Investment banking or the Big Four? (2024)

FAQs

Investment banking or the Big Four? ›

Big 4 Corporate Finance

In addition to the advisory group, most big 4 have a completely separate group that is itself a Middle Market Investment Bank. If you can get into this group you technically “made it” to banking because these groups do a lot of actual deals for the middle market area.

Big 4 Corporate Finance

In addition to the advisory group, most big 4 have a completely separate group that is itself a Middle Market Investment Bank. If you can get into this group you technically “made it” to banking because these groups do a lot of actual deals for the middle market area.

Private equity is extremely prestigious. Compensation for both careers is very high, but the work/life balance in private equity is better, it is often the preferred exit route for investment bankers who have a few years of experience.

EY and PwC are harder to estimate. EY is the second biggest of the Big Four in terms of headcount, which lends credence to this claim in 2019 that their acceptance rate was approximately 3.5%, based on 69,000 global hires from 2,000,000 global applicants.

A quick overview of the firms

PwC is the largest by revenue and the most prestigious of the Big Four with a strong and established audit client base.

Getting a job in Big 4 companies can be challenging, but it is not impossible. Candidates must have the right experience, networking and preparation to increase their chances of getting a job at these companies.

Skills Needed to Become an Investment Banker

That said, investment banking is a highly competitive field. Because the pay is so high and the job is so prestigious, particularly in cities such as New York, applicants far outnumber job openings every year.

For a hefty fee, they bring industry, financial, and transactional expertise. They are basically gatekeepers — a company that wants to issue stock, issue debt, buy other companies, or sell itself has to engage with an investment bank (though some tech firms are working on ways around this).

Goldman Sachs is generally regarded as the leading investment bank in most business areas, and is the toughest Bulge Bracket investment bank to break into. Goldman has a very strong reputation within the industry and among corporations. They advise on the majority of high profile M&A deals and other major transactions.

Most of the investment banking target schools are Ivy League schools and top liberal arts colleges. However, you may be surprised to know senior bankers at investment banks tend to recruit candidates from the schools that they attended!

Which Big 4 has the best work life balance? ›

Though the smallest of the Big 4 firms, KPMG is known to have the best work-life balance amongst its employees.

We would, however, say that the minimum GPA required is 3.0. But if you find that yours is a bit lower than that, just work on your GPA for grad school, gain work experience, or take on leadership roles during your academic career.

Work ethic

Big 4 firms operate in a highly competitive global marketplace, offering critical advisory, tax and audit services well-known public and private companies. Their employees need to be smart and work hard. Recruiters consider your undergraduate GPA as one indicator of work ethic.

The Big 4 do have Minimum GPA Requirements

But they aren't the same at all schools. At some schools like Texas and BYU they are only 3.2. At other schools, the GPA requirements typically are between 3.5 and 3.7 minimum. That is because the big 4 receive tons of candidates from those other schools with really high GPAs.

Yes, it's hard to become a partner at a Big Four company.

First of all, the Big Four accounting firms attract bright and ambitious people, and the competition for these positions is fierce. Most people take ten to 15 years to become a partner at a Big Four, which includes working 50 to 70 hours a week as a standard.

Whether you joined a Big 4 as a springboard for your career or were set on making partner, we generally advise professionals to make a move around three to six years of experience, in order not to leave either too early or too far into their Big 4 career.

Many accountants experience burnout at some point in their careers because of the long hours and constant high pressure of working in a Big 4 firm. It starts with struggling to cope with workplace stress. Over time, they are left feeling exhausted, empty, and unable to function or cope with everyday life.

By working at a Big 4 firm you will rapidly develop skills and expertise that simply cannot be learned anywhere else. If you were to look at the career trajectories of an employee at a Big 4 firm and one of their peers in corporate, they would barely be comparable.

Can you become a millionaire as an investment banker? It is possible to become a millionaire as an investment banker, but it is not easy.

Are you happy in investment banking? ›

On average, investment bankers rate the meaningfulness of their work a 2.4/5. The majority of investment bankers struggle to find any sort of meaning in their work, likely resulting in less satisfaction with the career overall.

It is no surprise that the average day in an investment banker's life is long and stressful. Those who manage to survive the adjustment period often go on to have long and financially rewarding careers. Investment banking analysts may work up to 100 hours per week at some firms.

Executives in investment banking can make upward of $300,000-$500,000 per year. Investment banking can also lead to other high-paying careers in finance, such as private equity and wealth management.

Investment banking is not a normal 9-to-5 job — investment bankers can work anywhere from 60 to over 100 hours per week, depending on the company and the deals at hand. According to a 2021 Working Conditions Survey by Goldman Sachs, first-year investment banking analysts work more than 95 hours per week, on average.

Even with education, experience, and enthusiasm, investment banking might not be for you. Lack of work-life balance is one reason to avoid becoming an investment banker. Investment bankers must also be able to manage high-pressure situations.

Grades below those levels don't necessarily mean that banks will reject you right away, but they do make it harder to win interviews through the normal process. But there are limits to that statement; for example, if you have below a 3.0 GPA in the U.S., then banks may reject you just based on that.

Typically banks screen resumes based on GPA and will often remove anyone below 3.5. However, there is room for an exception here, and exceptional experience may bypass GPA requirements if one can prove competency or high value to the bank.

Goldman Sachs is widely known as the most prestigious investment bank on Wall Street. The bank's interns receive phenomenal training, hands-on experience, and the opportunity to rotate across many groups and desks.

