How to get into Bay Street IB/consulting with a political background?
As title states I am looking on how to utilize my background for a career chance in finance.
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To break into Bay Street IB or consulting with your political background and economics major at Queen's University, here's a structured game plan based on the most helpful WSO content:
1. Leverage Your Political Background
2. Maximize Queen's University Resources
3. Network Strategically
4. Secure Relevant Internships
5. Develop Technical Skills
6. Excel Academically
7. Plan for the Long Term
8. Prepare for Recruitment
9. Consider Backup Options
By following this game plan, you can position yourself as a strong candidate for Bay Street IB or consulting roles despite not being in the Commerce program. Your unique background, combined with strategic networking and skill-building, will be your key to success.
The Truth:
In Canada, if you are not in a specific "business / commerce" program at your university, it will be extremely hard to land the types of jobs you are looking for. This is because a lot of the recruiting opportunities will only get funneled to those in the business programs.
For example, Smith Commerce students will have their own job portal that you won't have access to. Also, recruiting events for the companies you are aiming for are typically restricted to those in the Commerce program. Finally, clubs where a lot of the informal recruiting takes place are usually restricted to the Commerce students.
Disclaimer: I didn't attend QComm, but this rings true for all business programs in Canada.
MBAs:
MBAs are also relatively useless in Canada. If you want to get the most out of an MBA you will have to attend a Top 15 school in the United States and that will be extremely expensive.
On top of that, recruiting rates out of even these top MBAs in the US are falling, and why would you want to wait until after undergrad to pursue business roles? Anyways, most MBAs won't take you without a couple of years of work experience anyways.
If you start in a business program now, you can start getting work experience in the consulting field much earlier.
Suggested Plan:
If I were you, I would request to defer my admission to QU Econ for a year (cite mental health reasons or some BS) and re-apply to the top business programs in Canada like Western Ivey AEO, Queen's Commerce and McGill Desautels.
You seem to have some decent extracurriculars and I am sure your grades are good enough to qualify for admissions. Take the year to reapply, get more relevant work / extracurricular experience for consulting and (if needed) take online classes through ILC (Independent Learning Centre) to improve your grades.
My Experience:
I personally did this, as when I graduated my best options were McGill Arts or McMaster Commerce. I accepted McGill Arts with the intention of doing Economics, but I realized that not being in their business program would heavily limit my opportunities. I then took a gap year, re-applied and have now graduated from a target business school.
I had thought about trying to transfer into McGill's business program after first year, but I realized it was fully dependent on your first year grades and you pretty much needed a near perfect 4.0 GPA. I know that the internal transfer process for Queen's is quite similar, plus there is very limited (under 5-10) spots.
Plus, from what I have heard, transfers into QComm have to basically restart as a first year anyways as their credits do not transfer well. Why take a chance at less than 5-10 spots when you can apply for the new class with 500+ spots?
Conclusion:
In conclusion, instead of going into a sub-par program that will limit you in the long-run, take a step back and do a gap year, re-apply to the top programs and you will be much better setup to pursue the career you want.
There is no rush, and looking back, taking my gap year completely changed the trajectory of my life. I definitely felt at the time that it was a risky idea, but looking back it was one of the best decisions of my life.
Best of luck.
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