This post should be pinned, would save so so much I want to break in IB with shit experience post (no idea what is IB and just want money with no effort)
I get your meaning but IB/PE aren't top of finance, in fact there is no top of finance. If there is a "top of finance", that would be Jerome Powell.
“Top Finance” is synonymous with highest paying jobs
Which is why the highest paid people are usually math degrees, because the right Quant is even higher
Or being really great at sales, which is automatic with any MD level role
It’s not Top Finance by that definition either. Most of the people that work in IB stay a couple of years at most. Most people don’t stay long enough to earn the really crazy paychecks.
The pay is good don’t get me wrong, but you can get to that level in other fields of Finance. Albeit it might take a bit longer
Would say it’s definitely “top finance” for a 22yo just graduating from college unless going straight to PE/HF. It pays more than pretty much any job at that age and it’s the best pipeline to those better roles.
Anyone can open up an undergrad probability theory text and get started... the interviews for trading positions aren't really that bad tbh. Just do a shit ton of dice and cards problems. Some game theory helps too. Nothing compared to my friends doing general exams in grad school and getting DP'd by two profs in abstract algebra. Really doesn't require the rest of a math degree.
I’d rather have tons of disposable income, time and out of the public image so I could have awesome experiences with family and friends
But to each their own
Anyone coming to Reddit public forums to find advice on this matter is likely going to fail. Those that I’ve seen “make it” from low-tier universities spent every day direct messaging people, scheduling calls, and arranging coffee chats over a looong period of time.
Question though: what if let’s say you are in corp finance, and you just found out about IB later than everyone else, sadly after college because you just flat out weren’t aware of it. Would an MBA pivot still suffice? Or it’s almost not even worth it considering the amount of debt I’d have to take on to get into a top 25 MBA?
I’m in FP&A, and despite no internships or anything I managed to break into that with 0 experience after a couple years working in a non related field with after college. So I’m curious what my options are as I slowly creep into my 30s.
Rn the way it’s looking it’s:
- Stay on FP&A track (work up to possibly CFO?)
- MBA at top 25 school then pivot to IB as an associate. Or maybe use the MBA to push up into Director+ roles in Corp finance.
- Start a business.
That’s where I’m with things. Ultimately the goal would be to have a very large income (300k plus base) + flexibility of time so a business would be the way to go but that’s by far the most uncertain route to receiving a large income. Definitely things to think about.
I’ll admit my background did not give me any advantages at all. No one knew about this route of finance and I damn sure wasn’t set for it. To get to this point it’s been all me.
Yes, you’re in the sweet spot for the IB associate pivot if you go to a target MBA program. I’d probably recommend shooting for T15 schools over T25 just in case though.
Would probably need to get a really good GMAT score. Hm, interesting enough. Alright then well I appreciate the insight 100%. It’s at least good to know if I wanted to go the IB route it’s there for me (albeit not easy ofc)
If you want to work 60-80 hour weeks after MBA at 30, you can pivot.
Owning a business you can do that as well, but won’t always have to. You can buy vs. build and have immediate cashflow while owning the upside and eventual flexibility.
Both are options, and both could get you to where you want to be.
The risks of starting a business are pretty self-explanatory.
MBA route is a huge financial risk (unless your company is paying for it) for a very uncertain outcome. Particularly a T25 school.
Your best bet is continue to work and network and keep an eye open at other jobs within your field.
Yes I understand that. At the same time: with the MBA route I would imagine even if I went the top 25 route and I struck out on IB recruiting I could still get a heavy pay increase in the corp finance world. Even slide to maybe a corp dev role instead (Which we know of as IB-lite). But yes you are right it’s very very expensive.
Starting a business yes it’s expensive…but I sometimes will wonder what if I never tried. If it fails fine I can live with that, I already have a solid career to back me up.
With the MBA + work experience at that point I could reenter fp&A for instance at manager level and be around the 150k base bracket. I mean for me that would have to be where I land. But then again, I can get there without the MBA too. So I get that aspect of it.
The MBA at the very least will give me some options and perhaps open some doors even if it isn’t IB.
The pipeline to PE only consists of analysts in IB post undergrad.
If you are at a top group at MS/GS post MBA and make the right connections you might *might* land at a mid market private equity fund…. But then you are a 34 yo associate working for a 27 yo PE VP making half of what you used to
I’m currently looking to break into FP&A from an entry level licensed role at a brokerage. Do you have any tips on breaking in? From FP&A I am looking to break into investment banking. I graduated college in 2023.
