First year internship dilemma

Hey guys,

I am a freshman at a lower-tier target school (think Berkely/Haas) with a gpa ~3.7, and due to some health problems I sort of missed the boat on finding an internship for this summer. I know freshman-year internships won't make or break me, but I am interested to have some input on what I should do. At this point, I have an internship offer from a small RE development firm where I think I can get considerable deal experience (assisting in underwriting/modelling acquisitions and constructions, doing due diligence, etc.) albiet on very small deals (probably average around $3m). As it is early March, it is very late in the game for recruiting- is it too late to pursue opportunities at no-name boutique investment banks/M&A advisory firms in my area? I have a list of fifty or so as I live in a fairly major city. Another option I have considered is pursuing PWM, as there a number of BB Branches with alum VPs in my area. I just wanted to get some advice on what would be best for IB recruiting in the future if I can't get an IB-related internship; everyone seems to agree that PWM internships are a dime a dozen, but I was wondering if having that BB name on my resume would help more than getting deal experience (although in small Real Estate deals), and having a more unique background. In terms of skills, I am pretty decent at doing dcfs/comps in excel, and I know what investment banks actually do. Thanks!

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