IB rankings by placement per headhunters - actual data
I recently attended an informational session held by one of the larger headhunters that has many UMM/MF clients (relevant because their data is drawn from their clients' processes only; but imo their client list is definitely large enough to use to draw broader conclusions). I wanted to share some of the data the firm presented because rankings and placements are thrown around all of the time on WSO and I remember being super confused as an undergrad about which banks were strongest wrt placements. Here are some of the points I found most interesting/likely to be helpful:
1) Just under 50% of all week 1 acceptances were from three firms: MS, EVR and GS
2) MS Tech, GS FIG, and PJT Rx were the groups with the largest shares of week 1 acceptances (can't really read my notes bc my pen broke, but I think the aggregate total is 16%) | M&A, Rx and HC were top group types for week 1 acceptances
3) c/o 2025 week 1 acceptance shares, by bank (c/o 2024 shares in parentheses)
MS 18% (11%), EVR 16% (12%), GS 11% (5%), Lazard 8%, JPM 8%, MOE 7%, PJT 6%, BAML 3%
- Week 1 = 7-day period marked by the start of on-cycle
Hopefully this is helpful to others who are trying to gauge where they'd like to end up. Obviously, this is not a complete breakdown of the firms these candidates placed at, but, based on what the HHs were saying, the types of firms that go week 1 are the UMM/MF types that everyone is obsessed with.
Helpful
Interesting. Thanks for sharing
Any idea what the numbers are for UBS/Barclays/DB and if anyone from those firms placed into UMM/MF's?
bump
bump
Those banks are not generally known for UMM/MF placement aside from some Barclays groups. Barclays is definitely weaker than those shown here, and considering the bleeding in the group I would guess it isn’t going to be that great in the future.
What’s c/o
Class of
are these on campus info sessions? Or are these info sessions for current-professionals?
Campus at multiple target schools
Did they mention how much non-bank/group factors (undergrad, diversity etc) factor into acceptances?
Did they also mention gpa/sat scores
Yes, but they didn’t give any numbers. They said it was the second most important thing (along with school) after work experience.
Not OP but also attended the same session. Around 50% of on cycle week 1 offers were diversity.
Is there a structured/separate diversity process or do headhunters just connect you with different opportunities based on it?
So frustrating man.
Extremely high quality content +1 SB
Just curious if they mentioned if this was east coast only or inclusive of all offices. Quality content
Damn HC overtaken TMT
Can offer my experience with off-cycle recruiting which seems to align with what OP outlined above.
I recruited from a non-top restructuring shop (Piper/Gugg/Jefferies) with a non-target background and was still able to garner MF/top UMM interest despite pretty much working on only middle market deals. I’m at a shop that many people would scoff at here but I would say group perception truly made a difference in my situation. Everyone seemed to look upon the restructuring background favorably and I think (whether people admit it or not) being able to speak to an entirely different facet of banking that many PE professionals have not experienced themselves makes you look smart. Something to consider if you are thinking about Rx.
I also really believe that HH intro meetings are critical for non-targets / analysts at non-BB/EB banks and play a huge role in what they show you and which funds they decide to connect you with. The recruiters i vibed with the most definitely gave me some pretty good leniency when I got rejected and continued to show me opportunities which was huge. Others would pretty much drop you after 1 or 2 failed processes. I had the best experiences with CPI, Henkel, and SearchOne. I found that Amity, Bellcast, Oxbridge, Dynamics, SG, and Ratio were a little more difficult to pin down, but again it could just be that I didn’t have the strongest background - who knows. I’ve heard different things from all my friends who recruited so it can be kind of a mixed bag.
To sum it up, I’d say from my personal experience, the order of importance of criteria for getting buyside looks: group > bank > school > GPA/test scores. If you’re not at a top group, don’t be discouraged. I got an offer from a shop many people on here would nut over and I’m just some idiot from a so called shitty bank and even shittier school. Cheers brothers.
Now because you said this, there is going to be a +500% influx into rx applications.
