Transitioning from Consulting to Investment Banking

IB recruiting for summer internships was pushed up quite a bit this year and most top banks and boutiques have filled up the majority of their positions. I think it might be more sensible to recruit for consulting now and take a shot at IB next year for full-time positions now that I'm aware of the IB timeline (I learned the hard way). If I intern at a consulting firm this year, will I be able to transition to IB next year? I know this is uncommon, but is that because it's unpopular or just really difficult?

 

I'm pretty glad we can all agree I need to make the jump and as soon as possible.

I'm trying to network my way into TAS or find something, anything if I can network my way there.

What I'm also starting to do is tailor the resume the right way, starting to network with my peers for any contacts they may have in investment banking and will be sending the resume out soon to job postings.

But, I want to do more as I know that won't be enough for this type of jump. Do you guys think cold calling boutiques would get me anywhere as etx suggested? What other things should I be doing? What other things can help increase my chances

 

Don't think it's an obstacle as long as you spin your story correctly. During interviews and networking you can say something along the lines of "After spending a summer doing MBB consulting I realized I'm more interested in finance-oriented work, maybe something similar to my previous PE experience. That's why I'm currently exploring IB opportunities, etc, etc." If you do actual meaningful work over the summer and are able to discuss your experiences cogently, then you would demonstrate that you're both diligent and sharp, which is what bankers are ultimately looking for in interviews.

 

Your friend doesn't know what he's talking about. Consultants do very well. I can, off the top of my head, tell you I know CBS people who did consulting before school who ended up at each of GS/MS/EVR/Lazard/CS/Barclays. And CBS people in general do better than the schools you listed, so that's much more of a consideration than whether the school has a large amount of finance people or not.

 

You'll do fine. Columbia will give you every opportunity to get an IB job in NYC, regardless of your background.

(Ditto for Wharton and Booth.)

The truth is you're the weak. And I'm the tyranny of evil men. But I'm tryin', Ringo. I'm tryin' real hard to be the shepherd.
 

Sorry, by second-tier I am referring to a firm that is one level below MBB as perceived by most in terms of prestige, work, and exit opps. Any advice on how to approach networking, and at what point should I be looking to move to IB? Should I do my full 2 years consulting or should I be thinking of making a move before then?

 

Not to be a dick, but your grammar really needs some work. So if you speak the way you write, I would suggest working on that - because a lot of banking is pitchbook storyboarding and CIM writing (re: writing up summary points for profiles, taking a crack at the exec. summary, general pitchbook dialogue, etc) and an easy way to piss off your senior analyst or associate is leaving them with a sloppy writeup to clean up.

I don't know anything about tech consulting, so I will just propose a couple of questions for you so to help you discover an answer. In tech consulting do you do any quantitative analysis? Build any models to solve problems? Is there an implementation element (maybe you can talk about how you like to be involved in a deal from start to finish)?

If there are few areas of overlap in terms of skill sets between the two, one other way to demonstrate your interest is if you've enrolled in financial modeling training courses.

Finally... given this is a public forum, you may want to change your username to something more anonymous vs. using your gmail email which has some elements of your name in the handle.

 

ask yourself why you want to do IB ... if it's for the wrong reasons , you will never break in... if it's for the right reasons, going BB or MM shouldn't really matter.

Regional "no name" M&A shop should be your first step .. they are everywhere .. not sure what type of consulting you do, but if your firm has an industry focus, research small M&A shops that have similar industry expertise.

stay there a year or two and maybe lateral to a MM ... forget about BB.. You need to take climb the later one rung at a time...

 
I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.
 

I broke in the old fashioned way, networking. I kept in touch with alums and kept following up. A position opened up, I had two interviews and then got the job. The boutique did a fair amount of strategy related to M&A, pricing and the like. I highlighted that experience.

As to the focus, I went from biotech/life sciences/pharma to a very unrelated area, which is at the intersection of munis and project finance.

 

IT consulting is a good career choice and quite lucrative as well. Getting into a top MBA prog shouldnt be too hard if you have a good gmat score and have shown some type of career progression in the 3-4years you've been working.

 

Boutique IT consulting -> Top 15-20 MBA. Probably possible. I have a technology background and I got into a pretty decent MBA too so I can see that happening.

However, keep in mind the OP's ultimate goal is to go into BB IB. IMO that is a little harder to come back from a top 15-20 background with no relevant finance background.

