2.0 in UG to IB with 2 Offers (EB & MM)

I graduated undergrad with a 2.09 GPA. No exaggeration. I hated my major, hated the general education requirements, and—if I’m being honest—spent more time being “a man of the people” than studying. The people in my major were the kind who thought they were geniuses for arguing about nothing, and I couldn’t stand it.

I was too far along to change majors, so I stuck it out. The only thing that kept me sane was my business minor. I actually liked those classes and did well in them—especially Fundamentals of Finance. That one changed everything.

I got to know the professor, explained I was on academic probation, and he told me something I’ll never forget: “You might hate what you’re studying, but you’re clearly good at finance. Keep going.”

So I did.

I landed an internship between junior and senior year at a large valuation shop doing ASC 805 work—business combinations, fair value, the real stuff. I loved it. I was working in CapIQ, Bloomberg, Excel, building models, learning from people who were all studying for the CFA Level I. I joined them in studying. This firm later helped me get a MM IB offer, which I used as leverage to get the EB to make an offer. 

That was the first time I enjoyed learning. Finance made sense to me. It was rigorous, logical, merit-based—unlike writing 75-page papers on whether government secularization affects national identity (I actually wrote that one on Ireland. Got a D+. Years later, the professor told me it was “really good.” Thanks, fuckface?).

I still didn’t really know what investment banking was. I had no family connections, no clue about networking or cold emailing. I grew up lower-middle class —there was no roadmap for this. But I kept grinding, studying, and applying.

By some miracle, I landed an interview off LinkedIn with an elite boutique bank. It was March of my senior year—off-cycle, total long shot. One phone screen led to a Superday. I hit it off with the interviewers, nailed the technicals, talked about studying for the CFA, and stayed real about what my original plan was. GPA was never brought up and it was not on my resume. Interviewing is about can I stand this person and do I want to be around them for extended peiods of time. I tried to connect with everyone on a personal level. My MM offer came up, gave me a little leverage. 

I got the offer a few days later and a nice sign on bonus.

And for anyone who thinks GPA is everything—it’s not. When I later helped with recruiting at my EB, I always looked for grit. You can teach finance; you can’t teach resilience. I’d rather hire someone who’s failed, recovered, and learned how to keep moving than someone who crumbles the first time things get hard which is something I saw a lot. You get these people where its the first time they have ever been challenged. 

Years later, I told my MD and a few senior guys that I graduated with a 2.09. They thought I was joking. I was applying to B-School at the time so I showed them my transcript. My MD laughed and said, “That is f**ing awesome.”*

Since then, I’ve earned my CFA Charter, finished a Top-15 MBA, and now work in private equity.

The moral? It’s either meant to be or it’s not—but if it is, your GPA, background, or detours won’t stop it.