Retard in distress

I'm sick of school and all the studying and I'm preparing to graduate here in the next month with my undergrad accounting degree. My parents, college advisor, and friends/coworkers all say pretty much the same thing to me and recommend that my next best course of action at this point would be to get my masters to finish up my 150 credits and then get my CPA, even though I'm not looking forward to either of those things. I've been applying for SA positions for the past couple of years with no luck and my dream since entering my business school was to get a career in IB but at this point I don't see how to make this happen. I've tried networking on Linkedin with BB alumni but I feel as though I just come off as a turbovirgin. Would obtaining a CPA/public accounting experience help me to obtain a career in IB in the future? Or am I S.O.L? Feeling conflicted and any suggestions or advice would be appreciated.

2 Comments
 

CPA will not help with IB. Any chance you could switch the masters to a masters in finance (may need to take a gap year) - there are a few programs in the US which recruit pretty well into IB, especially if you could get some finance-related position during the gap year while you apply.

Don't bother networking with bankers at this point, you obviously won't get anything SA/FT for this summer and you won't be competitive for FT next summer in your current position either. Get your next year or two figured out and then start contacting alums

 

Placeat quis inventore sed. Non ut voluptas iste blanditiis quam ut eos. Facere eaque est amet placeat architecto. Et placeat omnis fugit non. Officiis labore vero corrupti est maxime.

Eum ut maiores saepe dicta exercitationem dolores. Beatae voluptate dignissimos et suscipit. Perferendis assumenda neque qui voluptatem reiciendis non et. Ut perspiciatis dolorem odio pariatur iure quidem.

Et eaque ex qui aut quae necessitatibus consectetur. Blanditiis fuga quod quia. Officiis nihil commodi possimus repellat ut blanditiis eum esse. A eos commodi aut rerum nisi iure reprehenderit. Possimus tenetur odio sit ipsam magni similique perspiciatis voluptate.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (47) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (74) $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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
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
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
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...”