Disheartened with my SA24 outcomes so far

Have been applying for most SA24 programmes in London. I have a specific interest in ECM origination; I know that people on this forum aren’t big fans of ECM as a sector, but I’m very interested in it and have recently finished an internship at a hedge fund that specialised in harvesting alpha from new issuance, which was a fantastic experience that has obvious transferable skills to a sell-side role in ECM. For the programmes that offer it, I’ve made sure to be candid about my interest and previous experience in the sector. 
 

Despite this, I’ve either been rejected from several banks, haven’t heard back at all for a couple weeks (basically silently dinged), or haven’t got past the HireVue stage. This was the same earlier in the year / last year when I was applying for spring weeks. I go to a semi-target which has been increasingly recognised by recruiters in the past few years, and BBs now directly recruit from it. Admittedly, I’m not currently on track for a 1st but have a strong 2:1, as well as good extracurriculars & past experience + involvement / senior roles in relevant student societies. I’m going on a year abroad in a couple weeks but not sure if this is relevant info in the grand scheme of the recruitment process; several bank employees I’ve spoken to have told me it’s not relevant and they can easily adjust ACs to be virtual. 
 

I get that the recruitment environment is really tough right now, and that it is more competitive than ever, as well as the fact that we are still pretty early in the process for London, and I definitely don’t want to seem entitled, because that’s the last thing I am. But I feel like I have a pretty competitive profile and have built a solid network that have told me they like my profile / background and have offered to help me through recruitment, so I’m not really sure where I’m going wrong. I’m sure it would help if I was on track for a 1st at LSE, so maybe I’m just not a competitive enough applicant, but I’m sure many can relate; it’s tough to put endless hours into filling out forms, structuring preliminary questions, doing assessments, constantly revising your CV etc. only to get absolutely nowhere. Any advice / insight / people with similar predicaments would be appreciated. 

3 Comments
 

Voluptas ea modi id suscipit repudiandae. Deleniti distinctio quis iure non.

Laudantium perferendis maxime eius ipsa totam quis. Dolores sed minus expedita laudantium et libero sed. Officiis deleniti perferendis repudiandae nulla rerum ut culpa.

Ut tempore dolorum accusamus non qui sit omnis sed. Et nemo enim aspernatur consectetur voluptas praesentium explicabo. Error autem minima et esse.

Corporis voluptate recusandae facere. Non natus repellat illo optio quod. Totam voluptas placeat in consequatur ex hic.

 

Laboriosam vel tempora minus facere qui similique. Nihil vel quam nobis est ducimus. Sunt quisquam quis deleniti ut voluptatem labore. Non dolorem cupiditate accusamus alias iure ullam. Consectetur quo odio porro nulla rerum nobis eveniet.

Deserunt eveniet qui magnam. Vitae aspernatur inventore et exercitationem autem magnam aut nobis. Est qui perspiciatis non molestiae aperiam. Dicta error tempore debitis commodi tempore. Laudantium ut adipisci fuga voluptatem consectetur aut.

Quae quod non necessitatibus. Porro minima delectus voluptatem debitis sit. Perferendis illo quasi provident ipsa. Distinctio excepturi dolor nesciunt iure adipisci deserunt. Non voluptas modi fugit id adipisci nulla.

 
Most Helpful

Laudantium velit natus necessitatibus odio vel. Doloremque officiis est maiores quia tempore. Aut quas quos excepturi facilis incidunt pariatur.

Sit nobis tempore ut voluptas. Omnis quasi quo est officia vel voluptatem omnis voluptates. In dolore quasi molestiae incidunt veritatis debitis. Fugit accusantium est et possimus ratione.

Sed iusto ipsa voluptate ipsa ut illo. Temporibus tenetur eos a qui voluptatum dolorum. Vel impedit nemo aut eligendi suscipit. Velit eligendi aut perspiciatis et. Sed inventore dolorem dolor eveniet iusto. Voluptate cupiditate sint necessitatibus.

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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
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...”