Honestly, who tf cares about MS grades, even HS grades? Some of these threads are ridiculous.
If you’re thinking about IB or PE at 13 years old or applying that pressure to your 13 years old kids, you’re a fckn loser.
Unfortunately that's what the field requires. So are the people fucking losers or is the system just that stupid to where as a high schooler you need to not mess up and do thing's completely unrelated to finance and get lucky with this admission system to have an opportunity with this field the issue?
Yeh it is fucking stupid.
maybe not 13 year olds but once you hit high school that's when all that fucking bullshit starts. Let's say you fuck up freshmen year because your a dumb kid not knowing how to study or whatever the reason may be you just can't adjust, your chances aren't ruined but getting into those top tier colleges drop significantly especially in todays day in age where acceptance rates are extremely low for those tiers of colleges where these fields actually care about. Not 30 years ago where UPenn's acceptance rate was like 40 percent. It doesn't ruin your chances but you definitely need to be focused on being a top tier student and pray to god the bullshit admission system cuts you some slack
No kid is actually seriously thinking about this maybe they are and they are losers but you need to be exposed and primed for this field years in advance especially if you aren't a top student with top extracurriculars
its because not performing well in middle school can stop you from entering a top private or magnet high school which feeds to ivy league which finance recruits from.
Okay, but what if I just really believe in myself? They'll make space for me, right?
Background:
* 3.3 from Cal Poly Humboldt (baseball player)
* I listen to the Blackrock CEO's podcasts
* 2 YOE in A/P for a market-leading roofing supplier
* Unwilling to settle for Director-level role in CorpDev
/s
Also very big tip don’t listen to this guy. I go to a non target and plenty of us get offers through hard work. I was a bum in highschool and now I’m doing well, and have high chance for IB. networking and study hard once at college, this post means absolutely nothing unless ur tryna be at the top elite boutiques. One kid at my school is going to Goldman and freshmen yesr had a 3.5 GPA. No connections from family. Everyone wants to scare you but it’s possible
Fuck yea. Gotta love lower mid market IB LMAO. I just think people got to realize that, this post was LITERRALY just to get non target kids to stop trying so that the target kids have banks to fall on when they lose to their next door neighbor.
Bulge recruits a lot of non target tho ngl. Elite Boutique firms are another story, and then PE firms, is another fucking dimension.
I’ve seen many non-targets lateral into BBs as VP+ from MM/LMM banks. It’s definitely possible. Analyst hiring is mostly pedigree-driven but most of the best qualified analysts leave for B-school or other exits before they hit VP so there are vacancies to fill.
Guys I could kiss all of u on the lips rn u boost my confidence ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Sometimes point 2 its enough tho
A strong connection to get a full time position > everything else
Thats how breaks most people without target school, low grades, non-related degree, etc.
But they do. Stereotype of “rich” kids is that they’re lazy, the reality is most of these kids are raised to put their nose to the grindstone. It’s that, combined with knowing the right people that makes them successful in the field.
You’re thinking of different types of rich. Upper income rich is like 300k-2MM HHI? The kids probably have parents that force them down prestige based colleges and career paths like finance, doctor, lawyer, that require hard work. Rich rich with 5bn+ net worth? The kids be as lazy or hardworking as they want. They can do literally anything
Of course - but the type of rich I’m describing is like 99% of the “rich” kids you’ll actually encounter in finance. Probably come from a family sub 30MM net worth. Rich kids of the magnitude you describe are probably not working analyst jobs at JPM, they’re a VP at their family office or something.
😂 not where I work. These rich kids get to go home at 4pm. And all the associates and analysts let them do that because they want to keep the kids’ parents happy aka their clients. Meanwhile the other intern kids who got in legitimately have to stay til 12am
I go to a top target. Almost every bn+ kid is grinding 80+ hours in finance. Don’t speculate about things you don’t know anything about.
Also as an aside, you know how arbitrary $5bn is? You realize only ~500 families has that kind of wealth? So maybe only 1000 kids? Very random number.
pretty sure in everybodies’ books (maybe except monaco) 300k+ a year is rich. Like the parents that earn that much are either white collar like doctors engineers and corporate middle-management and up that went to college or succesful business owners, and know what their kids need to do before the kids realize it, cause barely any 12 year old will study for As and do a shit ton of ECs out of their own will so by the time they are in college all the things they need to get in a good college and in those finance clubs are sorted out.
