19 y/o Student - Tips on getting into Investment Banking

Hello everyone,

I am from Germany and recently graduated with a high school degree that's equivalent to a 3.0 GPA in the US and landed a position for a dual-degree at a university in my city recently. The university isn't renowned in any way on an international or even national scale, although the education is good, just not as reputable. 

To explain the concept of a dual degree: it means I'll study financial economics for the next three years, while also working at a commercial bank so the theoretical knowledge from university gets applied at the bank with further private education by the banks internal school. Throughout the next three years I will be working in various sectors of the bank and engage with clients actively. For the final six months I'll also be able to internally specialize on either Private Banking or Corporate Banking which will then also be the content of my bachelors work.

I am looking to get into the higher fields of finance, means Investment Banking or Wealth/Asset Management after finishing my degree - I'm also open to consulting. I love anything involving finance. I know my high school degree isn't on an optimal level for IB/AM, but I'm willing to work hard in college to achieve a top score, as of now I'm already studying roughly 9-12 hours a day, seven days a week, to get an edge up.

However, one of my issues is that it's difficult for me to know what to specifically work on. I'm currently reading 5-7 books on banking, finance, economics, M&A, LBO, IPOs, etc. a week while also working on my Excel and PowerPoint skills since those are major working tools of the Finance industry. But I still lack some direction when it comes to focusing on a specific aspect that will help me get a foot in the industry.

I hope to receive some advice from professionals who already know what matters when choosing new talent, or people who have experience in the aforementioned business fields. Please let me know if you need more information, I'll happily provide it.

Thank you all in advance for the help and patience while reading through this post.

Kind regards,

Etienne M. R.