Questioning my decision to go into finance. Why did you pursue banking? Legitimate answers please.

Hi peeps,

You may be thinking another post on same bullshit or person who cant handle this industry, but have been legitimately questioning my decision to go into banking lately and really want to peoples thoughts on why they decided fo break in.

To give you some background, I go to a semi target school and have networked heavily past few months and spent months trying to prep for banking interview, but some of this stuff in depth honestly has been difficult to comprehend and absorb and even in addition to that, realizing during my current IB internship that not sure if I will be able to catch up with all the excel and PPT skills and of course the modeling skills. Yes it sounds like I am a bitch but on the border of stopping recruiting even after meeting with people in person and submitting applications and studying the techs as I am worried I wont be able to catch up. This was a tangent rant but I have also started to question my decision to initially go into banking. I initially chose to break into banking without any previous finance background, not quantitatively skilled at all, cannot multitask for shit. But can work long hours given the work ethic I have even thought I have room for improvement. But chose to do so not because of money but simply for prestige and the exit options it gave. Curious to hear why you decided to go into banking other than money because starting to question if finance js the track for me if money and topic of learning or business is no interest to me even though I have the desire to learn.

To senior bankers or even younger ones, any thoughts or inputs?

Thank you WSO as always.

8 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Have you considered targeting coverage group that covers an industry that’s interesting to you? Maybe tech /healthcare IB? They’re less technical than product groups but still give you a good skillest.

If you are struggling with learning technicals, focus on the most basic concepts first and build your way up. One website that laid a strong foundation for me was ibankingfaq.com. It’s disorganized and not pretty, but the actual content is great for beginning to learn technicals. If you understand all the technical concepts and examples (in the IB section of the website) and can change the numbers and get the correct answers easily, you will be able to work your way through ~70% of IB internship interviews. Then I would move up to the WSO IB guide and then the 400 guide.

 

Ipsam dolore architecto dolorem eos quae voluptatum. Totam magni sequi quibusdam ratione saepe cupiditate est eaque. Exercitationem sunt velit unde nesciunt. Quia ut dignissimos sit expedita dolore.

Perferendis ab quia libero rerum et quasi. Labore fugiat iusto sapiente error. Voluptatibus quis aut autem et ex numquam odio. Tempore unde eos quam qui similique eligendi nemo.

Career Advancement Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (29) $183
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (77) $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

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...”