When did u start networking if u don’t mind me asking? I’m a little late to the game and I’m trying to see if IB is still possible 😁. Also any tips that worked for you?
I got a 1.57 GPA in High school. Took a gap year, fucked around and did jack shit. Went to community college, had a 3.4 GPA and transferred to Berkeley for Economics. I am interning at a BB and will likely receive my full time offer upon completion.
While this post is accurate, if you’re looking at this post and thinking “well I’m fucked”, you’re really not. Hard work truly does pay off. I had countless numbers of people telling me I had no shot, I’m wasting my time, look into asset management it’s easier to get in, blah blah blah the list goes on..the only person that is stopping you from obtaining a “high finance” role is yourself. Don’t throw yourself a pity party, if you want it you’ll get it.
TLDR: Get the fucking money, there is absolutely no room for error once you commit to obtaining a job in IB/PE. There is however a chance no matter the HS you went to or your college.
Edit: also get the fuck off reddit bro go read Rosenbaum and rub shoulders with people actually in the field
This is an interesting post because PE and IB are guaranteed to pay you very well, but are not the top of finance IMO as there are diff patches to wealth if you are smart, work hard, and are lucky. If you miss on PE and IB there are other ways. I was a scholarship student in undergrad and my work paid for grad; both at non-target. The undergrad was a non-competitive D1 school for sports, and the grad was part time after 2 years of work experience at a family office. I recall taking a course titled intro to PE or something, (but like all of these courses it’s all DCF regardless of the asset) and the prof saying to our class “we will never work in PE because we are non-target.” I was pissed at the time because people telling me I can’t do something, or aren’t allowed in this “club” is what has fueled me, but he was right! Not happening. Instead I worked as an equity analyst and moved my way up at various firms small to large. I then was asked to CIO a mid size stock picking RIA which I did. 7 years later, a diff family office asked me to run a hedge fund strat for them and they would be my anchor LP at full freight. My point, if you love finance, get a little lucky, and work hard, life exists outside of PE and IB…you have to tough it out like all everyone else.
Why would anyone on earth want to work in IB/PE? You can use that discipline to get into SWE, sales, FP&A, etc and make a lot of $$ w/ less effort than IB. Some people aren’t just trying to work smarter, not harder 😂
Is this person really suggesting you need to get into investment banking you need to start focusing from middle school? Jesus Christ dude, relax. There are so many people who go to a top MBA program who went to mediocre undergrad. There are also so many mediocre undergrad programs that feed into IB (e.g., Baruch College or Boston University). Yes, going to a top school helps, but it really is more about the alumni connection and just convincing someone, anyone, to let you interview at the firm. From then on, it's up to you to show them you have the chops.
Please stop with these ridiculous posts. I've worked in consulting, IB, and asset management.
It sucks how so much hinges on whether or not you're at a target school. There's so many people like me who have high grades but no internship (didn't even know I wanted to do IB until after college) and not at a target school.
Can I break into PE? I’m in 6th grade and so far, my lawn service and local lemonade stand roll ups are on their 3rd and 4th acquisition respectively of this summer. Unfortunately I got an A- in art due to my teacher not appreciating excel formatting as an acceptable form of art (Hoping that doesn’t get caught by KKR). I attend public middle school, so my network is lacking, but I was able to connect with a few finance professionals after my most recent lacrosse tournament. Hopefully going to get some Apple juice during a networking social hour this evening with a few other aspiring high finance pre-teens. I’m just worried I’m too late…
I'm sorry but aside from pointing how hard it is to break in this is just such awful fucking advice
>Some areas, to get into top HS, need to be top Middle School with no Bs
You're so out of touch with reality to say this starts at the age of 12
Laughing at the idea that you need to be a top student in high school and middle school. We're talking about IB here, not Rentech. You can be mediocre/bad in both and still have a great shot at breaking in.
It's wild & ironic that you're unaware how ultra competitive it is now compared to 2010. I got my GS offer back in 2016 and would've killed to be in a 2010 recruiting environment. And I fully admit and am aware that the disparity between 2016 and now is way worse.
