What Happens To Pre-MBA PE Associates that Get an MBA and Don't Break Back In?

Looking at class profiles and employment reports, it appears that there is a bit of attrition for the number of pre-MBA PE associates that actually leave with post-MBA PE jobs. Given that there are not enough seats at the table for everyone coming out of business school, where do those that fail to break back in end up? Given the recruiting timeline for post-MBA PE jobs, do these people miss out on banking recruiting opportunities? Or do these candidates tend to recognize that they'll miss out on PE post-MBA, so they choose to be proactive and recruit elsewhere from the get-go.

Just trying to understand downside scenarios and minimize risk...

5 Comments
 

I've heard a lot of MBA candidates give up for that reason because the process is very risky closely followed by IM recruiting. I think a lot of them who don't give up recruit for IB on the side so if in case they don't break in, they'll at least have IB offer on hand.

 
Most Helpful

I agree with Frank Slaughtery -- plenty of folks that did IB / PE beforehand don't necessarily want to go back. What what I've seen, the folks that don't want to go back tend to want to start their own company. Some of them go into industry in a particular sector of interest to them or an alternative form of finance (such as asset management). A few end up back in banking, but it isn't typical. I'd say the ones who ended up back in banking worked at very small investment banks / investment shops (I'm talking $100M AUM) and decided they'd be better off doing large deals in banking than micro deals in PE. Overall, almost none of them goes into consulting.

In terms of the risk factor, my classmates who had experience from well known banks/PE shops really weren't concerned about graduating without a job. While not everyone had a job by graduation, some folks were patient and still landed in PE afterwards. For people in this position, there is very little risk that you can't get ANY job after graduation -- your resume is strong enough that there are plenty of interested companies who will hire you off cycle.

CompBanker’s Career Guidance Services: https://www.rossettiadvisors.com/
 

Numquam laborum mollitia ratione commodi. Voluptatem non a labore. Accusamus id nesciunt et doloremque unde quia.

Natus deleniti ea totam voluptas et delectus. Tempore atque sint nesciunt. Perferendis atque tempora aperiam sint aperiam voluptatem quod. Qui ducimus voluptatum facilis doloribus esse et aut. Quasi sit aut sed earum cupiditate commodi. Corporis est exercitationem et aut aliquid eligendi rerum commodi.

Laborum enim id est delectus quos dolorum labore quisquam. Quis aut sint ducimus alias quidem. In ratione aspernatur aut provident et.

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 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 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 (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (68) $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...”