4 Non-Obvious Tips To Ace Your Final Project As An Investment Banking Intern

You can figure out what the SR bankers will grill you on before walking into the final presentation room. Read this to learn how.

The final project during your IB Internship is a bigger part of your return offer than you think.

It’s Recency Bias - it’ll be fresh in their minds when making a decision.

I interned at an elite boutique in NY last summer. If I could go back & start from the beginning, this is what I would tell my former self to focus on.

Tip 1 - Don’t Screw Yourself From The Start

Nobody hits their driver on a 90yd Par 3. You’d be setting yourself up for failure.

Like golf, the final project is all about the approach.

  • Pick Topic Wisely & Quickly
    • We had to pitch a merger of two public companies
    • Brainstorm & settle on 3 options
      • Avoid verticals judges specialize in - more likely grill you
    • Run top 3 by mentor & choose best
      • Some classmates spun wheels picking topic for 5wk…don’t be them.
  • Build Skeleton & Timeline w/ Mentor
    • Outline needed slides & plan when to complete
    • Buffer time for busy live deal work
  • Start Yesterday.

Tip 2 - Send Chunks & Ask for SPECIFIC Feedback

People are too nice.

Ask for general feedback & they’ll stroke your ego + tell you it looks nice.

  • Send 2-3 slides to mentor(s) as you complete. DON’T WAIT UNTIL END!
  • Examples of SPECIFIC areas to ask about:
    • Sections / bullet points unsure of
    • How to tie section to theme

Show EXTRA GRATITUDE towards mentors!

My tactic - bring go-to coffee / pastry order as a token of thanks.

Tip 3 - Rehearse Like The Summer Play

Around rep 40 is when things got more exciting for me.

I realized toying around with voice inflections & gestures at certain moments made my message 100x more powerful.

I was the weirdo roommate talking to myself in the bathroom mirror at the NYU dorm.

Also scheduled 10 mocks starting 3wk out - Mentor x5 & Other JR bankers x5

Tip 4 - Find Out What They’ll Grill You On

JR bankers know what SR bankers will press you on when judging.

  • I got perspectives from ~10 JR bankers - asked them during mocks
    • Learn EVERYTHING there is to know about area you’re gonna get grilled on
    • Rehearse answers to Top 10 anticipated questions

Takeaway: Get ahead of the curve. Approach your final project with the end in mind & you'll secure that return with ease.

1 Comments
 

Minima voluptas quos dolorem laborum aliquid velit. Fugiat incidunt placeat incidunt reiciendis. Quibusdam qui voluptatum deleniti suscipit dolorum aut. Et est explicabo similique accusantium qui iusto ut. Facere repudiandae tempore est alias harum doloribus. Mollitia magnam eos laboriosam sit rerum quo voluptatibus dolor. Qui facilis libero natus iure odio quia quia.

Et voluptatem consequatur ut ea. Consectetur voluptatibus qui qui. Iusto aut fuga nisi commodi. Quia fugiat reiciendis facilis vero. Laborum reiciendis nemo sit eos est illo fugit. Aut iure quos amet odit odio magnam qui eum.

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

Career Advancement Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 03 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (53) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (26) $182
  • Intern/Summer Associate (15) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”