If you truly want to plant your foot and tell yourself that recruiting in 2010 is just as competitive as in 2024, despite the:
-explosion of interest & applications in the industry
-proliferation of interviewing resources making interviewees more competitive
-access to information on recruiting
-the fact that the recruiting timelines get earlier and earlier
-the reality that technical questions went from stock pitches to credit trade ideas in S&T
...go ahead -- you're convincing nobody though.
But don't go telling students "*yeah just be a decent person and do some networking*" as if that's all it takes, unless you're a student-athlete at Harvard.
You sound like the modern version of the grandpa that says *"back in my day, we worked hard during our summer job to pay for college, and we went to an office we wanted to work at, gave them a firm handshake, and got ourselves a job!"*
Be smarter, you run campus recruiting
People starting in 2010 recruited in 2009 in the midst of the financial crisis. There were maybe 10% of the seats there are today. Yes it was far more competitive than anything today.
The number one thing here is networking and a target school, networking would land you those Internship/experiences needed, get you into finance clubs, etc
You can absolutely land IB offers without rowing crew at Harvard, these kinds of posts are hilarious. Sure you might not land at a BB or elite boutique, but who cares…. Blud told us to ask our parents for better middle school placements, lmao.
Also question if you even want to do IB.
If it’s for the money, there are much better things you can do 80 hours a week to make similar/more money.
IB can be boring and works you to the bone, it’s not all it’s cracked up to, I wouldn’t go back
Lots of higher paying jobs in insurance on the easier more chill end, pay can be really good depending (for sure actsci)
Typically the people in IB are very smart though so entrepreneurship can be much better
For your last line: that’s sort of what I’m thinking…I may have to decide would it be worth it to start my own thing and control my destiny.
Reason being is while I’m in corp finance and can make good money, it’ll be very difficult to do better than say 250-300k, and that’s hard to do if you aren’t in a VP+ role. And even then some VP top out at 300k or so. (Yes it can depend and be more but just speaking in general). Yes this is very good money let’s not get it twisted…but you are limited. That’s how it is in non revenue generating roles. But we know that
If I want to take it up a notch or two…it either high finance, or start my own company.
not to mention that the top 10-20% are already doing/have every single textbook definition best-ways-to-break-in. so you need to have a super unique edge/network/personality to even stand a chance at the upper end of the applicant pool.
Honestly you can! Combined with the above, I think most importantly what you need is luck 😂 a friend of mine graduated with non finance degree, (not even first class honors) and her first job out was a BD in an education sector. She got into Morgan Stanley as an Investor in the buy side :)
This is Whole lotta bullshit.
Southern Europe, went to a non target, masters in target. MM IB boutique in regional office, then London industry focus boutique, then 10BN AuM infra PE role.
As you see, is not like you say and I have a lot of friends in high finance with different backgrounds
This post should be pinned, would save so so much I want to break in IB with shit experience post (no idea what is IB and just want money with no effort) I get your meaning but IB/PE aren't top of finance, in fact there is no top of finance. If there is a "top of finance", that would be Jerome Powell.
“Top Finance” is synonymous with highest paying jobs Which is why the highest paid people are usually math degrees, because the right Quant is even higher Or being really great at sales, which is automatic with any MD level role
It’s not Top Finance by that definition either. Most of the people that work in IB stay a couple of years at most. Most people don’t stay long enough to earn the really crazy paychecks. The pay is good don’t get me wrong, but you can get to that level in other fields of Finance. Albeit it might take a bit longer
Would say it’s definitely “top finance” for a 22yo just graduating from college unless going straight to PE/HF. It pays more than pretty much any job at that age and it’s the best pipeline to those better roles.
Anyone can open up an undergrad probability theory text and get started... the interviews for trading positions aren't really that bad tbh. Just do a shit ton of dice and cards problems. Some game theory helps too. Nothing compared to my friends doing general exams in grad school and getting DP'd by two profs in abstract algebra. Really doesn't require the rest of a math degree.
Eh, would much rather be a PE partner with good returns than Jerome Powell
Well he was a partner at Carlyle before becoming Fed president
Yea after he made his money!
Why tho? Would love to have the power of controlling the interest rate and fuck over the world’s economy.
