Sophomore searching for best career path (2024 Grad)

Hey all,

I am currently a sophomore athlete at a top target ivy with just over a 3.7 GPA, looking for direction. I've talked with to a handful of people from S&T, IBD, and ER, and I have no idea what's right for me. It's hard to balance between being honest on the phone and not trying to sound like a lost idiot, so I'm here looking for guidance.

My end goal is to get back to the west coast where I have family and have good work life balance. I find all the different desks and divisions equally interesting. I'm entirely for grinding out the gates and able to endure the grueling hours, but I'm set on getting back to the west coast and having work life balance. I'm willing to take lesser total comp if that's what it means to get to the end goal. But I'm hoping some of you on here could give some insight to what you think could be a rewarding path and could get me back to southern California? 

1 Comments
 

Deleniti laboriosam libero exercitationem omnis voluptate adipisci. Explicabo qui ut consequatur accusantium quia.

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

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (48) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $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
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
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...”