Hi everyone.....looking for some advice here. Let me give you some background about myself:
-Graduated (undergrad) in 2012 from a non-target school as an accounting major (graduated Summa Cum Laude - top 1% of class)
-Worked for 2 years as an audit associate at PwC
-Have worked the past 10 months as a Senior in Transaction Advisory Services at EY where I am currently doing buy and sell side financial due diligence work.
-I have my CPA (won a prestigious award from the AICPA for having one of the top 30 CPA exam scores in the country in 2012)
-Passed Level 1 of the CFA Exam in December 2014 and am currently studying for Level 2 - registered to take it in June.
-Have not yet taken the GMAT but am confident I can pull a 700. Plan on starting to study once I take the Level 2 CFA exam. Targeting to go to business school in Fall 2017 (I will be 27 then).
My goal is to jump into investment banking this summer. There are only four-to-five IB's in my city, all of which are small and are not nationally recognizable. I've lived in the same city my whole life and am struggling with whether or not I should try to get an analyst position at the most prestigious IB possible - regardless of location - or if I should settle for one of the local banks for now and then try to break into a BB post-MBA. While I'm pretty confident that I would be able to get an analyst job here in town, I am afraid that working at a small, unknown IB will hurt my chances of getting into a top MBA program and will hurt my career/resume. How do top business schools look at applicants coming from smaller banks? The thought of leaving the city where I've lived for 25 years and moving to a city where I would not have any family or friends has me questioning what I should do. Ultimately, I want to do what is best for my career, but unless the value of leaving is clearly worth it I would prefer to stay local.
What would you do if you were in my shoes?
Thanks in advance for your help
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MBA Implications of Small/unknown IB or more prestigious IB
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CriticalSquareMBA
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Hi there!
Thanks for sharing your background. Your academic profile, professional background, achievements, and certifications say a lot about you already (good things, of course). Is there value in a BB? Of course - the network, brand equity, and rigor of that experience will certainly give you a leg up when it comes to applying to a top 10. However, we've also helped tons of clients from small firms (including lesser known IBs) crack the top 5. You already have a well-known name in PwC on your resume, so at this stage, it boils down to preference and personal situation. To answer your question, if I was in your shoes, I would cast a wide net and apply to both BB and local firms and see where the process takes me. Sure, you might have to do a little extra interviewing and take an extra flight to NYC, but is that all that bad? Give it a shot and weigh the pros and cons of both paths again once you have offers in hand. Remember - there's really no "bad" path. If it makes sense for you, you can put a story around it!
Hope this helps!
Bhavik
Thanks for sharing your background. Your academic profile, professional background, achievements, and certifications say a lot about you already (good things, of course). Is there value in a BB? Of course - the network, brand equity, and rigor of that experience will certainly give you a leg up when it comes to applying to a top 10. However, we've also helped tons of clients from small firms (including lesser known IBs) crack the top 5. You already have a well-known name in PwC on your resume, so at this stage, it boils down to preference and personal situation. To answer your question, if I was in your shoes, I would cast a wide net and apply to both BB and local firms and see where the process takes me. Sure, you might have to do a little extra interviewing and take an extra flight to NYC, but is that all that bad? Give it a shot and weigh the pros and cons of both paths again once you have offers in hand. Remember - there's really no "bad" path. If it makes sense for you, you can put a story around it!
Hope this helps!
Bhavik
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manyaabroadtpr
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Hi sjhruby,
The most important thing that a B-school will look at in your application is career progression. Big brands like E&Y and PWC do matter, but majorly because of the rigorous selection process they do have for the candidates. You will not be able to show the progression in your career if you are changing jobs very frequently. Also, whatever you do, has to be in alignment with your post MBA goals. You need to introspect on these lines and then decide if you need a job change. And if you do that, be sure to stick to that company till the time you apply for your MBA.
Let us know if you need any further assistance.Wish you the best.
www.manyagroup.com
The most important thing that a B-school will look at in your application is career progression. Big brands like E&Y and PWC do matter, but majorly because of the rigorous selection process they do have for the candidates. You will not be able to show the progression in your career if you are changing jobs very frequently. Also, whatever you do, has to be in alignment with your post MBA goals. You need to introspect on these lines and then decide if you need a job change. And if you do that, be sure to stick to that company till the time you apply for your MBA.
Let us know if you need any further assistance.Wish you the best.
www.manyagroup.com
