<p>I'm in the BS Economics program at Arizona State University. Is that a solid undergraduate degree to get into investment banking?</p>
<p>Solid? Only if backed up with an MBA from a top-10 business school. Otherwise, get ready to be employed by a penny stock investment bank cold-calling Florida geezers out of a bucket shop in Long Island.</p>
<p>What about with an MBA in Finance & Investments from Baruch College?</p>
<p>Best shot with a Baruch MBA is to become a trading assistant at a commercial bank trading operation or at a low-level hedge fund that would not normally see top-10 MBA recruits. Then, become a start, then after you are a star, get into the big leagues with Morgan or Goldman. This is the only realistic avenue of approach. Your resume will be returned unread by the major investment banks. Certainly, do not expect to get into the corporate finance side of the business, where client contact is critical; the major investment banks only want Harvard/Stanford/Wharton MBA types facing with clients, as clients frankly expect to be treated to “the best” when they are paying the huge fees they pay. Your best best is to advance on the trading side (which now controls Goldman, anyway), as you never see clients anyway and no one really cares where you went to school as long as you make money for them.</p>
<p>I mainly want to trade and analyze… so this sounds like it would be a good route, no?</p>