Breaking into IB at 30

Wassup y'all, I'm new to the forum. I was wondering what is necessary to make the transition from audit to IB. I graduated in 2014 from a small school in ohio. Since then I have been working as an accountant/auditor for mid size accounting firms. I was recently working with kpmg . I started in the advisory practice but transferred into the audit field (it's a long story). I was with kpmg for 2 years, but I was unfortunately laid off due to the pandemic. Since then I've been teaching myself things related to IB such as financial modeling.

 

Hey!

I am so sorry for what happened to you now in the middle of the pandemic.

One of the recruiting channels that IB firms use to hire career switchers is B-school.

You can apply now to join an MBA in September or you can wait until the summer and apply to join in September of 2022.

Many auditors and accountants try this route and many end up in IB.

 
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Honestly, at this point business school. If you were to move into IB, you'd probably have to start as a 1st year which would probably be the class of 2021 analysts so you'd be 7 years older than the rest of your class, potentially older than your associates, and maybe the same age as a VP1. 

I spent time in Big4 audit then deal advisory out of undergrad and got lucky to join a bank as an associate without an MBA. But my story tracked from audit, to deal advisory, then IB. I feel like your path is a little scattered given the audit then KPMG advisory then switch back to audit and now laid off. The move back to audit would signal to me that either you weren't cut out for the advisory work so the team kinda pushed you out OR you didn't like the advisory type work so switched back to audit and if you didn't like the advisory work, why would you like IB work which is more intense. Also, I would be a little skeptical there were layoffs given how busy people are and having not heard anything like that from my friends still in public. 

 

POSH GO

Honestly, at this point business school. If you were to move into IB, you'd probably have to start as a 1st year which would probably be the class of 2021 analysts so you'd be 7 years older than the rest of your class, potentially older than your associates, and maybe the same age as a VP1. 

I spent time in Big4 audit then deal advisory out of undergrad and got lucky to join a bank as an associate without an MBA. But my story tracked from audit, to deal advisory, then IB. I feel like your path is a little scattered given the audit then KPMG advisory then switch back to audit and now laid off. The move back to audit would signal to me that either you weren't cut out for the advisory work so the team kinda pushed you out OR you didn't like the advisory type work so switched back to audit and if you didn't like the advisory work, why would you like IB work which is more intense. Also, I would be a little skeptical there were layoffs given how busy people are and having not heard anything like that from my friends still in public. 

Thanks for your response, I didn't see it initially. So I moved from advisory into audit because I moved cities to take care of my parents who where Ill at the time. I thought transferring from advisory back into audit would be easier due to my situation. To not go into specific detail I'm pretty the sole provider for my parents. I thought since I already have an audit background my transition would be easy so I could balance work/life at the time period. I've made the decision to take back my career so that's part of the reason I want to get into IB. Kpmg had a "massive layoff" in october. Around 1200 people were let go nationwide

 

The reasoning behind the switch makes sense with that context but you'll need to get past an initial screen to get to the point where you can explain that (probably not something you'd want to put into a resume or cover letter). B-school will still be your best bet just given the amount of work experience you have. Most places won't know where to place you. Too experienced to go in as a 1st year, no real relevant experience to go in as a lateral analyst. Maybe a small local boutique might take you on and then can use that to transition to a larger platform after a year as that would check the box on experience but also that you're willing to grind as an analyst at your age. 

Saw the Going Concern post so that makes sense. 

 

Thanks for your response. I greatly appreciate it. I'm going to apply for biz school. I don't have a cpa, but I'm planning to take my series 65. If I had my series 65, would that appeal to IB's? I haven't applied yet, but I plan on applying for different IB's in the near future.

 

Dkim216

Thanks for your response. I greatly appreciate it. I'm going to apply for biz school. I don't have a cpa, but I'm planning to take my series 65. If I had my series 65, would that appeal to IB's? I haven't applied yet, but I plan on applying for different IB's in the near future.

Big 4 -->MBA --> IB is very common. Honestly probably the single most common background for post-MBA associates if I had to guess. You will be slightly older than the average for your class, but definitely not too old. Series exams won't really help you. CPA/CFA do help

Take a look at what schools have good IB placement and what schools you think you can get into. Investment banking recruiting is very structured at most places.

 

Finance_Harambe

Did the Big 4 Audit > MBA Associate path. DM and I’m happy to find a time to connect.

Hey wassup man I'm not sure how to dm on here...but what's the best way to contact you?

 

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