Advice Needed - Coming up empty handed
The season for Investment Banking Summer Analyst hiring is officially coming to a close. And long story short, I came up empty-handed (5 first round interviews, 1 superday, no offers). My interviews included a couple lower-tier BBs and middle-market boutiques--opportunities which came about through my extensive cold-emailing/calling 70+ alumni last Fall.
A little background: I'm a junior and attend a non-target school with a double major in Music-Performance (I've played an instrument since age 10) and Economics with a Minor in Accounting. My current GPA is a 3.8 and I've had solid internship experience in the finance industry.
I'm currently debating between a few options which I need some help in making a decision:
1) Recoup and take another shot at FT in Fall for an IB analyst role (my understanding is that the non-target label will be less important for recruiters) and despite my failed attempts, I'm confident in my interviewing abilities.
2) Apply to a top school for a master's program in finance/management this Fall.
3) Apply to a top school for a master's program in music this Fall (Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, etc.). Music is not my career goal but the school name alone could hopefully land me better job opportunities if I keep up relevant internship experience in Finance/IB.
4) Apply to MBA programs in the Fall of my senior year.
5) Other Suggested options
My parents are willing to pay for options 2, 3 and/or 4. I have already started studying extensively for the GMAT and I'm on target for a 700+ score based on the practice tests I've taken. I would really appreciate any valuable advice that anyone could offer me at this point.
absolutely DO NOT do 4, when you come out you will be competing with guys with 4 years of experience and it will be very difficult to land a job coming out of MBA
Philliesphan, with that in mind, would it be foolish to apply for a top IB Analyst position coming out of MBA to start getting experience?
You won't even get into MBA programs at which banks recruit if you have no work experience.
4 is a horrible option. You won't get into a decent MBA school, and even if you did, the degree will be worthless without any prior FT work experience.
2 or 3 might be okay if you have access to on-campus recruiting as a masters' student. I doubt they care much about what you're getting an masters for as long as you do keep up relevant IB experience...
I would just go for 1. Grab a boutique or MM internship if you can and network like mad. Your GPA is fine, just find something relevant to do over summer. I figure you would probably do this anyway even if you go with routes 2 or 3, so why spend the extra money?
ok thanks for this info...this definitely relieves some pressure off my hands now that I will not be sweating out a bunch of MBA apps this Fall...
i did #1 and it worked out well for me. took an internship at a F500 company, and as long as you cant talk intelligently about your experience and somehow relate it to banking, youll do just fine for full-time recruiting. not having an IBD SA position doesnt make or break your career by any means. take option #1
If you're willing to come to the UK I'd also consider an economics MSc at somewhere like Oxford, Cambridge, or LSE. British masters degrees are almost all 1 year long and you'll get a good international brand name on your resume. You'd have to go straight into analyst applications as soon as you start though.
How easy/difficult is it to get a job back in the States if you do a masters in the UK?
If you're a junior right now, just try to find something IB related for the summer and go through FT recruiting in the fall. If you don't get the offer you want then, consider staying an extra semester so you can go through SA recruiting another time and hopefully pick up an offer for FT after that. Cheaper than paying for an MBA program and still gets you to the same place
i think this will basically end your hopes of getting a job in finance right out of school. it's one thing to major in music, but then going to grad school for music will simply make it look like you aren't really that interested in finance, but just interviewing because you need to pay your bills.
also, you really think anybody at GS gives a crap about whether you got your master's in music from harvard or oberlin?
do #1, if it fails, do #2
3 and 4 are bad ideas go with 1 man, good luck and hammer it hard
thanks for all your help...out of the blue today I got a call from a boutique offering me an IB SA position...this definitely changes things up a bit as I had previously thought I'd been rejected EVERYWHERE. I should be able to get some great banking experience this Summer and hopefully I can market myself around the block for FT recruiting this Fall.
Very good for you. Best of luck.
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