Lol, in all serious Rx is definitely the new “hot” group that a a ton of college kids want now. Basically the same situation as tech / TMT a few years ago. Rx has always been a strong group but is very in vogue at the moment with M&A at a standstill.
Id really just go where you want though. I chose Rx for a lot of reasons, including the prestige, and just like everyone will tell you, don’t choose shit for prestige lol. Rx is pretty fuckin boring a lot of the time to be completely honest. Credit doc summaries, debt comps, company tears are what you are going to spend a lot of time on as a new analyst and that shit is ass. After making your 37th cap table you’re prob gonna want to quit lmao. Also, the people in Rx are generally pretty big losers. Def don’t have the same bro-ey, fratty culture as other groups because a lot of the mid level and senior guys are mega hardo nerds who just live and breath this stuff. I’m also in a sweaty group so it could just be that but I’d say the people you work with can make a huge difference in a junior banking experience.
Damn. Evercore seems to be killing it. Best shop based on per capita placement?
Edit: Misremembered the video. See comments below
Do you happen to remember which video exactly?
Per Capita placement was Lazard (8.8%), Evercore (6.5%) and Moelis (6.3%) from that video.
would honestly say EVR LAZ and MOE are able to get you identical looks and this probably comes down to class size (evercore is starting to get significantly larger than the othet two) and how prepped you are during college years. No doubt though, Evercore is fantastic for the exits.
get this guy a pen please
I work at Citi and honestly not surprised to not see us on the list, but can provide some color as to why. For background currently an AN2 going to an UMM / MF depending how you want to define it — I recruited off-cycle.
When my class started we were still in training and didn’t hit the desk for another week or two so I literally no experience to talk to beyond my internship — this is the main reason I decided to sit out when I got inbounds from headhunters. Most of my other friends at other banks had started prior to this so despite not having much experience definitely still had something to hang their hat on.
Most people ik at Citi that are going to big funds did so off-cycle or in a quasi-delayed on-cycle process.
Guess the main takeaway here is that if you are going to Citi, don’t freakout about the lack of representation on the list you will have basically the same opportunities, but if you are gunning for placement at the start of on-cycle you will need to do a lot of prep work.
deleted bc I was called a bot :(
Bro you’re a bot
Dude chill — once you are in the door it basically all comes down to the person. M&A probably places the best in aggregate, but half that’s the self selection process of the people that go there (i.e., headhunters will basically email the entire incoming class so if you are good you will be fine).
Timeline is entirely person dependent I wanted a deal announcement on my resume or at least so actual experience I could speak well to before I recruited. So figure out how you feel when CPI bangs line and go from there.
Did Barclays not place at all? Thought coverage placed well?
This is week 1 data
Recent exits this cycle included Apollo, General Atlantic, Carlyle, TPG (non buyout). Source: two close friends in coverage at bank.
Nahhhhhh, that's all cap. Barclays exits SUCK.
Can provide a bit of additional color as I attended the same session but luckily my pen didn't break.
Traditionally, M&A, Tech, and Industrials are top groups in terms of quantity of placement (in that order) for on cycle recruiting mostly as a function of modeling exposure, size headcount-wise, and the latter two groups being popular industry focuses of PE firms.
The 2025 associate class was the first class to receive offers before they even hit the desk, meaning they were in the middle of training (GS and MS peeps know training eventually got moved to virtual as a result). To counter this, firms ask who the good interns were during the previous summer so make sure you are not a slouch who just got by with a return offer.
A big trend that definitely continued was less firms participated in on-cycle (e.g. Blackstone sitting out this cycle), as only around 25-30 firms did (2025), versus only 40-50 (2024). Expect a larger wave around January of each year as more firms look to hire half their class on cycle, half their class off cycle.
For comments I am seeing like why Citi/Barclays/UBS/DB or XYZ bank isn't on here, I am guessing its because this is only week 1 of the process? I believe this particular HH saying that if you look at top 10 bank representation across all of their client placement, all the mid-tier BBs and EB usual suspects fill the list.
FIG really? Is week 1 just FIG funds…
Horrible troll post, DC Advisory placed more people to UMM & MF than the aforementioned combined. You're a joke, bro.
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