Feeling gutted & lost

I spent the summer working at a lower-tier BB in a rotational program with mandatory rotations across IB and another divison (don't want to get too specific so as not to identify myself.) I was pretty certain I wasn't getting a return offer and then, literally 3 days before the end of my internship a position in a group I really loved opened up. I busted my ass and completed a case study in an asset class I'd never studied before and did excellently according to the hiring manager. However, the manager said that since I hadn't met the team (I didn't work directly with them and had only met one analyst, one associate and the MDs in the 3 days I had) they'd only be hiring one graduate. I honestly feel crushed and like the walls are closing in on me, the firm mentioned roles might open up in some of their other IB teams but I feel like everything is falling apart. I got stellar feedback from my managers and HR mentioned repeatedly that they want to see me back at the firm, but I just feel crushed. If roles don't open up at this firm I don't want to move downward to an MM because of exit opps and dealflow but getting a spot at another BB in an IB/structured lending/private credit role seems like it'll be an uphill battle. I really just don't know what to do and I feel so lost. I busted my ass over the summer as I don't have a finance background, I'm not in any finance clubs and I taught myself and learned basically everything from ground 0, often pulling 18+ hour days to better understand the asset classes and technical aspects. Am I cooked?

1 Comments
 

Explicabo voluptas labore facere rerum adipisci voluptatem odio. Iure et repudiandae vero. Et voluptatem ut aperiam error id.

Soluta sequi consequatur dolore accusamus expedita provident. Consectetur sint eum vel et iste eum assumenda. Ut nostrum totam qui vitae ut minus quaerat. Qui et omnis incidunt sapiente omnis.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (77) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (72) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”