How important is IB? Need help.

How important is it to have IB experience when working in finance? It feels like in order to be successful in this field you need to have worked for a top bank or graduated from an ivy, but I don’t fit that criteria. I go to a top 50 state school with a good business program that feeds into the big four, but I don’t really have anything else going for me. I feel screwed because I didn’t plan ahead enough. I didn’t know what I wanted to do in high school, so I went to a community college. I admittedly saved a shit ton of money (actually made money from FAFSA), and eventually found my passion in finance, but I just feel like I took too long. Given my circumstances, I likely won’t ever be an investment banker, and I feel utterly doomed.

I know I’ll be able to make a steady living when I graduate. I know I’ll have plenty of opportunities in corporate finance, but I think part of me can’t stand the fact that due to not deciding on a career earlier in life I’ve basically sealed my fate from ever being able to pursue a job in high finance. Is it possible for me to ever change this someday?

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