Is it possible? Post-MBA VP

We always hear about A2A vs. post-MBA associate pathway. If you knew that PE wasn't really up your alley, could you stick around for the A2A promote, dip 2 years into an associate role to go back to B-School and out of B-school return to the same bank/group as a VP?

You may be thinking:

Why leave for a MBA? You could just stick around and move up organically

A: Coming from a lib arts background I think a MBA will be nice to get a formal business education in case I wanted to leave and become the CFO of a start up or something (I also still fully believe at a certain point for progression you need the MBA as a stamp of competence). Plus the network + nice 2 year break. (I go to a target undergrad and would aim for a supertarget MBA to make it worthwhile)

Also I have BB's in mind, I don't know many VP+ without their MBAs - it just seems like a safe bet

Why go back into banking?

I'm very risk averse and don't 100% buy into the PE master race thing going on here at WSO. I could fucking hate IB and want out in two years like everybody else says, but what if I actually like the job a lot? I just know the post MBA associate path is so established and am wondering if you could come in as a VP if you already had significant associate experience?

There's a lot of prospects/interns (including myself) that chime in on these threads but honestly any insight from people that have been working in the industry for some time would be super helpful.

4 Comments
 

Consequatur dolores molestiae cum nostrum qui velit dignissimos porro. Est provident doloribus asperiores. Cumque voluptas incidunt totam non molestiae neque sed. Accusantium sapiente possimus sint rerum exercitationem consequatur voluptates. Enim quia laborum molestias beatae. Quo molestiae consequatur ullam architecto placeat perferendis.

Sunt illo voluptas accusantium. Assumenda maiores incidunt amet voluptatibus.

Occaecati aut reprehenderit vero harum. Sequi ipsam debitis ut. Illum doloremque est libero esse error debitis suscipit consequatur. Nam harum voluptatem delectus mollitia omnis omnis molestiae. Est omnis et ullam in id voluptatum distinctio.

Quidem et qui illum molestias saepe possimus itaque consequatur. Quis officia laudantium consectetur aut voluptatem.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan No 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (45) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
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...”