What should my senior year (HS) internship be? (Summer before college)

I have three options:

  1. Bank of America Student Leaders

- Intern for a non-finance related non-profit - BoA name associated with it - Paid

  1. Real Estate Acquisition “PE” Firm

- Headed by a older legend in the space - Somewhat unlikely I get it, also very unlikely anyone is asking for internships there anyways. - Newer firm, small. - Room to learn and grow, maybe prepare for REIB, get to speak with a legend

  1. Commercial Real Estate Firm

- Get to work on $10MM+ transactions for commercial spaces in an urban area - Likely I get it - Good experience, unlikely to do anything impactful as I’m a high school senior.

I don’t want to be the coffeeboy, I just want to learn as much as possible over the summer. The competitive edge from these internships could be game-changing. Looking into IB as a post-college career.

18 Comments
 

That’s my logic.

Would rather get something done to get that “competitive edge” and some experience under my belt beforehand.

I had my fun in HS, I can still have fun working lmao

 

You’re right, but it’s not that competitive that you need to get an internship before freshman year. Once you get on campus there will be opportunities to build out your resume like getting an internship during the school year and getting involved with ECs.

Enjoy one of the last free summers you have with your friends. You have a lifetime to work.

 

I would do something fun and hang out with your friends because the finance industry in the end really values people who are personable and fun to be around, rather than a machine.

From your choices, I would probably say 1,3,2 in that order. The bigger CRE firm would probably let you do more, the smaller PE firm doesn't have an internship program so they wouldn't be familiar with training you and giving you work to do, since they don't know if you are qualified at all. Anyways, you are likely to do administrative duties.

Name of BofA is good for networking later on with BofA people, and CRE firm would give more 'experience'.

 

Yo, I'm in very similar circumstances as you (Current HS senior in NY likely going non-target/semi-target) and also looking for internships.  Can I pm you and ask about how you found these opportunities?  

 

The only internship this kid should be looking for is smashing 4lokos and ripping dye all summer long

 

Praesentium similique praesentium et nesciunt impedit provident vel. Libero dolor ducimus dolorum consequatur. Ex sit quaerat quam assumenda velit reiciendis error.

Ut incidunt minima dolorem et consequatur iure. Eligendi maiores velit nobis architecto sed. Debitis deserunt sed quisquam molestiae in quia. Quisquam consectetur in sed explicabo. Praesentium veniam aut exercitationem voluptas dicta adipisci. Inventore nihil consequatur natus inventore expedita est qui. Dolorem eum sit aut quisquam et ea sapiente.

Maxime molestias culpa qui blanditiis in perferendis. Qui nam illo est. Ut magni qui dolorem laudantium. Id ipsam minima esse aut tempora molestias.

Voluptatum velit numquam nobis iusto. Ut est et alias vitae unde. Labore natus quo praesentium quis est. In deleniti ad tenetur sunt omnis.

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
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
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
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...”