Investment Banking Analyst

Career Opportunities & Internships Investment Banking
1

<p>I am going to be a senior in Wharton (graduate may 2012) majoring in finance but my GPA is on the low side (3.2ish)--I am an athlete. I have an actuarial consulting internship (companies like Towers Watson, Aon-Hewitt, Deloitte, and Mercer) this summer (2011) and did simple finance internship last summer (2010) and some smaller things before that. I will be applying for full-time positions during Fall 2011. I had some interviews for summer 2011 banking analyst positions but I didn't get the job in any case. Basically, I am trying to weigh my options of pursuing actuarial consulting or take my chances with investment banking.</p>

<p>Is there anything a college athlete can do to leverage a career in banking aside from making it clear that my sport was a big time commitment and what i've learned is applicable? Most top firms don't even look at students with under a 3.5+ and I did not get a chance to work in IB this summer (2011). Also, will actuarial consulting internship experience help me to get a banking job at all? And is it worth starting a career as a second-tier bank if I were to have that opportunity?</p>

<p>Basically I am deciding between:</p>

<p>1-Actuarial consulting where the career path is exam based and job security is very high assuming i can pass exams. Also, no further school is required. Starting salary around 60K at analyst level, 100K at Associate, and 150-200K max).</p>

<p>OR</p>

<p>2-Taking a chance with investment banking where I may not end up at a top tier firm and there will be a lot of competition. My fear is that I will definitely need an MBA at some point (another 120K investment) and it doesn't seem like an MBA will get me very far unless it is at a great school (which I am not sure I can get into with my GPA and a lack of great IB experience). I want to do IB b/c I like finance and the pay can also reach much higher levels than act. consulting, but I am not sure that I will have job security in the future and even get solid opportunities.</p>

<p>As a side note, I may be interested in sales and trading as well but competition is just as hard as banking--often a 3.5 GPA minimum.</p>

2

<p>Ok, lots of points here, let me quickly tackle each of them and then you can send me a PM if you need further clarification.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>A 3.5+ is not necessary for IB (we’ll talk about BB IB as boutiques can be different, but BBs will be the strictest in terms of restrictions, so when I say you don’t need a 3.5+ for a BB, the same can be said for many boutiques), especially coming from W as an athlete. Above a 3.0 is workable, above a 3.3 is all you need. With a 3.2 you are in the ballpark, but what is your Major GPA - with a higher major GPA (3.4+), you can either include it with the cumulative or just highlight the major GPA. </p></li>
<li><p>Two very different paths - if you like IB, don’t go into act con - pursue BB IB and boutique IB as you will find something as long as your interview skills are on point (PM me if you need some help with interviewing as well). If you don’t care, then just pursue both and make your decision based on offers. </p></li>
<li><p>You don’t need an MBA for IB - you CAN get one, especially if you want to make a tougher move or change careers down the line and can’t find the avenue at your current firm, but to move up in IB, you don’t need an MBA. Essentially, if you can’t or don’t want to move to buyside from a decent or better BB or aren’t given an associate promotion, then you can pursue MBA options. If, however, you don’t want an MBA, you shouldn’t need one - you can stay at your current firm, go to buyside, move to a smaller IB boutique shop, etc - there are many viable and good options outside of B school once you’re in B school. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>PM me if you have other questions.</p>

<p>IBanker</p>