Business school and choosing the right path

Objective:
Get into top B-School program in the United States and enter Wall IB/PE after graduation

Background:
International student from a tiny country in South Asia. Completed my undergrad from a non-target in New York.
Spent a summer in Corporate and Investment Banking at a Canadian bank and did half a year of RE development after graduation. Didn't enjoy RE role, decided to move back home which has underdeveloped financial markets.

Currently:
Noticed VCs and growth equity shops opening up so took that as an opportunity to start a corporate advisory business - helping businesses from a corporate finance perspective to raise capital, and investors exit their positions. Since it's a small country, I have an existing network with businesses and institutional investors that I could leverage to create deal flow. There are currently 2-3 ~$1 million deals in the pipeline (first 2 months of operation).

Options:
1. Work for big 4 firm on a finance related but non IB/non advisory role (mostly related to development of financial system in the country)
2. Work for myself and try to close a few deals on small cap raises, maybe some strategic acquisitions
3. Work for an existing local investment bank and help them build their IB business - more on the advisory side (IBs here mostly involve ECM, PWM and asset management only)

Your help would be highly appreciated.

Thanks guys,
Flat6 - wannabe chimp

1 Comments
 

Excepturi ut ut voluptatem quaerat omnis expedita dolorem et. Voluptatem amet cumque quia. Doloremque amet assumenda quaerat quia.

Itaque beatae in repellat unde aliquam delectus ipsum. Occaecati illum consequatur ex inventore aspernatur.

Eos rerum pariatur eveniet recusandae corporis ipsa. Quam consequuntur fuga nesciunt. Ut accusamus et quas iusto facilis eos consequatur explicabo.

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
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
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
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...”