Senior, Graduating in December, Seeking Advice

Hi guys,

Recent lurker here decides to go public, and asks the community for advice. I am senior from a non-target with a 3.7 gpa majored in finance. This past summer, I interned at valuation firm, and gained great exposure and absolutely love my work. However, I want to climb the corporate ladder, and believe that a career in investment banking will one day get me there. I have plenty of other reasons why I want to do ib such as money, prestige, etc to name a few.

Two weeks ago, I interviewed with a MM firm and failed to win a superday invite. In the process, I learned a lot about the industry, and even got to meet a few bankers. After the interview I reached back out to the VP that interviewed me and received advice going forward. As of now, I do not know who else to reach out to especially this late in the recruiting season. I submitted an application to BofA, but have no faith in getting a reply from there.

In the next of couple of months, I will probably get 2-3 interviews with a few valuation shops ( Duff & Phelps, Houlinhan Lokey, etc). I will have to accept this, if I get the job offer, even though my dream is to land IB. I am hoping the community has people from non-target to share their experience and give advice to me. Should I start cold-calling random people? Should I cold-email first? Who should I try to get in contact with at the firm?VP?Associates?Analyst? This late in recruitment, should I be more direct and ask them for an interview because it is kind of late to build relationship. What kind of questions should I ask them?

Any and all suggestions are appreciated! Thank you, and have a great night!