Comments on: What’s The Best Major For Investment Banking?

By: M&I - Brian

M&I - Brian — Wed, 22 Feb 2023 19:50:18 +0000

In reply to Brian Hamilton. Accounting is better in most cases because it's more relevant to what bankers actually do on the job. If it will cause your grades to be lower, finance is fine. But I can't really say without knowing how much lower or what internships/other opportunities it would cost you.

By: Brian Hamilton

Brian Hamilton — Wed, 15 Feb 2023 14:43:25 +0000

Hi Brian
Thank you for the informative write-up on this topic ! Hoping to seek your input on a particular dilemma that I’m facing . I’m from Asia and unfortunately the major/minor option does not exist for me in my country and I also come from a non target school in my country .Therefore , I’m stuck with having to choose between either studying accounting or finance for the next 3-4 years . I also happen to find the accounting courses to be more challenging but am willing to put in more effort if needed . I’m just worried that all time studying for accounting would cause me to be unable to commit to other components which are crucial in helping me to break into IB . What degree would you advice me to study if I’m hoping to break into investment banking in my country ? Thanks in advance !

By: M&I - Brian

M&I - Brian — Wed, 01 Feb 2023 16:41:05 +0000

In reply to Griffin.

Transferring schools these days mostly depends on when you do it (basically, don’t transfer later than the end of Year 1). If you’re going to start Cornell in Year 2, i.e., the year in which summer internship recruiting for the next year takes place, then yes, it’s worth it because you’ll have a significantly better chance of winning a summer internship.

If you’re at Cornell, your exact major matters less because they’ll assume you’re smart and capable, so I would pick Global Development and maybe do a minor in the other one or something else more technical to minimize the GPA impact.

By: Griffin

Griffin — Sun, 29 Jan 2023 23:06:30 +0000

Hi Brian
So, I have a choice that I would love your insight in. I’m currently at a non target (UW Madison) and have the ability to transfer to Cornell next year, and this may seem like a no brainer but I’m in Cornell CALS so I won’t be able to take business classes. Yes, I can and will minor in business but there’s the issue of my major. I’ve narrowed it down to either Global Development (with a concentration in Economics) or Biometry and Statistics. The first option seems a good deal easier for a better GPA but the second option is probably more applicable/useful. Regardless, I’m assuming I’ll get worse grades at Cornell than I’m getting currently. Do you think it would be better for me to transfer into Cornell despite the fact that I can’t major in finance and will have a lower GPA? If so, what major should I choose?

By: M&I - Brian

M&I - Brian — Wed, 24 Aug 2022 13:50:46 +0000

In reply to Ali. I'm not sure what you are asking, but I don't think Accounting + Finance helps much over just Accounting if that is your question. The CFA adds almost nothing if you already have those degrees and aim for IB roles.

By: Ali

Ali — Mon, 15 Aug 2022 17:23:39 +0000

Hi Brian,

Amazing article!

What if I had a diploma in Accounting and I am planning to take degree in Finance as Bachler degree or shall I keep it with Accounting and would that helps to over come CFA and to be IB.

By: M&I - Brian

M&I - Brian — Wed, 20 Jul 2022 19:46:03 +0000

In reply to James. Anything with numbers, programming, or science exposure that is also not too difficult or demanding. Maybe major in something easier and do the minor in a more quantitative subject. People often pick Economics, which can be OK, but I would recommend something additional to gain more accounting or coding/math knowledge.

By: James

James — Sun, 17 Jul 2022 09:00:00 +0000

What majors/minors would you recommend for UPenn CAS (not Wharton)? Thanks!

By: M&I - Brian

M&I - Brian — Sun, 10 Jul 2022 13:20:54 +0000

In reply to John.

Please see:

https://mergersandinquisitions.com/lateral-hiring/
https://mergersandinquisitions.com/off-cycle-investment-banking-internship/
https://mergersandinquisitions.com/mba-investment-banking-recruiting-process/

You want something that involves valuation or credit analysis or working with transactions instead of auditing financial statements. It becomes more difficult to get into IB as a lateral hire after ~2 years in other jobs (but very dependent on market conditions – this goes up when hiring is increasing and demand for candidates is high and can decrease in bad environments).

By: John

John — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 16:19:58 +0000

In reply to M&I – Brian.

Hey Brian, thanks for the response! First of all I wanted to apologize for leaving multiple comments around the site, I was encountering an error where they didn’t seem to post for me and I figured I’d just keep trying. Apparently you could see them the whole time, my bad.

As for the topic at hand, I have two further questions: First, I thought the latter two options (MSF/MBA) might be the case, but I hadn’t thought of the lateral hire idea. What type of internships at what type of firms do you think would be the best for a lateral hire? I don’t know what type of finance role would be the best for this pathway. Second, what (reasonable) time frames would you give these three options? Im guessing for the MBA it would be 3-5 years from now, and the MSF it would be 2-3 years, but I suppose the lateral hire is more context dependent. Is there a “normal” amount of time you’ve seen it take people going the lateral hire route? Thank you again!