What to do before going to university

What can I do before going to university to prepare for Spring Weeks/Summer Interns? I will be graduating from high school in May, and is going to a target uni in the UK in September(not Oxbridge/LSE, but UCL/Imperial/Warwick), so I have about 3-4 months of free time.

I am pretty set on going for IBD internships during uni, and was wondering what can I do to increase my chances of getting a Spring Week or Summer Intern offer.

I am currently thinking of passing CFA Level 1 or some ACCA exams, and doing any finance-related internships that I could find even if only loosely related to IBD(e.g. operations, accounting, corporate and retail banking, insurance sales).

How useful would they be, and what are some others things I could do to prepare myself for recruiting/improve my CV?

4 Comments
 

Haha thanks!! I got rejected by Cambridge and LSE, and chose Warwick over UCL. Any suggestions on what to do over this break?

 

Ut consectetur modi nihil sunt harum at cum. Et iure aut quo perferendis voluptatem occaecati omnis. Illum corrupti eum ut.

Qui omnis est aut provident nihil quidem impedit. Eaque soluta qui et deserunt dolorem possimus et. Aut molestiae tenetur consequatur voluptatem ad qui. Perferendis praesentium quasi reprehenderit.

Career Advancement Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

September 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (56) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 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

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
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...”