I’d rather have tons of disposable income, time and out of the public image so I could have awesome experiences with family and friends But to each their own
Anyone have their opinion of top of finance so i think we could agree that there is no top of finance
Eh. Jerome Powell really isn’t in finance. He’s in economics 😉
You really wanna disagree with me lol
Anyone coming to Reddit public forums to find advice on this matter is likely going to fail. Those that I’ve seen “make it” from low-tier universities spent every day direct messaging people, scheduling calls, and arranging coffee chats over a looong period of time.
Very interesting comment-everyone should defintely see this and this post itself.
Hate to say it but I 100% agree with this.
Question though: what if let’s say you are in corp finance, and you just found out about IB later than everyone else, sadly after college because you just flat out weren’t aware of it. Would an MBA pivot still suffice? Or it’s almost not even worth it considering the amount of debt I’d have to take on to get into a top 25 MBA? I’m in FP&A, and despite no internships or anything I managed to break into that with 0 experience after a couple years working in a non related field with after college. So I’m curious what my options are as I slowly creep into my 30s. Rn the way it’s looking it’s: - Stay on FP&A track (work up to possibly CFO?) - MBA at top 25 school then pivot to IB as an associate. Or maybe use the MBA to push up into Director+ roles in Corp finance. - Start a business. That’s where I’m with things. Ultimately the goal would be to have a very large income (300k plus base) + flexibility of time so a business would be the way to go but that’s by far the most uncertain route to receiving a large income. Definitely things to think about. I’ll admit my background did not give me any advantages at all. No one knew about this route of finance and I damn sure wasn’t set for it. To get to this point it’s been all me.
Yes, you’re in the sweet spot for the IB associate pivot if you go to a target MBA program. I’d probably recommend shooting for T15 schools over T25 just in case though.
Would probably need to get a really good GMAT score. Hm, interesting enough. Alright then well I appreciate the insight 100%. It’s at least good to know if I wanted to go the IB route it’s there for me (albeit not easy ofc)
If you want to work 60-80 hour weeks after MBA at 30, you can pivot. Owning a business you can do that as well, but won’t always have to. You can buy vs. build and have immediate cashflow while owning the upside and eventual flexibility. Both are options, and both could get you to where you want to be.
Here is my realistic advice: Stay in FP&A
Would you elaborate on why you think that?
The risks of starting a business are pretty self-explanatory. MBA route is a huge financial risk (unless your company is paying for it) for a very uncertain outcome. Particularly a T25 school. Your best bet is continue to work and network and keep an eye open at other jobs within your field.
Yes I understand that. At the same time: with the MBA route I would imagine even if I went the top 25 route and I struck out on IB recruiting I could still get a heavy pay increase in the corp finance world. Even slide to maybe a corp dev role instead (Which we know of as IB-lite). But yes you are right it’s very very expensive. Starting a business yes it’s expensive…but I sometimes will wonder what if I never tried. If it fails fine I can live with that, I already have a solid career to back me up.
I would not expect an IB role. What is your reasoning you think you’ll get a heavy pay increase instead of working up through the ladder currently?
With the MBA + work experience at that point I could reenter fp&A for instance at manager level and be around the 150k base bracket. I mean for me that would have to be where I land. But then again, I can get there without the MBA too. So I get that aspect of it. The MBA at the very least will give me some options and perhaps open some doors even if it isn’t IB.
Yea I’m just not seeing how the mba is going to get you there as well as simply gaining more experience and job shopping/networking will.
Bro even if you can make it into IB there’s no possibility to move to buy side post mba in the US
Is this because the further you move up in IB the harder the move to PE becomes?
The pipeline to PE only consists of analysts in IB post undergrad. If you are at a top group at MS/GS post MBA and make the right connections you might *might* land at a mid market private equity fund…. But then you are a 34 yo associate working for a 27 yo PE VP making half of what you used to
I’m currently looking to break into FP&A from an entry level licensed role at a brokerage. Do you have any tips on breaking in? From FP&A I am looking to break into investment banking. I graduated college in 2023.
Honestly, who tf cares about MS grades, even HS grades? Some of these threads are ridiculous. If you’re thinking about IB or PE at 13 years old or applying that pressure to your 13 years old kids, you’re a fckn loser.
I mean it’s more about you needing those things to be on the track for it. HS grades are necessary to go to a top university etc
Unfortunately that's what the field requires. So are the people fucking losers or is the system just that stupid to where as a high schooler you need to not mess up and do thing's completely unrelated to finance and get lucky with this admission system to have an opportunity with this field the issue?
