Taking another shot at IB SA with improved credentials

Hey guys feel free to provide your input. I just finished my junior year at a non-target, went through IBD SA recruiting at a few firms including BB's with no luck. I am thinking about delaying my graduation to take another shot at SA recruiting

First Time Around: -3.3/3.4 GPA -BB (UBS/ML) PWM Internship

Not very impressive as you can see, but I was able to network my way into interviews. If I give it another shot here is what my profile would look like:

-3.5 GPA -BB (MS/GS) Finance Division SA - 2015 Summer -Boutique Healthcare Equity Research Internship -BB PWM Internship

Let me know what your thoughts are, I feel like I have a good rationale for delaying graduation/ taking another shot at IB SA recruiting by improving my grades and doing two additional internships.

8 Comments
 

Since you're from a non-target and dont have actual recruiting, I'd personally just try to lateral or get a job through FT recruiting.

This is my reasoning:

You would be an IB SA in 2016, then you start working in Summer 2017 FT (assuming you get an offer). You'd pay for another year of school where your GPA could either increase or decrease, take on the risk of not getting any IB SA interviews, and forego one year of working FT @ $70,000+ (assuming you get this BB internship return offer).

I'd only do this if you're on a scholarship or paying for school isnt an issue for you

 

The opportunity cost is quite high... if you go to a non-target, i'm assuming you go to a state school where you pay roughly ~20k a year for tuition, housing and living expenses. You are missing around $80k of first year pay as well. At a non-target, there is a chance you wouldn't be able to get a IBD SA gig simply because banks don't do OCR. I would recommend just doing PWM for a few years and a solid MBA later.

 
Best Response

I was in a similar position to you and I decided to delay my graduation by a semester. It made a difference for me in a couple of respects: 1) I was able to hit restart on networking for SA and I essentially had a plan and blanketed 30-40 firms in the fall 2) The strong junior summer experience (MM FO) got me way more interviews than the previous year, even had a GS/JPM/MS IBD interview from an online application

If you decide to follow through, don't do a semester. Do a full extra year and avoid the why December graduation question. That was a fucking pain in the ass even with a double major.

 

Dolorum animi rerum harum et. Quia nobis nisi dolores. Necessitatibus id id sit aliquid accusamus. Minus aut commodi aut eveniet ad ex laborum. Sit sint distinctio quia sunt. Eum quasi pariatur sed.

 

Est quidem nihil et placeat. Quas et reprehenderit aut consequatur.

Fugiat distinctio tempora molestias aliquid blanditiis ipsum et. Ea sed harum officia a aliquam velit. Officiis eligendi optio quia rerum et ea.

Dolores dolores explicabo enim tempore natus porro. Nam quasi incidunt error expedita repellat cumque.

Odio minus corrupti id autem ex quibusdam odit consectetur. Ipsa praesentium voluptatem est minima aut. Laboriosam ea praesentium quibusdam dolores perspiciatis. Tenetur quisquam et natus fugiat voluptatem asperiores tempore. Aut nihil consequatur quo quia modi voluptatem.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 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

July 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

July 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

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (47) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (24) $180
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (82) $151
  • 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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
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...”