<p>I heard the money is good. One of my friend said he's going to do it and he'll make $650K a year. </p>
<p>Is it really hard to be an investment banker who makes that level of money? If they make so much, shouldn't everyone go into it?</p>
<p>What's the catch?</p>
<p>... I think your friend is... uh, well... </p>
<p>...pulling your leg.</p>
<p>Is this a joke?</p>
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<p>I heard the money is good. One of my friend said he's going to do it and he'll make $650K a year.
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<p>The money is indeed good and there are indeed plenty of Ibankers who make far more than 650k a year. But not starting out. You have to work your way up to that level. Granted, if you are a superstar, you can get to that level very quickly. But of course, most Ibankers are not superstars. In fact, most Ibankers tend to wash out after a few years because they can't take the lifestyle or can't make the cut. </p>
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Is it really hard to be an investment banker who makes that level of money? If they make so much, shouldn't everyone go into it?</p>
<p>What's the catch?
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<p>The catch is not only what I stated above - that you will work extremely hard for a few years and still not be good enough to stay at the company; it is also that the vast majority of interested people can't even get into Ibanking in the first place. Ibanks recruit at only a tiny minority of schools out there, and even at those schools, will only hire a minority of candidates.</p>
<p>"Granted, if you are a superstar, you can get to that level very quickly. But of course, most Ibankers are not superstars."</p>
<p>Just curious: what exactly is a superstar.</p>
<p>With PE and HF still hot, ibanks are being more aggressive in finding and retaining people - not sure how long it'll last, but now it's the time people.</p>
<p>first, i-banking is extremely hard to get into. Most people can't handle the stress and the work-load and i-banks know this. Unless you went to a top school and have an excellent GPA, it's next to impossible</p>
<p>second, the work load is intense, if your friend expects to make 650K a year, which is certainly within range for an experienced investment banker with standing in the company, he can also expect to work as much as 12 to 14 hours 6-7 days a week for years. </p>
<p>thirdly, one of the main reasons that so few people stay on is that you have to essentially give your life to the company. Of course, if you do, that's when you start making the big bucks.</p>
<p>the reason i say all this is that many of my friends seem to believe that investment banking is easy money. I've got news for you: it's not.</p>
<p>So even for people who are good enough to make it into the door of an IBank (which means they are from top schools so they should be fairly good at handling stress in the first place), what percentage of them ultimately quit or burnout before the money gets big?</p>
<p>"what percentage of them ultimately quit or burnout before the money gets big?"</p>
<p>some burn out at the internship level; the vast majority burn out at the analyst level. 2 years of bootcamp get to you. i find it interesting that some (perhaps most?) of the biggest names/successful senior execs in the industry never were analysts (eg Robert Rubin).</p>
<p>...and some others were never in "investment banking," per se - but trading, or like Rubin in risk arbitrage.</p>
<p>the total comp starts out around $100k right out of college - figure $60-65 base, with a percentage quitting or getting fired, and if they make it through the first year, a bonus of 30-60k depending on firm performance and what bucket you're in. as an analyst, the money doesn't get much better than that, although it will go up.</p>
<p>as an associate, well, check out the self-reported comp figures over at <a href="http://www.ibankingoasis.com%5B/url%5D">www.ibankingoasis.com</a> . Here's a good image:</p>
<p><a href="comp%20database%20image">url=http://www.ibankingoasis.com/files/comp06.png</a></p>
<p>i can assure you that 2nd or 3rd-year associates make more than that, and at the VP or MD level you are making a killing. but it's a pyramid with a big base and a small top.</p>
<p>In addition to what everyone has said, many individuals do not necessarily burn out but begin the program with no intention of staying for more than 2 years</p>
<p>For many, investment banking is just a gateway job to take advantage of the exit opportunities, while others stay for a 3rd year, aiming to become an associate in the 4th year.</p>
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Just curious: what exactly is a superstar.
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<p>Probably within the top 5-10% of analysts.</p>
<p>Just a hint for you all, from someone who has had multiple internships at BB's in NYC: If you're already thinking/asking about "burning out," you don't belong in the IBD.</p>
<p>my cousin is an investment banker and he enjoys his job. he makes around $5mil a year because he is a general partner for a company called lightspeedvp</p>
<p>i'd rather be a partner in Lightspeed University.</p>
<p>I would enjoy my job too if I pulled in 5 mil on an annual basis.</p>
<p>The brother of one of my teachers came out of a middle class background, went to an Ivy league school, majored in economics, did not do master's work, landed a job in investment banking, and now lives on Park Avenue with servants. Don't know his salary, but my teacher said he is very, very rich.</p>
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i'd rather be a partner in Lightspeed University.
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<p>I was looking at that trying to remember where I had heard of Lightspeed University before, and then I suddenly remembered... lol</p>
<p>Haha I LOVE the porn reference in a thread about iBanking...</p>
<p>Haha, the joke really is a perfect inadvertent commentary about the lifestyle. "No time for a REAL girlfriend?!? NO PROBLEM!!!"</p>
<p>My friend transfered from USC to UPENN and then moved to SF to work in iBanking, about 1.5 years ago. He made like $75K salary, got another $55K or so for a Christmas bonus, and just bought himself a Porsche (at 23).</p>
<p>His first year he EASILY worked over 100 hours a week (7 days a week x 15-18 hours a day, in my estimate, looking back on it). He lived in a dingy apartment b/c he wanted to save more money, and because was never home anyways, except to sleep. He also got very fat from lack of exercise, lack of sleep and lack of a diet that anyone might term 'normal'. </p>
<p>Because he was their best 1st year, he told the partners that for year two he was going to literally work half of the hours and they were going to continue to pay him in a typical manner, or he was leaving... and they told him that that was fine. So now he works 50 hours a week and makes $135K and climbing, as the result of one brutal year. His case is not typical.</p>
<p>Sitting around thinking "how can i get into investment banking" is not going to help you. As stated by sakky and others, I-Banking firms only recruit at top schools and go after specific candidates they literally chase and brightest and most educated at schools like MIT. 99.9% of idiots that think they will get into i-banking do not. Unless in love with research most of these students will take the position, Even if they burn out after a year or two - it is a great experience and a very good way to kick start financial success.</p>