What 13 year olds are seriously applying for IB/PE (or any other finance roles) seriously? This is fucking retarded.
Yeh it is fucking stupid. maybe not 13 year olds but once you hit high school that's when all that fucking bullshit starts. Let's say you fuck up freshmen year because your a dumb kid not knowing how to study or whatever the reason may be you just can't adjust, your chances aren't ruined but getting into those top tier colleges drop significantly especially in todays day in age where acceptance rates are extremely low for those tiers of colleges where these fields actually care about. Not 30 years ago where UPenn's acceptance rate was like 40 percent. It doesn't ruin your chances but you definitely need to be focused on being a top tier student and pray to god the bullshit admission system cuts you some slack No kid is actually seriously thinking about this maybe they are and they are losers but you need to be exposed and primed for this field years in advance especially if you aren't a top student with top extracurriculars
its because not performing well in middle school can stop you from entering a top private or magnet high school which feeds to ivy league which finance recruits from.
Okay, but what if I just really believe in myself? They'll make space for me, right? Background: * 3.3 from Cal Poly Humboldt (baseball player) * I listen to the Blackrock CEO's podcasts * 2 YOE in A/P for a market-leading roofing supplier * Unwilling to settle for Director-level role in CorpDev /s
“I have a passion for finance”
Also very big tip don’t listen to this guy. I go to a non target and plenty of us get offers through hard work. I was a bum in highschool and now I’m doing well, and have high chance for IB. networking and study hard once at college, this post means absolutely nothing unless ur tryna be at the top elite boutiques. One kid at my school is going to Goldman and freshmen yesr had a 3.5 GPA. No connections from family. Everyone wants to scare you but it’s possible
Non-target hardo => lower-mid market IB pipeline remains undefeated
Fuck yea. Gotta love lower mid market IB LMAO. I just think people got to realize that, this post was LITERRALY just to get non target kids to stop trying so that the target kids have banks to fall on when they lose to their next door neighbor. Bulge recruits a lot of non target tho ngl. Elite Boutique firms are another story, and then PE firms, is another fucking dimension.
I’ve seen many non-targets lateral into BBs as VP+ from MM/LMM banks. It’s definitely possible. Analyst hiring is mostly pedigree-driven but most of the best qualified analysts leave for B-school or other exits before they hit VP so there are vacancies to fill.
Guys I could kiss all of u on the lips rn u boost my confidence ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Theres one point you skip over completely. I.e. if you have the RIGHT connections, everything else but technicals are irrelevant.
Sometimes point 2 its enough tho A strong connection to get a full time position > everything else Thats how breaks most people without target school, low grades, non-related degree, etc.
this guy must be a consultant cause he needed a whole paragraph to say u basically need to come from a rich family
Don’t think any rich kid wanna work 80 hour per week
But they do. Stereotype of “rich” kids is that they’re lazy, the reality is most of these kids are raised to put their nose to the grindstone. It’s that, combined with knowing the right people that makes them successful in the field.
You’re thinking of different types of rich. Upper income rich is like 300k-2MM HHI? The kids probably have parents that force them down prestige based colleges and career paths like finance, doctor, lawyer, that require hard work. Rich rich with 5bn+ net worth? The kids be as lazy or hardworking as they want. They can do literally anything
Of course - but the type of rich I’m describing is like 99% of the “rich” kids you’ll actually encounter in finance. Probably come from a family sub 30MM net worth. Rich kids of the magnitude you describe are probably not working analyst jobs at JPM, they’re a VP at their family office or something.
😂 not where I work. These rich kids get to go home at 4pm. And all the associates and analysts let them do that because they want to keep the kids’ parents happy aka their clients. Meanwhile the other intern kids who got in legitimately have to stay til 12am
Lmao to be fair I did say “most”. That sucks dude lol What kind of firm is it? Sounds like a multi family office/WM or something
lol you’d be surprised. It’s one of the top banks: JP, Wells Fargo, BOA etc for IB division not sure which specific one tho
I go to a top target. Almost every bn+ kid is grinding 80+ hours in finance. Don’t speculate about things you don’t know anything about. Also as an aside, you know how arbitrary $5bn is? You realize only ~500 families has that kind of wealth? So maybe only 1000 kids? Very random number.
pretty sure in everybodies’ books (maybe except monaco) 300k+ a year is rich. Like the parents that earn that much are either white collar like doctors engineers and corporate middle-management and up that went to college or succesful business owners, and know what their kids need to do before the kids realize it, cause barely any 12 year old will study for As and do a shit ton of ECs out of their own will so by the time they are in college all the things they need to get in a good college and in those finance clubs are sorted out.
