Dreaded 2020 Recruiting Season: Need Motivation and Mentorship

Hello everyone,

I have been lurking on WSO for quite some time now and now I have finally decided to write a post now that I am desperate. It is time to swallow my pride and get to work!

I am currently a Senior at a Non-target school in a decent city (think Dallas/Chicago/Seattle) with a 3.8 GPA, I kill my academics with ease and have no problem juggling work and school. I work in retail to pay for school because my parents cannot foot the bill and federal aid does not like me lool.

The biggest disadvantage that I am trying to overcome is the lack of internships on my resume, I wasn't able to land an internship throughout college, I recently fixed up my resume so I think it's okay, however when applying to FT 2020 roles, I am still striking out. I don't know what I should do differently. All I hear is that I should be networking, which I am, I cold email and message on LinkedIn, approximately 30-50 per week and hear back from about 5-10% of them.

I really need some mentorship in this area! I realize that breaking into IB at this point is pretty much impossible, what roles should I be pursuing that will help me lateral into IB eventually? I am looking to get into LevFin so I have been applying to Credit Analyst roles.

I am currently studying for the CFA as well to expand my skillset, I don't want to go to the MBA route without any experience under my belt.

I would appreciate any advice you could give on my situation, anything will help! I would love to hear your stories too and how you guys made it through the rigorous recruiting season successfully!