I was always told that strong GMAT was important in IB but I have been hearing more and more about candidates with top 5%-2% scores having trouble getting summer internships. Normal people.. some with relevant experience some complete career switchers. Was my intel wrong or is this year just weird for MBA recruiting?
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I understand this might be a rant but I can try to give my two cents.
GMAT is a factor but hardly the decisive one. The single most important factor is your prior deal experience. I would say, whether you belong to a diversity group is the next most important factor and your visa situation goes after, in my opinion.
This is subjective though so it is up for debate.
Prior deal experience is absolutely not the single most important factor. Most people going through MBA Associate recruiting do not have banking experience and a lot don’t even have relevant financial experience. GMAT certainly helps but it isn’t the only factor. You could have a 780 and get cut if you come off like a cocky asshole. Would argue having a positive attitude / personality and a good “why banking” is crucial (given you’re already at a core school that serves as the stamp of approval for work ethic and intelligence).
I totally agree with your comment about attitude and good banking stories.
I kindly disagree on the banking experience. It is true that most people in MBA are career switchers though there are a few that were either previously bankers or worked on deals.
A classmate of mine was a lawyer that worked on capital market deals and is a typical example of that. Most people had 2-3 interviews and she had practically every bank inviting her for an interview. The same was true for big four TS people and internationals with IB experience though they tended to get slightly less interest.
I am not saying that nothing else matters. There were ex bankers that didn't get an offer. Just a ranking of the factors.
I know it is subjective so I understand the diversity of opinions.
Bro,
I have no idea what you’re talking about but this is not correct whatsoever. You don’t need prior banking or capital markets experience at all. A friend of mine had TFA experience prior to school and is going to a BAML/Citi/Barclays. Another friend and classmate of mine with an average GMAT (by MBA program standards) got ~6 offers, most of them are banks that get sucked off on this forum (GS/JPM/PJT/Moelis/LAZ) and he had zero prior banking or capital markets exposure. He’s also not a diversity candidate at all. All you really need is to be dedicated to the process. Meaning network your ass off, set up the coffee chats, don’t be weird, know your technicals, and execute when you interview. It isn’t rocket science. My GMAT, although a good one, never came up once, nor did my undergrad GPA, which was definitely below average at a 3.3. I was still able to land 7 interviews and get my top choice, allowing me to cancel most of my interviews.
Sometimes a process at a particular firm won’t go your way. You might meet someone and not hit it off, catch someone after they just got a bunch of work dumped on them, or whatever other event that could lead to a bad interaction with someone of influence at a bank. There is definitely a bit of luck and human element to this process, but for the most part the tried and true method of “don’t be weird, know your technicals, execute in interviews” will work. That’s all you need to worry about is running your process.
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