How are these positions possible?

Hey everyone,

Just to preface, I am a senior in high school and I am planning to attend a ‘good’ school and try for a career in finance.

I was looking through profiles at some top firms like Lazard and Evercore, and found that quite literally every-other profile I clicked was of a Managing Director etc. from a ‘non-target’ school. And some of these schools were very non-target, like unheard of. I was just wondering, how is this possible? It seems like everyone stresses target schools to me, to an extreme extent, yet I’m seeing various MD’s from Pennsylvania State University and Baylor etc..

I understand that these MD’s started their careers 10-15 years ago, but have times really changed that much, to where targets matter much more now? Or is pure hard work still a viable way to break-in regardless of your school?

Thanks

4 Comments
 

Minus fuga ut velit accusamus doloribus. Eos provident ipsa eum eos autem expedita reprehenderit. Dolores laborum consequatur quia iusto similique a. Nostrum autem rerum maxime nesciunt est quia adipisci.

Rerum omnis dolore doloremque quia architecto. Eligendi reiciendis voluptatum illum commodi enim. Expedita molestias sint accusantium dolores. Amet consequatur possimus dolorem doloremque nulla consequuntur. Aspernatur tempore minus debitis commodi. In inventore ab illum dolorem ullam sunt nihil. Consequuntur minus sed repudiandae.

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

Career Advancement Opportunities

November 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

November 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 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

November 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

November 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

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...”