Hi, I’m currently an undergraduate student at a non-target. I’m currently interning at a MM boutique bank as a freshman. I’m still unsure if I want to pursue IB. Can anyone give any thoughts to why they maybe pursued it or how I should go about deciding this?
| +137 | UBS Catastrophic Q1-Q3 26, M&A -17%, Outside Top 10 in Americas, EMEA & APAC | 37 | 1d |
| +59 | PWP acquisition by Piper cancelled | 22 | 4h |
| +29 | Evercore poaches Baird DC Defense Team | 18 | 17h |
| +28 | Houston banking Gods ? | 16 | 2d |
| +21 | Normal for lateral process to go +2 months? | 4 | 1d |
| +21 | Best Houston Banks for Culture in 2026 | 14 | 13h |
| +17 | Lack of talent in IB! | 19 | 4h |
| +17 | Internal lateral from coverage to M&A (focused on coverage) | 4 | 18h |
| +15 | How standard is weekend work in IBD? | 7 | 10m |
| +15 | Discussion Transaction Experience in Lateral Interviews | 3 | 3d |
Career Resources
Get instant access to lessons taught by experienced private equity pros and bulge bracket investment bankers including financial statement modeling, DCF, M&A, LBO, Comps and Excel Modeling.
These are highly dependent on firm/group. I'd advise you to use the boutique experience to see if you actually enjoy the work itself. There aren't many freshman in your shoes.
how can I decide IB is right for me and other paths in finance aren’t right (consulting etc)
Firstly, do your research and figure out what interests you.
If you want to eventually do PE/HF/AM, pick IB. Even if you are unsure if you want to do high finance, I'd still likely choose IB just for the optionality.
Pursue both paths, see what you like better as you talk to people in each industry, and see what opportunities come your way. Remember it is highly dependent, especially if you are not dead set on finance. In that case, I'd take a MBB offer over MM IB. But if you know you want to be in finance, then MM IB may be the better option.
Quo aut et ex rem consectetur repudiandae laudantium. Et modi placeat et nesciunt amet dolorem atque. Quod quidem tempora sed voluptas quasi. Repellat dolorem voluptatem magnam enim ipsa. Impedit itaque nihil consequatur suscipit quis corporis. Nisi fugiat qui eum eaque aut explicabo ut.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...