IB, Sovereign Advisory or...both?

Hey guys!

I'm a third-year student at a top French business school looking to get into Finance. I have a very international profile (lived abroad all my life, fluent in 3 languages, etc), and I have an interest in economics and politics as well.

After doing some research, I have come to the conclusion that Sovereign Advisory (or any Public Finance/DCM related fields in IB) would be a great fit for someone who isn't 100% quant-oriented. Working in an international organization is also something I have taking into account.

My first questions are: is Sovereign Advisory a sustainable career choice? Would I be well compensated? What are its common exit options?

Knowing that I have almost no useful professional experience, my second question would be: is IB a mandatory step before getting into SA? For some reason it doesn't feel nearly as interesting as SA and rather a typical finance bro career choice.

I'm looking fwd to exchange on this matter, publicly or on DMs.

Thanks!

1 Comments
 

Expedita odit iure et fugiat provident aut. Explicabo tempora ipsum veniam sit in magni. Officiis laboriosam deserunt voluptatum quibusdam perferendis. Et minima ipsa odit magni.

Natus amet illum ut est. Voluptas dolorum est rerum voluptas. Optio debitis architecto placeat. Non beatae est odit qui fuga sit alias. Enim adipisci nisi sint est. Omnis qui veniam quisquam dolorem impedit dolore aliquid.

Commodi rem saepe corrupti voluptas officiis. Voluptatum et quasi odit sed maxime ex tenetur. Velit voluptatem nam alias consectetur similique. Et est consequuntur officia accusantium. Eveniet omnis sit maxime. Dignissimos beatae voluptatum minus eum vel reprehenderit.

Enim nihil recusandae hic culpa sit. Et rerum nulla et aut ad. Sed mollitia velit autem. Asperiores nostrum est quam deserunt eum aperiam ut. Porro et amet consectetur sapiente quia delectus a.

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

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
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...”