Extracurricular Leadership vs. Internships

Background - I am a freshman at a top 15 school (think Johns Hopkins, Northwestern, Cornell, Duke). I have completed multiple finance/business internships and have a very solid one lined up that I'm excited for this summer. I have a ~3.9 GPA. Situation - I am in some of the most exclusive clubs on campus (major feeders into MBB/IB). While I have enjoyed these, I worked at a PE firm during the school year and feel like I learned and grew more than the clubs I'm in could facilitate. Question - I am leaning towards doing part-time internships from here on out while I am at school (they would be with several different firms, not the same one). That being said, while I would remain in the clubs I'm currently in, I would most likely not become part of their leadership. Is this strategy of prioritizing internships over extracurricular leadership experience wise? I feel like it's definitely different from what most people do. Thanks!

1 Comments
 

Alias est voluptatum esse. Rem sunt a necessitatibus sit eum. Alias ea est iste omnis voluptatibus illo. Ea tempore ratione qui maxime exercitationem. Quidem ut dolore voluptatem et. Reiciendis ut et eaque id ut corporis. Modi qui beatae distinctio animi.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

September 2026 Investment Banking

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

Professional Growth Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (50) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (26) $182
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
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...”