Hey guys! So I’m an incoming freshmen to kelley '23 and I had a few questions about the ibw. I’m pretty sure I want to join to ibw because the prospects are amazing. But what are the dos and don’ts for joining the club. Are there any books that I should read? Any skills that I should learn? Anything at all that I can prepare for?
Join the Financial Services Club which is the Investment Management and Investment Banking Club combined. They host case competitions if you want exposure to IB. There are really no do’s and don’ts other than having common sense and having a genuine interest in the material and being a likable person who is mature. Focus on your academics your freshman year as having a good GPA is a baseline that you only have one chance to set. If you are really interested just read websites like Mergers and Inquisitions and Wall Street Oasis to learn more, but I am assuming you already know some stuff about IB. If you want a book to read, David Stowell Investment Banks, Hedge Funds, and Private Equity is the book you will need for the first prerequisite class to the workshop. It is a heavy book, content wise, so reading it now will save you some headache later on if you have no idea what it is talking about.
Take F255 Intro to Financial Careers and Concepts which is the same as F228 Intro to Investment Banking, the first prereq course to the workshop, but they changed the class so it is now 16 weeks long. Take A100 first semester and maybe even take A201 second semester. Financial Accounting is like the fundamental language you need to know for IB and when taking F355 which is the second course to apply to the workshop. That’s pretty much what you can do freshman year, but make sure to get involved with organizations to be balanced and meet members of the IBW.
Also I see you are an Indian citizen, it is a lot harder to get into the IBW if you are an international student so keep that in mind.
Thank you so much. This was very helpful.
How hard is it for international students?
It can vary depending on factors but generally speaking, it is far more difficult for an international student. If you look at the IBW page, there are a select couple of international students and they have stellar resumes. It is easier for US citizen to get into the IBW and to get a job in the US regardless of whether it is banking or not.
Thanks for this! Btw… I have heard 150 - 200 people apply per year and only 70 get in which means the acceptance rate is 50%. Also, could you give me an idea about how much better an international student has to be (in terms of scores and experience)?
You don’t have to be much better as an international student, but getting a strong GPA and good performance in the class F355 is all but required I would assume. I believe out of many international students it would be the ones who have the best command of English and ability to interview as well who get in.