IB SA 2026 Troubles
Hi everyone, I'm a rising junior at a low target (ND, NW, UVA, Duke) and I'm looking for some advice in order to land an IB SA at any known bank (MM+) for my junior summer.
For context, I have a 3.9 GPA, a freshman spring ER internship, freshman summer IB internship at a local boutique, and this summer I'll be working at a different local IB boutique.
When I first transferred to this school from my non-target, I was unable to get into any of the investment clubs here that are a pipeline for IB (5% acceptance rates). I spent my sophomore fall semester here networking like everyone else and had about 60 chats (across all the banks) done by the time everything opened in January. I was in the process with 6 banks (only EBs somehow) but was unable to land an offer (1 SD). Was sharp on technicals and did dozens of mocks for behaviorals too; I truly gave it everything I had but I've been unsuccessful as of now. However I'm still very determined to break into this industry and want to do everything possible to make that happen.
Now that the traditional recruitment cycle is over, what can I do to keep recruiting? I hear some firms reopen apps in the fall, so should I begin networking over this summer for sa 2026 again? Is that route possible or will I have to do something random for junior summer and then rerecruit for FT? I hear people talking about delaying graduation but how does that actually work?
I'm feeling lost as of what to do next so I'd be grateful for any advice.
Thanks so much guys.
Delay your grad, and be extra prepared for the SA 27 cycle. I've seen friends do it successfully, just add another major/minor
So is it delaying graduation by a semester? Do I have to talk to my school about this now? Do I simply just change the grad date on my resume and then pay for one more semester?
Yeah delaying grad by a semester. Might want to meet with an advisor, but yeah you can change the grad date on the resume. You could also give the fall apps for SA 26 a shot, but there are far less spots available compared to the regular cycle
Thanks for all the clarity this is super helpful. I’ll try to find some other people at my school who’ve done this
Firms are likely to reopen apps this fall. DB, JPM reopened apps during fall due to increasing optimism about the 2025 market back in 2024. For spring 2026, apps are likely to reopen too due to candidates reneging. I know a good amount of people signing multiple offers, so obviously they will renege eventually.
I doubt that your technicals were sharp enough if you only got 1 SPD out of 6 EBs (CVP, PJT, EVR, LAZ, MOE, PWP). I know that Evercore, Lazard, and Moelis first rounds are purely technical other than why this firm which is hard to mess up. Seems like your networking is quite good given the number of interviews you got from only 60 calls. I would push graduation and just do more mocks/studying.
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