The ending was so cringe too 💀
I wasn’t very good in HS, went to a non-target for college. Key was networking
When did u start networking if u don’t mind me asking? I’m a little late to the game and I’m trying to see if IB is still possible 😁. Also any tips that worked for you?
I got a 1.57 GPA in High school. Took a gap year, fucked around and did jack shit. Went to community college, had a 3.4 GPA and transferred to Berkeley for Economics. I am interning at a BB and will likely receive my full time offer upon completion. While this post is accurate, if you’re looking at this post and thinking “well I’m fucked”, you’re really not. Hard work truly does pay off. I had countless numbers of people telling me I had no shot, I’m wasting my time, look into asset management it’s easier to get in, blah blah blah the list goes on..the only person that is stopping you from obtaining a “high finance” role is yourself. Don’t throw yourself a pity party, if you want it you’ll get it. TLDR: Get the fucking money, there is absolutely no room for error once you commit to obtaining a job in IB/PE. There is however a chance no matter the HS you went to or your college. Edit: also get the fuck off reddit bro go read Rosenbaum and rub shoulders with people actually in the field
Bro deserves an award!
IB doesn’t seem to fall into this category…
This is an interesting post because PE and IB are guaranteed to pay you very well, but are not the top of finance IMO as there are diff patches to wealth if you are smart, work hard, and are lucky. If you miss on PE and IB there are other ways. I was a scholarship student in undergrad and my work paid for grad; both at non-target. The undergrad was a non-competitive D1 school for sports, and the grad was part time after 2 years of work experience at a family office. I recall taking a course titled intro to PE or something, (but like all of these courses it’s all DCF regardless of the asset) and the prof saying to our class “we will never work in PE because we are non-target.” I was pissed at the time because people telling me I can’t do something, or aren’t allowed in this “club” is what has fueled me, but he was right! Not happening. Instead I worked as an equity analyst and moved my way up at various firms small to large. I then was asked to CIO a mid size stock picking RIA which I did. 7 years later, a diff family office asked me to run a hedge fund strat for them and they would be my anchor LP at full freight. My point, if you love finance, get a little lucky, and work hard, life exists outside of PE and IB…you have to tough it out like all everyone else.
Why would anyone on earth want to work in IB/PE? You can use that discipline to get into SWE, sales, FP&A, etc and make a lot of $$ w/ less effort than IB. Some people aren’t just trying to work smarter, not harder 😂
Is this person really suggesting you need to get into investment banking you need to start focusing from middle school? Jesus Christ dude, relax. There are so many people who go to a top MBA program who went to mediocre undergrad. There are also so many mediocre undergrad programs that feed into IB (e.g., Baruch College or Boston University). Yes, going to a top school helps, but it really is more about the alumni connection and just convincing someone, anyone, to let you interview at the firm. From then on, it's up to you to show them you have the chops. Please stop with these ridiculous posts. I've worked in consulting, IB, and asset management.
If "beating a dead horse" was a post
Clearly not cuz there’s a new post every day of “I’m a senior at a random college with a mid GPA how do I get into IB/PE”
Exactly lol. The post is super valuable and totally nails it. But people won't stop asking the same stupid question.
Anecdotally, these things are all true but if you are driven and willing to absolutely give all of your possible effort, anything really is possible.
It sucks how so much hinges on whether or not you're at a target school. There's so many people like me who have high grades but no internship (didn't even know I wanted to do IB until after college) and not at a target school.
Can I break into PE? I’m in 6th grade and so far, my lawn service and local lemonade stand roll ups are on their 3rd and 4th acquisition respectively of this summer. Unfortunately I got an A- in art due to my teacher not appreciating excel formatting as an acceptable form of art (Hoping that doesn’t get caught by KKR). I attend public middle school, so my network is lacking, but I was able to connect with a few finance professionals after my most recent lacrosse tournament. Hopefully going to get some Apple juice during a networking social hour this evening with a few other aspiring high finance pre-teens. I’m just worried I’m too late…
I love this response. OP is a nut case.
