Current Junior - Non-Target - Accounting - How to Proceed?
Where I am now: Currently attending University of South Florida completing their Accounting program online given my family had to relocate and I could not afford to live in Tampa.
I live 2 hours from Miami.
I have a 3.1 overall GPA.
I have no accounting GPA yet so I have a chance to 4.0 this.
I have no extracurriculars given I'm an online student and when I did attend on campus I was too busy working.
My latest work experience was as a Leasing Agent/Manager at a small real estate company where I sourced tenants for residential and commercial properties. I leased 5 commercial units and several residential homes. Largest commercial lease was 5 years long generating $5000/month gross. I also helped build a few houses.
Maybe I can turn this into a sales type thing? I found the tenants myself and posted materials I made on Costar and Loopnet for inbound tenants as well. I had little supervision or assistance. This was for 1.5 years.
I think I want to get into investment banking but what I really want is to help people make investments, and I don't mean 401ks and IRAs. I want to help people make massive investments in real estate or buying and selling businesses. The stock market interest me and I love discussing the implications of current events.
I am considering transferring to FAU so I can have a physical presence and maybe network. I emailed the school and they mention the people recruiting from their Finance program are mostly investment advisors that sell retirement products and insurance (AXA Advisors, Northwestern Mutual, Mutual of Omaha). So it might be a dead end.
Should I stay in my online Accounting program at USF? Transfer to FAU for Finance or Accounting? Or should I do what I am doing, email and network on my own, and hit a Masters in Finance at the highest ranking school I can get into post grad? What else can I do? My degree won't mention it was online when I graduate.
Thanks in advance.
Why IB? IMO you background sounds more like a PWM
When I was negotiating lease terms I realized that I really enjoyed the process of bringing in business, negotiating terms, ensuring the demographics of the area and our space suited their business needs, and getting the signature on paper. From what I have read investment banking involves advising businesses through the purchase of other businesses. When I was leasing the spaces I advertised myself as a consultant and put myself in the position of "I am here to help you." That being, I always made sure the commercial units I rented were the best spaces they could get. I probably lost some business that way but I placed high quality tenants that won't be leaving for a while. I really enjoyed meeting them, learning their business (part of my process was I wouldn't lease to them unless I fully understood how their business worked so we could ensure they would pay the bills), making sure the owner of the property and the tenant were on good terms, and getting the signature.
I believe this same process can be applied to the acquisition of businesses. I am learning accounting from my schooling, and I enjoy the idea of making a huge impact. I.e., I could point at a steakhouse and say I helped put that there so I could point at two companies and say I helped them merge or buy another business out. They did it because x made sense due to y and I helped them make sure it was a good decision.
I think you should probably try to connect with some local boutiques to see if you can come to the office as a part-time. I know there are many boutiques in Tampa, Miami, and Palm Beach area so you should get a chance if you work really hard. Also, raise your GPA no matter what program you attend. I'm also a junior so I don't really have lots of good advice, so let's see how other people put some insights into this. Good luck with the job search!
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