What are the chances of a No-name boutique analyst landing a good MBA program?

Hi folks,

I will be doing IB (regional boutique) in Australia and planning my next move to study MBA in the US. Non-target undergrad, solid GPA. Just have some questions:

  • What should be my reach given my GMAT would be good (750+)? Is M7/T15 attainable with a small IB shop on resume? What should be the best way to differentiate myself from other regional boutique bankers and Big 4 TAS candidates?

  • Other than my FT role, I have done quite a few IB/PE internships in different countries across Asia-Pacific, would that increase my candidacy somehow?

  • Do banks still sponsor international students at Associate level?

Thanks for reading.

5 Comments
 
 
Most Helpful
"BallsOnChinBoy" A lot of people do the "I'm gonna get a good GMAT, 750+" thing and should really take some time to look at the material before you borderline assume you can get 98th percentile.

Agree with this - if you actually have a 750+ in hand then assuming the rest of your app is fine then you would probably be a match for the top 15. M7 would be tougher but not impossible (I think you would need something more differentiated for the very top schools).

 

Ea non ut et maxime. Non officiis architecto sequi quos. Assumenda fugit animi ipsam.

Et ut repudiandae ea autem quisquam vel. Cum qui rerum non non. Vero nesciunt omnis pariatur facilis.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (48) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $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
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
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...”