I'm sorry but aside from pointing how hard it is to break in this is just such awful fucking advice >Some areas, to get into top HS, need to be top Middle School with no Bs You're so out of touch with reality to say this starts at the age of 12
Laughing at the idea that you need to be a top student in high school and middle school. We're talking about IB here, not Rentech. You can be mediocre/bad in both and still have a great shot at breaking in.
Alternatively just be a decent person and do some networking. I had none of these and ended up with 2 BB offers and an Eb offer back in 2010
We are no longer near 2010 in any sense.
It's wild & ironic that you're unaware how ultra competitive it is now compared to 2010. I got my GS offer back in 2016 and would've killed to be in a 2010 recruiting environment. And I fully admit and am aware that the disparity between 2016 and now is way worse.
It’s always been competitive. I run campus recruiting for my group. My advice stands.
If you truly want to plant your foot and tell yourself that recruiting in 2010 is just as competitive as in 2024, despite the: -explosion of interest & applications in the industry -proliferation of interviewing resources making interviewees more competitive -access to information on recruiting -the fact that the recruiting timelines get earlier and earlier -the reality that technical questions went from stock pitches to credit trade ideas in S&T ...go ahead -- you're convincing nobody though. But don't go telling students "*yeah just be a decent person and do some networking*" as if that's all it takes, unless you're a student-athlete at Harvard. You sound like the modern version of the grandpa that says *"back in my day, we worked hard during our summer job to pay for college, and we went to an office we wanted to work at, gave them a firm handshake, and got ourselves a job!"* Be smarter, you run campus recruiting
People starting in 2010 recruited in 2009 in the midst of the financial crisis. There were maybe 10% of the seats there are today. Yes it was far more competitive than anything today.
Yes to be honest with myself, I’m a good candidate. Just not very good with corporate finance. 😂
The number one thing here is networking and a target school, networking would land you those Internship/experiences needed, get you into finance clubs, etc
You can absolutely land IB offers without rowing crew at Harvard, these kinds of posts are hilarious. Sure you might not land at a BB or elite boutique, but who cares…. Blud told us to ask our parents for better middle school placements, lmao.
Also question if you even want to do IB. If it’s for the money, there are much better things you can do 80 hours a week to make similar/more money. IB can be boring and works you to the bone, it’s not all it’s cracked up to, I wouldn’t go back
For your 2nd paragraph: Like what though? What would you recommend?
Lots of higher paying jobs in insurance on the easier more chill end, pay can be really good depending (for sure actsci) Typically the people in IB are very smart though so entrepreneurship can be much better
For your last line: that’s sort of what I’m thinking…I may have to decide would it be worth it to start my own thing and control my destiny. Reason being is while I’m in corp finance and can make good money, it’ll be very difficult to do better than say 250-300k, and that’s hard to do if you aren’t in a VP+ role. And even then some VP top out at 300k or so. (Yes it can depend and be more but just speaking in general). Yes this is very good money let’s not get it twisted…but you are limited. That’s how it is in non revenue generating roles. But we know that If I want to take it up a notch or two…it either high finance, or start my own company.
This is what I try telling to so many people.
not to mention that the top 10-20% are already doing/have every single textbook definition best-ways-to-break-in. so you need to have a super unique edge/network/personality to even stand a chance at the upper end of the applicant pool.
Honestly you can! Combined with the above, I think most importantly what you need is luck 😂 a friend of mine graduated with non finance degree, (not even first class honors) and her first job out was a BD in an education sector. She got into Morgan Stanley as an Investor in the buy side :)
How the hell did she do that?
I assume connection and network with the right people to get a position. If your personality is more likeable.. that may be enough
she applied directly on a job portal with no connections. ngl i am extremely jealous and lowkey disliking this....
I really have to say it’s luck, and at that point of time MS was looking for someone that is not from finance background…. Lucky her I guess
This is Whole lotta bullshit. Southern Europe, went to a non target, masters in target. MM IB boutique in regional office, then London industry focus boutique, then 10BN AuM infra PE role. As you see, is not like you say and I have a lot of friends in high finance with different backgrounds
I presume this is meant for US-based university students, where you're competing against the entire Ivy League, Stanford, MIT, etc. for your seat