Did not do as well as I hoped freshman year --> chances for IB/consulting?

Hey everyone, 

I finished my first year at Princeton with a 3.56. I'm pretty disappointed, especially because my spring semester gpa tanked my overall gpa. I really worked hard and I feel like I'm screwed for IB recruiting next year and maybe consulting internships my junior year. I look all around me and so many Princeton kids seem to have high GPAs and still don't have a guarantee for internships. 

My question: do I still have a chance, even with dense competition with other students with higher GPAs from similar caliber schools? Should I still continue with Econ evenwith the reality that it will be progressively harder? 

7 Comments
 

do you have any relevant finance experience/ecs? if you do you dont have to worry so much about recruiting since you're going to an HYPSM and a 3.56 will be fine

 

While a 3.56 is not ideal, that is good enough to break in, especially from Princeton. Try to get it above 3.6 or hopefully 3.7 after your fall semester. But more importantly, I would start networking now. Also have at least one relevant internship in IB, PE, or related field by the time recruiting starts. If you have a good network of Princeton alumni, relevant experience, and a 3.5+(again if you can get to a 3.6/3.7 that would be great) from Princeton you should have good odds of landing a SA

 

Dude a 3.56 is fine. You can easily get into a BB for IB or go for consulting, BUT you must get relevant internships and experience FIRST. That’s the most important thing, then finance clubs with a 3.5 GPA. Again, when people are looking at your Resume they want to see someone who really wants the job, and if you have a prestigious school like Princeton with internships that say “financial modeling” or “excel”, then you are Golden my friend.

Go ahead and JUMP!
 

I went to Baruch College and got an internship at an Asset Manager and Bank of America with a 3.5 GPA. The only reason I was able to do so was because of relevant experience. After 3.5 it isn’t a big deal unless it’s a 4.0, but even with a 4.0 experience reigns supreme.

Go ahead and JUMP!
 

To echo a lot of what's been said above, be sure to start networking proactively (would start around September). Also be sure to work on your technicals starting now.

GPA-wise, junior SA kicks off in sophomore spring. With that in mind, you still have sophomore fall to bring up your GPA to around 3.6 or 3.7+ level if you really knock it out of the park sophomore fall.

 

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