Top 15 Best Colleges to Prepare You for a Finance Career
Students aiming for a career in finance should have strong foundations in economics and math, great interpersonal skills, and a keen ability for problem-solving. The following 15 colleges on this list are some of the very best places to develop these necessary skills.
These schools don’t necessarily have undergraduate finance programs, but they graduate a significant number of students who go on to careers in finance. This is largely due to their quality of education in related majors, such as Economics, and their ability to train students in critical thinking. The prestige, recruiting partners, and alumni network of these colleges also give students a big leg up in the competitive field of finance.
See the complete list of top schools to prepare you for finance careers.
Top 15 Best Colleges to Prepare You for a Finance Career
Click on the school to jump to a link where you can learn more about the college and what it takes to get in.
| School Name | Location | Acceptance Rate (2019) | Middle 50% SAT Scores | Middle 50% ACT Scores |
| 1. Harvard University | Cambridge, MA | 4.5% | 1460-1580 | 33-35 |
| 2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Cambridge, MA | 6.7% | 1520-1580 | 34-36 |
| 3. Princeton University | Princeton, NJ | 5.8% | 1460-1570 | 33-35 |
| 4. University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 7.7% | 1460-1550 | 33-35 |
| 5. Stanford University | Stanford, CA | 4.3% | 1440-1550 | 32-35 |
| 6. Columbia University | New York, NY | 5.3% | 1460-1550 | 33-35 |
| 7. University of Chicago | Chicago, IL | 6.2% | 1500-1560 | 33-35 |
| 8. Yale University | New Haven, CT | 6.1% | 1470-1560 | 33-35 |
| 9. Duke University | Durham, NC | 7.8% | 1500-1560 | 33-35 |
| 10. Cornell University | Ithaca, NY | 10.6% | 1400-1560 | 32-35 |
| 11. California Institute of Technology | Pasadena, CA | 6.4% | 1530-1570 | 35-36 |
| 12. UC Berkeley | Berkeley, CA | 16.8% | 1350-1540 | 30-35 |
| 13. Boston College | Newton, MA | 27% | 1340-1480 (2018) | 31-34 (2018) |
| 14. New York University | New York, NY | 15% (2020) | 1350-1530 | 30-34 |
| 15. Northwestern University | Evanston, IL | 9.1% | 1450-1540 | 33-35 |
1. Harvard University
Location: Cambridge, MA
Acceptance Rate: 4.5%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 6,788
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1460-1580 SAT, 33-35 ACT
Learn more about Harvard and what it takes to get accepted.
2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Location: Cambridge, MA
Acceptance Rate: 6.7%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 4,602
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1520-1580 SAT, 34-36 ACT
Learn more about MIT and what it takes to get accepted.
3. Princeton University
Location: Princeton, NJ
Acceptance Rate: 5.8%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 5,267
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1460-1570 SAT, 33-35 ACT
Learn more about Princeton and what it takes to get accepted.
4. University of Pennsylvania (UPenn)
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Acceptance Rate: 7.7%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 10,183
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1460-1550 SAT, 33-35 ACT
Learn more about UPenn and what it takes to get accepted.
5. Stanford University
Location: Stanford, CA
Acceptance Rate: 4.3%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 7,087
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1440-1550 SAT, 32-35 ACT
Learn more about Stanford and what it takes to get accepted.
6. Columbia University
Location: New York, NY
Acceptance Rate: 5.3%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 6,202
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1480-1560 SAT, 33-35 ACT
Learn more about Columbia and what it takes to get accepted.
7. University of Chicago
Location: Chicago, IL
Acceptance Rate: 6.2%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 6,552
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1500-1560 SAT, 33-35 ACT
Learn more about UChicago and what it takes to get accepted.
8. Yale University
Location: New Haven, CT
Acceptance Rate: 6.1%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 5,964
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1470-1560 SAT, 33-35 ACT
Learn more about Yale and what it takes to get accepted.
9. Duke University
Location: Durham, NC
Acceptance Rate: 7.8%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 6,682
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1500-1560 SAT, 33-35 ACT
Learn more about Duke and what it takes to get accepted.
10. Cornell University
Location: Ithaca, NY
Acceptance Rate: 10.6%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 15,182
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1400-1560 SAT, 32-35 ACT
Learn more about Cornell and what it takes to get accepted.
11. California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
Location: Pasadena, CA
Acceptance Rate: 6.4%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 948
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1530-1570 SAT, 35-36 ACT
Learn more about Caltech and what it takes to get accepted.
12. UC Berkeley
Location: Berkeley, CA
Acceptance Rate: 16.8%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 30,853
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1350-1540 SAT, 30-35 ACT
Learn more about UC Berkeley and what it takes to get accepted.
13. Boston College
Location: Newton, MA
Acceptance Rate: 27%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 9,927
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1340-1480 SAT, 31-34 ACT (2018)
Learn more about Boston College and what it takes to get accepted.
14. New York University (NYU)
Location: New York, NY
Acceptance Rate: 15% (2020)
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 26,733
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1350-1530 SAT, 30-34 ACT
Learn more about NYU and what it takes to get accepted.
15. Northwestern University
Location: Evanston, IL
Acceptance Rate: 9.1%
Total Undergrad Enrollment: 8,231
Middle 50% SAT/ACT: 1450-1540 SAT, 33-35 ACT
Learn more about Northwestern and what it takes to get accepted.
There are many more colleges that will prepare you well for a career in finance. See the complete list of top schools for finance.
Curious about your chances of acceptance to your dream school? Our free chancing engine takes into account your GPA, test scores, extracurriculars, and other data to predict your odds of acceptance at over 500 colleges across the U.S. We’ll also let you know how you stack up against other applicants and how you can improve your profile. Sign up for your free CollegeVine account today to get started!
