thing, and I’ll say this later on in more posts, but try to find a college with a good accounting background. Accounting is like the common language of all business and if you have an understanding of that, you have a great advantage over people who don’t. My roommate for 3 years, brilliant kid, got a job at RBS as a research analyst. He got a finance degree (no accounting) from Bentley (and Bentley makes you take at least 3 accounting courses no matter your major) and says his biggest issue is that he doesn’t understand accounting. He wishes he had taken more accounting business electives so he would have a better understanding of what he is reading in financial statements. I took that to heart and I hope you do too.