One possible route is to go boutique IT consulting -> well-known IT consulting (Big 4) -> Top 10 MBA and then lateral from there. Either that or network your ass off into a MO at a BB then MBA

 

In terms of cost-benefit analysis, I would compare the personal cost of joblessness to the cost of reneging. You reject IB offer, don't get MBB, now what? You're screwed. Let's say you accept the IB offer though, get an MBB offer, then reneg.. who cares? Sure, you burn a bridge and will slightly hurt your chances of getting an IB job for the next couple of years, but that doesn't even matter because you'll be doing consulting anyway.

 

fud_box, way too quiet in here. What about these resources:

  • AMA: Big 4 Consulting to Lower MM IB to MM IB (No MBA). banking, or finance in general. Always happy to answer any questions regarding the switch from Consulting ... As the title suggests, former Big 4 consultant turnt banker at a lower MM M&A shop in the ... Midwest. Just switched over to a larger MM IB and happy to address any questions. Some quick background of ...
  • Investment Banking Interview Questions- A Comprehensive Guide Here's a complete guide to answering the "why investment banking" question. The reality is you ... "I want to work in investment banking because I understand it has a steep learning curve and will ... give me the opportunity to remain in finance over the longer term." Investment Banking Fit ...
  • Investment Banking to Private Equity- 6 Things You Should Know recruit with the initial wave. PE networking is also harder than IB networking. 4. Do you move to PE ... parties (lawyers, consultants, accountants, etc.) You need deal experience to have any idea on how to go ... reasons stated above is why most PE shops recruit to hire IB analysts after the 2-3 year IB period. When ...
  • Transition from Big 4 to BB IB?/investment-banking-interview-questions-a-comprehensive-guide">IB Interviews- Questions & ... Answers</a></li><li><a href="https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/investment-banking-resume-template">IB ... Resume Template</a></li><li><a href="https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/a-cover-letter-template-for-investment-banking">IB .
  • Why Investment Banking? 43 Sample Answers big law to investment banking makes sense for him: "I know that I love transactional work, like ... I have gained some great experience working in consulting that translates well to investment banking ... How to Answer the, "Why Investment Banking?" Question I have only heard standard cookie ..
  • Breaking in Investment Banking as a Big 4 Auditor- Can I do it? in a major market and want to make the switch into Investment Banking like many Big 4 people would ... University)- Very small alumni network in investment banking So my questions are: 1. Is cold ... calling/email/LinkedIn contacting going to be my best method of networking? 2. Will banks care I'm not 100% done ...
  • Why Consulting- Answering the Interview Question consulting and investment banking. Note: @aspiringchimp is speaking to his experience at McKinsey. As such, ... work, exit opportunities, hours, and compensation of consulting firms opposed to investment banks ... that investment banking isn't quite as great as it's made out to be, and consu
  • Investment Banking Analyst: A True Day in the Life road to investment banking: the networking, the superdays, the rejections. Think about the persistence ... experience, tailored to help you break into investment banking by acing the technical questions. IB Interview ... page that explicitly covers the investment banking interview. If you want to get prepared
  • More suggestions...

No promises, but thought I'd mention a few relevant users that work in the industry: TechSupportLevel1 bstfrndstabnfrnt treyp525

Hope that helps.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.
 

these topics are well covered here - try the WSO search function. I would advise narrowing it down to either IB or AM. Casting a wide net can get tricky and make you seem unfocused.

  1. Depends on whether you want IB or AM
  2. front office boutique
  3. Are you are inquiring on whether or not there are internship programs for people not in school and 2.5 years in there career? Probably not with a reputable firm. For that reason, I would stay away from this.

Keep networking and be sure to be solid on your technicals i.e. financial accounting, valuation methodology etc. There is nothing worse than networking your ass off only to goober it up and burn bridges by not being prepared (I learned the hard way).

 

Agreed with everything here, just a few more thoughts:

  • Might want to also hit up headhunters (glocap, SG Partners, Oxbridge Group, dynamics search, etc.) to widen your net
  • Decide whether you want IB or AM after talking to some folks
  • Once you start getting interviews, make sure you actually know your technicals. Will be important as you are coming from a non-finance background in both your career and undergrad
  • Maybe consider a masters in finance, not as your first choice but as something to keep in your back pocket if nothing else pans out
 

Yes certainly possible, discussed on WSO quite a bit. Also pls note that if you get on nice (corporate finance-related) projects at MBB, the work actually gets very interesting.

 

I just made the switch into RE IB from consulting after about one year - felt the same way with regards to unrelated projects and lack of interest. Best thing to do is spin your current job as a positive learning experience and try to illustrate to the interviewer that you are trying to seek out what your passionate about. PM if you want any advice.

 

i think you should hang in there for a year and stay for at least 2 years to avoid questions from future recruiters. in the next 1 year, talk to partners who have focus in the finance industry and try to get staffed on projects that you are interested in. all the best!

 

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