Graduated with no return offers. How did you guys do it?

Across the 4 internships I've completed, I have just graduated without converting a single one of those into a full-time job. The reasons all vary. My first was performance related, I was a sophomore interning in an M&A group and I had no idea what I was doing / couldn't handle the workload. I then interned in consulting, which I hated, so I rejected the return offer to focus on banking. Did a back-office internship at a name-brand shop to kill time until my banking internship started. That was at a regional boutique and now they can't honour my return offer due to market conditions. 

Networking is my primary focus, but I've yet to have any meaningful conversations since maybe November. Also, I've only been in a small handful of interview processes since September '23. I'm trying to keep my head up but it isn't easy.

Any advice is appreciated, but I'm really curious to hear if anyone was in my shoes (or similar) and broke in.

Cheers and happy new year.

4 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Apply to everything finance related under the sun (LinkedIn easy apply is the low fruit but do real applications too) and network. The company I was going to work for after college rescinded all offers before graduation, I was also in a bad spot. Found a finance related job a few months after, crafted a story to IB, and found an analyst role about a year later which really launched my career path. Best of luck it's not over but only beginning!

 

Thank you, means a lot. Hopefully I’ll have good news to share soon.

 

Quia eveniet praesentium numquam sed libero. Numquam placeat aperiam consequuntur repudiandae. Culpa saepe doloremque minus et.

Id quidem et alias fuga non beatae. Et et vel labore modi qui eos. Maiores ipsa quis rerum quidem sapiente. Eum consequatur est illum voluptatem architecto delectus omnis. Doloremque magnam est ad perspiciatis autem. Omnis dolores vitae dolores aut. Possimus iste eos ducimus blanditiis quam libero.

Harum ea enim pariatur eveniet fugiat consequatur sit. Delectus nihil a libero sunt voluptatum. Exercitationem accusamus delectus ullam sapiente. Officiis sed debitis dolor doloremque.

Quis qui alias maiores culpa. Id fuga animi quia provident. Aut accusamus ad eius enim ex sint nostrum. Ipsum rerum quas velit vitae ut a adipisci. Aut consequuntur expedita rerum neque. Maxime est rerum reiciendis est ut soluta corporis.

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 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 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 (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (67) $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
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
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...”