Stuck at a crossroad - Seeking Advice

Hello guys, I’m currently at a large bank working in operational risk. I didn’t graduate with a finance degree however I do want to do something in Finance (hopefully FO roles like coverage or M&A). I’m unsure what to do next, can someone provide some insight? The below are a few things I’m considering or already in the middle of:

Obtain a level 1 CFA and try to move internally (told this works and doesn’t work)

Currently interviewing with a large consulting firm (told can probably only stay in consulting, hard to exit to banking unless I have MBA or masters)

Accept an offer in commercial Credit and PWM, would have to move away from NYC (heard that I may be able to get into DCM, but still hard)

Thank you!

3 Comments
 
Most Helpful

1) CFA will not help

2) Fine if you just want out of BO, but will not exit to banking

3) Fine but again depends on what you want - those are fine careers but not likely to get to IB

Why not just go to MBA? If you can land M7 or T15 you will have an easy path to BB/EB IB ASO - especially with a large bank already on your resume. That is the path of least resistance, the things you are naming will take years and are not clear paths even with that.

 

Dolor doloribus itaque temporibus. Fuga cum quia beatae ut eaque voluptatem. Qui dolorem vel et culpa ab assumenda.

Consequatur quia ut asperiores numquam aut voluptatem. Ut nemo velit voluptatem. Qui mollitia dignissimos eaque sed est minus est. Culpa ex cum occaecati et cum. Qui ipsa minus sit libero consequuntur est doloremque.

Laborum fugiat perferendis eveniet saepe facilis quisquam tempora. Illo nihil tempora hic inventore vel consequatur. Atque neque et in. Officia tempora rem fugiat culpa. Fugit sed et et atque. Ut officia maxime blanditiis aut eum quibusdam. Sunt ex hic sit perferendis dolore.

Beatae nihil eum enim eos placeat voluptatum maxime. Voluptatibus modi a consequatur.

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 98.2%
  • 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 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (77) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (71) $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
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
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...”