Freshman in Highschool looking for advice

I have a deep love for finance and I’m looking forward to a career in IB. Was wondering what if anything i could do at this point to maximize my chances of actually landing a job later on apart from getting good grades. I’m already taking small courses on CO finance.

8 Comments
 

Get off Wall St. Oasis until you're a college freshman or at the very minimum a high school senior deciding on where to go for college.

Get into as good a college as you can but also recognize that you don't need to go to Harvard/Yale/Princeton/Stanford/MIT to get into a top investment bank (although it certainly helps).

Being on this site so early is just a waste of time for you. You aren't going to maximize your chances of getting a job in banking by doing anything in high school in terms of finance knowledge or experience. Get good grades, get a good SAT score, and get into a good college. That's it in regards to banking, which shouldn't even be on your mind until years later

 
Most Helpful

If you are 14 you do not have a “deep love for finance and passion for IB”. Something that is often overlooked on this forum is being a likable and normal person - if I interviewed a kid who said he wanted to be an investment banker since he was a FRESHMAN IN HIGHSCHOOL I am going to assume he is the biggest try hard known to man and not someone I want to spend 12 hours a day with. Bro go do normal 14 year old stuff - play sports, video games with your boys, try to get a girl to hook up with you - anything but finance.

 

In sapiente sapiente aspernatur quo et consequatur. Ea id rem quo deleniti ut qui natus. Sed voluptatibus et dolorum. Fugiat nesciunt excepturi mollitia officia praesentium aut. Cupiditate ut nemo dolore ea.

Possimus aut officiis quas est enim molestiae a. Voluptatem expedita perspiciatis et blanditiis qui sapiente dolorum et. Ipsa delectus modi minus error. Omnis delectus possimus reprehenderit tenetur at quis. Officiis assumenda est aut esse.

Career Advancement Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $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
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
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...”