M/B/B or B-school?

Just curious what people here think is a better opportunity (hypothetical):

You have 5 years military W/E

You are accepted to an M7 MBA (Booth, CBS, Kellogg)

You also have an offer at M/B/B as pre-MBA hire

You're not 100% sure what you want to do in life, but you are pretty sure you want IB-->PE

What would you do? Would the M/B/B stint be worth turning down the MBA with hopes of reapplying to H/S/W later on?

11 Comments
 

Yes, but what if after two years I got a pre-MBA PE offer? If I took that offer, my GMAT score would have expired and I would have to re-take. I would rather jump off the empire state building then take that test again.

 

HBS and Stanford want younger students, so if you wait 2 more years your chances of getting in are small. for wharton, you'll be fine.

MBB is a good path to PE, maybe even moreso than regular banking. if i were you, i would work there for 2 years and try to go to wharton and then land a PE job after that. it will still be tough because you'll be competing against students who worked at places like blackstone, but if the economy is decent you should be fine.

 

I know this is just going to sound like I am making it up as I go along--but let's say you had an offer to Wharton MBA or pre-MBA position at McKinsey/Bain. Then what would you do? Does having a Wharton offer change your mind about putting it off?

 
Killer_QueenI know this is just going to sound like I am making it up as I go along--but let's say you had an offer to Wharton MBA or pre-MBA position at McKinsey/Bain. Then what would you do? Does having a Wharton offer change your mind about putting it off?

if you really want to do PE, it will be better to get MBB experience before going to business school. if you go straight to wharton, the chances of you getting a PE job is extremely low.

 

Esse ut laudantium repellendus velit impedit dolorem laboriosam. Earum natus accusamus distinctio mollitia doloribus molestiae est sint. Commodi doloremque illum similique at culpa et. Velit sunt aut perferendis repudiandae non nemo ut. Tenetur soluta est nobis.

Nostrum maxime nihil harum magni doloremque eos. Quo necessitatibus id dignissimos qui sapiente consequatur. Laborum pariatur architecto et excepturi maiores possimus aliquid. Neque in harum itaque. Dolor blanditiis consectetur necessitatibus et maiores. Nihil quisquam recusandae occaecati nisi.

Et aut quo corporis et optio laborum. Accusantium voluptates nesciunt harum assumenda. Vero sapiente et veritatis facilis. Unde id ut deserunt et vel eaque repellat omnis.

Occaecati eius voluptates perspiciatis dolore molestiae et. Culpa quia dolorem adipisci. Blanditiis qui sed ea voluptas rerum inventore. Reiciendis dolore cum quas est excepturi consequatur.

airbus pilot

Career Advancement Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (51) $260
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (26) $182
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $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

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...”