Is there any way into Banking for me now!?

Hello.

Supposing you have messed up spectacularly in your undergrad degree, is there any realistic alternative route into banking and finance besides the standard one of top grades-internship-permanent position? I was hoping to follow the aforementioned career progression myself until last year when my final year of university went horrifically badly. Would it be fair to say that the ambition to work in banking is now something I will just have to set aside altogether?

The best I've been able to find by way of potential alternatives to a solid degree is the CFA programme– is this something that would carry any weight on an application at all when measured against a poor degree performance? Besides that, courses such as the ACA/ACCA are an option but they seem geared towards the more prosaic field of accountancy and audit.

If anyone could offer any further suggestions or thoughts/advice on any of the above that would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

 

Get into one of the Big 4 and transfer around to their Restructuring / M&A / Valutation dept.. From there jump to a Boutique such as DC, Hawkpoint or McQueen. Before any of you US guys shit on this plan this guy is from the UK, things are, shocking as it may seem, different here.

"After you work on Wall Street it’s a choice, would you rather work at McDonalds or on the sell-side? I would choose McDonalds over the sell-side.” - David Tepper
 
Oreos:
Get into one of the Big 4 and transfer around to their Restructuring / M&A / Valutation dept.. From there jump to a Boutique such as DC, Hawkpoint or McQueen. Before any of you US guys shit on this plan this guy is from the UK, things are, shocking as it may seem, different here.
if you've got a gig in big4 M&A/restructuring or whatever, you could probably parlay that into something beyond a boutique i.e. a MM, no?
 
Best Response
swagon:
Oreos:
Get into one of the Big 4 and transfer around to their Restructuring / M&A / Valutation dept.. From there jump to a Boutique such as DC, Hawkpoint or McQueen. Before any of you US guys shit on this plan this guy is from the UK, things are, shocking as it may seem, different here.
if you've got a gig in big4 M&A/restructuring or whatever, you could probably parlay that into something beyond a boutique i.e. a MM, no?

Due the size of the market there isn't as large a MM sector, it's mainly populated by the Euro banks, RBC and the English banks which are in the shitter. Personally all banks I wouldn't touch (apart from RBC) and would prefer to go to a pure M&A shop which hasn't got the Euro exposure ( and the elite probably wont sniff too much at Big 4). But that's me. Also the boutiques above do have a good rep in the UK (DC less so these days).

"After you work on Wall Street it’s a choice, would you rather work at McDonalds or on the sell-side? I would choose McDonalds over the sell-side.” - David Tepper
 
looking4anything:
Should've thought of this before you partied so hard eh?

Haha, I guess partying is one reason I'm in this spot. Not the only one though.

looking4anything:
Besides the sarcastic comment, depending on how bad your grades are... networking is the most important thing for anybody and that is even more important for f*ckups in school.

Doesn't that presuppose I have a credible place within the network in the first place? Which I don't feel like I do now with just a botched degree and some limited intern experience to my name. I'm really wondering about the merit of any investment specific qualifications (such as the CFA which I mentioned) that I can take on in the short term to potentially help my cause.

Currently I'm looking around for any junior data analysis positions with the intention to maybe study for a qualification concurrently and go from there. Don't know if that's a solid plan or not?

 
illiniPride:
CFA is useless for entry level banking (especially M&A). Save your money.

Righty. What is it useful for in that case? I'm just looking for something that could give me a way into finance generally on the ground level so I have a platform upon which to get more relevant experience/know-how. Currently I'm not specifically orienting my aims towards front office - with my present credentials that's something of a pipe dream.

 
Zavodovski:
illiniPride:
CFA is useless for entry level banking (especially M&A). Save your money.

Righty. What is it useful for in that case? I'm just looking for something that could give me a way into finance generally on the ground level so I have a platform upon which to get more relevant experience/know-how. Currently I'm not specifically orienting my aims towards front office - with my present credentials that's something of a pipe dream.

Asset Management and ER.

"After you work on Wall Street it’s a choice, would you rather work at McDonalds or on the sell-side? I would choose McDonalds over the sell-side.” - David Tepper
 

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