Low GPA Econ Major Looking into IB Please Help
Hey all,
I’m new to this site and am looking for advice on what my options are. I’m 22 years old and have one semester left at a top 50 (not really a target school I guess) university. I’m an Economics major with a 2.86 GPA. I’m aware my GPA is very low. I have been doing some soul searching since my semester ended and I am considering pursuing a career in investment banking. I always wanted to do something in the finance/business field but wasn’t sure what to do which is why I choose to major in economics. But after doing a lot of research IB is a career path that really has caught my interest.
My question is: what are my options moving forward to hopefully get a position in IB (such as an analyst) in maybe within the next 2 years? I was considering studying for the GMAT this summer to hopefully get a good score to somewhat offset my lower GPA and apply to MSF programs. The goal here being to kill it in grad school and hopefully network my way into an IB internship. On that note, I have had 3 jobs throughout college but no internship experience.
Is a CFA a viable option? Honestly I am very lost with how to go about giving myself any fighting chance here. I’m not asking how to break into Goldman Sachs here, I would be content with a smaller boutique/regional firm. If you need any extra information from me please let me know.
Thank you in advance for all your help!
Do you have an internship this summer? HAving some kind of relevant experience would be much more helpful than studying for GMAT
I can't speak to MSF programs and I doubt a CFA is the best use of time at this point. You might be able to get some looks from regional boutiques by the time you graduate, but assuming that doesn't work out, perhaps consider applying for Big 4 TAS / other valuation type positions. It's a relatively natural transition that's been done and with a lot of networking, you should have a decent shot to get in somewhere
Thanks for your response!
Unfortunately, I do not have an internship this summer. However, I will be graduating in December and will be on the lookout for finance related internships this coming fall as well as next spring and summer.
Can you elaborate a little more on the Big 4 TAS and how I can use that as a potential stepping stone? I've heard that IBs have a very structured funneling system so would working at a TAS for let's say 2 years and then trying to move over into IB at 24 be a good idea?
Just using it as an example of something reasonably relevant. Banks regularly do lateral hires, reaching out to candidates referred by current employees as well as recruiters. After a year or 2 you'll still need to cast a fairly wide net and make sure you're networking in the meantime. I would try to secure as relevant a job as possible and start networking hard to improve your chances of hearing about opportunities. Similarly, reach out to headhunters who do IB recruiting and make sure to stay on their radar.
Bumping cause I originally posted in the wrong forum and would appreciate any more opinions/advice. Thank you in advance !
You're in a bit of a mess here. IB is a long long shot. Graduating in December is not going to help you either. You'll be out of normal recruiting and need to raise your GPA.
Do your best to get hopefully close to a 3.2 and do your best with recruiting next spring. And I don't mean for IB. You can apply to IB, but unless you know an alum who is an MD, its going to be real rough. You probably won't even get one interview. Do what you can to get a hold of the best position you can and work as hard as you can. That's all you can do at this point.
Also, grad programs weigh undergrad GPA, so finishing early with a lower GPA would hurt you twice.
Thank you for your response!
I agree with you that I have put myself in a tough situation with a 2.9 GPA and no finance related experience. I will be working hard this summer to hopefully find a fall and/or spring internship to gain experience and bolster my resume.
I know that IB is a huge stretch at this point. My Major GPA in Economics is about a 3.2 and my GPA since junior year is over a 3.0. I’m hoping these two trends are worth noting and adding to my resume instead of my overall GPA.
Would you agree that looking for full time work or an internship (paid vs unpaid) is worth more of my time as a 22yo about to graduate in December instead of a Pursuing a Masters in Finance? I was considering the MSF option to “reset my GPA” and provide greater potential exposure for OCR and networking. But now I am not sure how much better these opportunities would be if I didn’t attend a top MSF program and based on my current credentials I doubt I’m a competitive applicant
You're likely going to have to temp/intern initially to get your start and prove yourself. The less time you spend on working on your GPA will force you to be more of a 'splitter' for the test to grad school. Your GMAT score will have to be that much higher to compensate for a low GPA.
If I were you, I would take Summer I, II, Fall 2018 and Spring 2019 coursework. You really need to cram in a bunch of courses before you graduate. Find a part-time finance related internship for June/July/Aug after class. Throw in as many filler/fluff/easy classes you can. You know the ones I'm talking about. The ones that say "easy A" on rate my professor.com. You need every single damn one of those classes. Pick up a minor or something, but only if you can ace it. Maybe statistics or any kind of analytics if your school has it.
You can probably take 6 credit hours Summer I, 6 credit hours Summer II, and at least 18-21 credit hours each semester. That should take you at least to a 3.2 cumulative if you get a 4.0 in these classes (I'm not sure how heavy your 2.9 weighs). If you're trying to save money by graduating early or something and can't pay it, take out a loan for another semester. This last year will be the band-aid on your college degree that you worked so hard on and paid so much money to acquire.
I've seen people schlep through college and finish with a 2.8 or 3.0 in Econ or Business and never do anything. They apply to 5-10 jobs and make excuses and then become a real estate agent and then vanish. If you don't really push this last year, this is likely to happen to you.
For MSF programs, you really need to go to a top school, but even now that path looks unlikely for you. At best, if you go the MSF route, you're going to probably have to settle with a place like Villanova or something to at least give you a chance at getting into a finance position.
For IB though, I think the only real shot you have is to max out your courses now in quantity and quality (4.0 GPA), obtain amazing work experience with demonstrated leadership capabilities (for 2-4 years), obtain a 720+ GMAT, get into a T30 MBA (hopefully T20) and start as an associate in a regional investment bank. If you miss any one of these steps, your chances will approach zero for IB.
also, some colleges will lwt you retake a class to get a better grade...i would look into this...and if possible, retake the classes with your worst grades (only if you can get a 4.0 tho). This would be better than taking more classes to up your GPA.
regarding actual work...another way in is consulting..especially in tech. Technology consulting can easily lead to a FT job, which then leads to lateraling to FO positions. I've seen this many times.
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