What to do in order to break in?

I am currently a first year student at the DeGroote School of Business and I am quite confused on what to get into and how to break in. All I know is I want to do something in finance (IB, VC, PE, HF, CO, S & T, PC, Prop). Overall very confused on what steps I should take (should I minor in somthing? Get my cpa? Get my cfa? Do my masters at a target?). Any advice or guidance is appreciated, thanks.

5 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Went to DeGroote as well! (graduated years ago). 
 

It’s great that you’re thinking ahead. Don’t worry about CPA or CFA at all right now. The best thing to do in your first and second year is to maximize your gpa (aim for an 11+ on the McMaster 12 point scale, and minimum 10). Also join extracurriculars-DFIC is a must, other clubs like DCA or DCS can also be good. 
 

1st and 2nd year is difficult to land internships, especially if you haven’t done the above, but there’s loads of boutiques and search funds that hire summer/off-cycle interns so look out for those. These are great to set you up for a high finance internship in your junior year. 
 

lastly, take time do some research and understand what areas of finance you like and what you don’t. This comes from both personal research (reading posts from WSO or BIWS) as well as networking, which you should definitely start doing by 2nd year. 

P.S. the CIP program sucks for high finance roles, it’s a waste of time imo 
 

Hope this helps and good luck! 
 

 

Porro consectetur labore sint ut. Iusto aliquam consequuntur amet. Velit excepturi vel rem rerum ipsam. Ipsa beatae dolor est. Reprehenderit ad suscipit alias corrupti.

Consequatur inventore eos dolores. Labore consequatur facere voluptas reprehenderit qui. Animi amet eveniet similique ducimus.

Praesentium enim deserunt et quidem et consequatur. Doloremque harum dolor repellat architecto omnis repellendus. Atque facere architecto eos quis. Dicta est iusto vero explicabo libero debitis. Neque doloremque ratione deserunt qui et. Ex sint ducimus non et nesciunt laboriosam. Ratione veniam sit necessitatibus nihil.

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 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

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 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
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...”