Low gpa into Investment banking

I just transferred into a target school for IB. At my previous school I had a cumulative gpa of 2.75. I know that is a disadvantage for me going into IB. I hate to make excuses but my reason for that is that during my freshman and sophomore year, my mom was battling suicide. I’m since transferring, I am doing well and keeping up with my classes. Any advice on how to go about this for IB? Do they only look at gpa from my new school now?

4 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Have a very well thought out but concise explanation for your GPA that you can flawlessly and charismatically relay in interviews if it is ever brought up. Do not bring it up unless asked.

If you’re motivated enough you can find a way into a shop to jump start your finance career even if you just intend to lateral from it in a year to a better bank.

This is all coming from someone who was in virtually an identical situation 2 years ago.

Don’t give up, bust your ass networking and it is 100% possible to get an offer.

 

One other comment is to not take any rejection (or perceived rejection) personally. We are in economically unstable times, and just remember that the person sitting across from you might also be just as worried about his/her next job opportunity as you are. 

--Death, lighter than a feather; duty, heavier than a mountain
 

Alias itaque omnis aut iste. Modi et et ullam modi. Qui aut in consequatur et non itaque voluptatem. Quae odit et nobis ut enim exercitationem repellendus.

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

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (78) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (72) $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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
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...”