Would an MSF be stupid to do after graduation for me?
I'm a senior at a non-target school in the midwest studying finance and accounting. I had an IB SA gig this past summer at a top MM bank (Jeff, Gugg, HL, WB, etc.) not in NYC. I unfortunately didn't end up receiving a FT return offer, and for the life of me have not been able to land a FT job in IB. I've tried interviewing for roles such as rx consulting and a family office role as well but didn't end up getting those.
I'm thinking about doing a top MSF (Vandy or WashU) and going back to one of the firms I've previously interned at for the summer to see if I can give myself another shot at FT IB recruiting in the fall. I'm starting to give up hope that I'll be able to land something, and I don't really want to do anything else besides IB. I have a 3.9 cumulative GPA, done 4 IB/PE internships, and been involved with a lot of stuff on campus (Greek life, IB club, school investment fund, etc.). I haven't taken the GMAT but I see for Vandy at least you can get it waived if you have a high enough GPA, which I think I can.
Would this be a stupid way to get back into IB considering I'd be risking a lot of time/money on banking getting back into IB FT and should I just cut my losses and go see if I can find a role in something like FP&A or TAS and try to lateral back into IB after 6-12 months? Would love to hear thoughts.
Based on the most helpful WSO content, pursuing an MSF in your situation could be a viable option, but it comes with significant caveats. Here's a breakdown:
MSF as a Path Back to IB:
Cost and Risk:
Alternative Routes:
Your Profile:
Recommendation:
If you're set on IB and willing to take the financial risk, a top MSF could give you another shot at recruiting. However, given your strong profile, exploring lateral opportunities in FP&A, TAS, or valuation might be a more cost-effective and practical way to achieve your goal.
Sources: Is Networking Better Than Doing A MSF Program?, MSF Question and Answer, Graduating MSF - no job, MSF or MBA for my experience level?
Lateraling back in "6-12 months" is not necessarily realistic.
I don't think its unreasonable to try. You've got great background experience that would be well respected in the msf and applying out of it, and not converting the SA isn't a mark on you.
Next vandy deadline is march 5th, doubt you can get the gmat waived and make a quality application before then so you would be looking at round 4, April 30th...so no reason not to try to make that deadline, keep up the other application efforts in the meantime until results come back.
Yeah that's fair considering it's not IB that it would take a few years to lateral back. I'm still in talks about an an1 spot with a small regional boutique bank. I would rather take that than go back to school, but they have an unstructured process so I don't have full certainty that anything will materialize.
I just didn't have a lot of time to network after learning I didn't get the return, so I think this would give me a cushion of time since I've built up a larger network since August. From the sounds of how deal activity has been, it sounds like there would be a pretty good chance that there would be FT seats opening up come the fall.
I'll start working on the application for round 4. Would it be a damper on me that I'm not taking the GMAT? I see for WashU it's optional, but Vandy does have that waiver you can apply for.
Yo PM rq
i mean the gmat waiver does exist for a purpose, obviously it is preferred and might make for a bit more of a roudned candiacy, but i think you have solid internships that make up for it.
I know people who have done MSF and broken in immediately, but I just question why you would pay $50k-$75k for a iffy ft pipeline instead of working in a non-IB finance job (corp banking for ex or FP&A like you mentioned) and making like $60k-$80k while trying to network. I'd set the lateral timeline at more like 1-3 years. The added benefit of that route is that if you still can't get in and you're still set on IB you can go MBA route and hopefully land MBA AS role. Just my two cents
That's a fair take. I know the MSF is high risk high reward. I didn't anticipate not getting a return offer so I wasn't really networking with other banks over the summer, and just felt like I was cooked from the get go. I feel like if I locked down an internship and keep grinding with the networking I'm doing now I could lock something down FT. MSF in my mind would be just be a cushion for more added time.
Should I look into accounting as well? I did some accounting related internships earlier in my college career and was told if I'm doing TAS type work doing QoEs that would be a great background to move back into IB. Only thing is I'm not planning to sit for the CPA.
Nothing wrong with looking at accounting but my experience was that TAS was as competitive as LMM IB/ regional MM IB at least, but if you can get in obviously great. Also locking down an internship is kinda why I don't love MSF. Like unless you did a 2 year or 18 month MSF and were able to hop into SA recruiting for summer '27 rn which would be late you're gonna be using the school's network for ft roles not internship. Like at the end of the day adding another local pe/ search fund to your resume this summer prolly doesn't move the needle right? Ig i just don't see a world where someone with a year at vandy MSF is a better applicant than someone with a year in corporate banking. Could always be wrong ofc.
I'm just curious by why do you think it would take 1-3 years to lateral back in? I'm not saying you're wrong, that just seems like a lot of time past a year for someone with experience in the space, considering it seems like I see immediate start analyst postings on LinkedIn almost every week it feels like. I know someone who worked for 6 months at some bs search fund after not getting a return offer and got back to IB at a top MM firm. Do internships not hold a lot of weight? I've done 2 PE and 2 IB internships.
I understand they don't hold as much merit as FT roles. I'm currently in talks with a regional boutique IB who is looking for an an1, so that might be a possibility. Also, do you think it'd be possible to try to recruit FT 2027 roles while working in FP&A, corporate banking, etc.?
my hold up is why offer the guy working in xyz job for 6 months, when there is another kid freshly minted out of the factory wuth the same credentials. Switching times aren't as short as they used to be and i think the 6 month example is a bit lucky.
Del
You could try applying to an MSF program and see if you could get a scholarship/GAship. So it’s not always 50-60k as people make it out to be especially considering you have a strong resume.
Regarding TAS and FP&A, I believe you need to be qualified to sit in for the CPA exam to be in TAS and I haven’t met anyone who lateraled into baking from Corp fin apart from CD.
I did the Vandy program with similar experience and had great outcomes, so I think it's a viable route provided you're comfortable with the cost. The folks in my class with real IB internships (not the local / micro-boutique internships) had really strong placement relative to the rest of the class, and your employability is the most important factor for AdComs at professional programs like this.
Were I in your position at this stage in the application cycle, I'd go ahead and get your resume over to the admissions folks and let them know you're filling out the application / taking the GMAT quickly. They might look at your profile and wave the GMAT anyways to get you locked into their class. Good luck
That's awesome to hear — poster mentioned above but want to look if I can get a good scholarship. I'd probably be looking at banks in the same tier of what I was at this past summer. I wasn't sure how competitive the MSF programs are, but seems like a lot of people who didn't initially come from a finance background. I ultimately just want to give myself more time to network over the summer, and utilize connections of people I know at prior firms I've worked. I'll likely be going back to a PE firm I interned at a couple summers back.
I'll shoot my resume over to the admissions committee. Looks like I'll have to apply for round 4 which is 4/30. Appreciate the advice!
Can you pm me so I can ask you some questions?
The guy who did the Vandy MSF!
Had a buddy who had a similar experience. He did Vandy MSF and landed EB FT. If you have former high finance experience, recruiting is insanely easy out of Vandy Msf according to him.
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