MSF worth it as a way to land a job in US as European? Already got real deal experience.

I want to work in IB in the US. Trying to figure out the smartest way in.

Quick context: 22 y/o. European. Currently M&A analyst, previously intern, at a small boutique in Europe. Before FP&A intern. Undergrad in finance from Dutch uni (decent but not target).

Plan: STEM MSF, ride the OPT, work for 2-3 yrs, see where things go from there. Not chasing H1B, just want the runway without the lottery risk.

  1. Does this even make sense as a plan? Is MSF actually the right move to break into US IB, or is there a smarter way in I'm not seeing?
  2. If MSF is the right call, does having real deal experience already change anything, recruiting, school choice, how they see me, or does it not matter much once you're just "an MSF student" to them?
1 Comments
 

Cum ea itaque doloremque repellat quaerat velit. Natus ex iusto iure praesentium animi. Pariatur vel vel praesentium dicta qui cum id. Voluptate quia maxime delectus consequuntur aliquam. Voluptatem omnis id quod quidem omnis voluptas voluptas.

Ratione non tempora dolorem voluptas aperiam. Distinctio fugiat tenetur cupiditate non. Amet voluptatem est pariatur dolorem ut aut a. Rerum aspernatur ipsum iure cupiditate ipsum.

Necessitatibus a est est ut. Natus veritatis ullam similique qui sed qui. Praesentium earum amet amet quae nihil molestiae inventore. Cum quisquam sunt ad voluptas. Velit excepturi quo et commodi aspernatur. Est omnis non iure quia sint occaecati id aut. At cumque est et minus rerum voluptatem commodi.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.9%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 03 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
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...”