From Insurance Companies to IB SA?

Hi Everyone,

As my ultimate goal is to get a summer internship in IBD at any BB next summer (2020) in New York, I'd like to ask for any guidance or advice on how to successfully leverage my professional experiences to land the summer analyst intern position.

I am studying Economics (non-business school) in a top 20 target school, and I will be graduating in May 2021. I had two consulting internships before (one in MBB) and was offered a return offer but declined because I decided to go into IB. As I was looking for internships this summer, my initial goal was to get into a small PE/boutique IB firm. After a long and stressful period of searching, a tiny PE firm offered me an internship but then canceled it due to budget issues. I was devastated because all my friends from school already made great plans for summer - either at PE or boutique IB firms, which would put me at a disadvantage in IB recruiting. And I didn't want to waste my summer doing nothing.

After reaching out to a tons of people, an alum who is an MD in a large insurance company helped me out and offered me an internship in his firm. He also encouraged me to rotate through several departments within the firm, including the investment funds, different underwriting coverage groups, risk management and etc.

I know that the recruiting process for IBD is extremely intense and peer pressure is also a thing, so insurance is an industry that few of us would work in. But I've decided to take this internship - well, I don't really have a choice. Is it possible to move from insurance to IB? Any advice on how to leverage this internship experience as a transition into IB would be much appreciated!