A GPA of a 3.7+ can make up for weaker experience, but is by no means a gimme. Banks prefer good experience to good GPAs (subject to a minimum in the 3.3-3.5 range).

They don't account for student interest and demand. For example, universities like Stanford and MIT are clearly targets in the U.S., and many students from these schools could get into IB if they wanted to. But they tend to be more interested in tech, startups, consulting, and other non-finance roles.

Where does Blackstone recruit from? ›

Blackstone considers candidates from schools across the globe. Candidates eligible for full-time opportunities are completing their final year of college or graduate school. Candidates eligible for summer opportunities are completing their third year of university or their junior year in college.

However, few people end up staying at the Big 4 for their entire careers. “A lot of people leave because the exit opportunities after Big 4 really are endless. You have been trained extensively, you have worked for different clients of different sizes, different locations, and different industries.

At a Big 4 firm, busy season can mean long hours of auditing or tax compliance and lots of stress. 60-100-hour work weeks are not uncommon. A mid-sized firm typically offers a better work/life balance, more hands-on experience, broader industry exposure, and higher pay.

On the 4.0 scale, an unweighted 4.0 GPA means perfection. You need straight As in every class—not even one A- is allowed.

Here's the good news – a great resume will pass at Deloitte and at McKinsey. And even better news – you only need one amazing consulting resume. Besides the standard set of elements your resume must have for top consulting firms – a GPA of at least 3.5, a degree from a target school, high standardized test scores, etc.

A 3.5 GPA to apply.

The top 5 highest paying jobs at Big 4 with reported salaries are: senior manager - ₹33lakhs per year. manager - ₹22lakhs per year.

Deloitte really is a strong brand on your CV and recognized world wide. There are very few people that I've met over the years that do not immediately recognize Deloitte when they ask me what I do for a living and what company I work for.

Does Harvard use a 4.3 GPA scale? ›

To get to Harvard your GPA has to be at least a 4.0 and even then if you get in your lucky but they require at least a 4.18 GPA only .

The average high school GPA for admitted students at Harvard University is 4.18 on a 4.0 scale. (You can calculate your high school a GPA here.) This is a very competitive GPA, and Harvard University is clearly accepting students at the top of their high school class.

You should also have a 4.18 GPA or higher. If your GPA is lower than this, you need to compensate with a higher SAT/ACT score. For a school as selective as Harvard, you'll also need to impress them with the rest of your application. We'll cover those details next.

The big 4 is prestigious in the category of public accounting firms. The best paying clients typically contract the big 4.

A huge CV boost

Working for Deloitte, PwC, EY or KPMG will allow you to get the foot in the door at almost any accounting firm or financial institution you want, if you decided to move on. Experience at a Big 4 is a seal of approval and will garner a high level of respect over the course of your career.

Deloitte has promoted Nicola Roberts, one of the firm's youngest ever partners, to the role of Head of Private Client Services. She is tasked with supporting the firm's key private clients in their respective areas of need.

It is really hard to make $1 million in the big 4 accounting firms because of the whole pyramid scheme structure, but you can do it. You just need to keep constantly moving up the ladder. You can bet that the partner that screwed up the Oscars for PwC, Brian Cullinan, made more than $1 million.

In the United States, managing partners in most top 100 accounting firms have a mandatory retirement age of between 60 and 66, and certain Big 4 firms expect partners to retire as early as 55.

Deloitte Corporate Finance LLC (“DCF”) offers the client service and middle market focus of a boutique investment bank, backed by the global reach and cross-functional capabilities of the world's largest professional services firm.

Largest full-service investment banks

JPMorgan Chase. Goldman Sachs. BofA Securities. Morgan Stanley.

Does PwC have investment banking? ›

PwC Corporate Finance offers the focus of an investment banking boutique with access to the resources, integrated advisory services and industry expertise of the PwC Global Network of member firms located throughout the world.

What industry is KPMG Corporate Finance LLC in? KPMG Corporate Finance LLC is in the industry of Investment Banking.

We help investment banking clients meet a wide range of strategic, organizational, and operational demands.

How Hard Is It to Get a Job at Deloitte? As one of the big four, Deloitte receives an overwhelming number of applications. With over 500,0000 applicants applying for Deloitte job positions, it can be hard to get a job at Deloitte. You are expected to be the industry's best and a confident professional.

Almost everyone agrees that investment bankers earn more than management consultants. The exact differences vary, but total IB compensation is often 50-100% higher in most levels of the hierarchy.

They have been chosen based on their revenue numbers, assets under management (AUM), global reach, income and employee headcount. The very top investment banks from this list are: Tier 1 – J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley.

Bankers continue to regard Goldman Sachs as the world's most prestigious bank, followed (as always) by Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan. Credit Suisse and UBS lost the most ground in 2022 while LionTree Advisors' reputation improved the most in the eyes of bankers.

Goldman Sachs provides a range of investment banking, investment management and securities services for our clients. These services are delivered by teams working across multiple functions.

Third, J.P. Morgan became both a universal bank and a leading investment bank, with finan- cial strength, capabilities and a client base unparalleled in global finance. The Investment Bank now serves approximately 16,000 investor clients and 5,000 issuer clients.

Does EY have investment banking? ›

Industry focus. EYCA offers investment banking services in the US and utilizes a comprehensive and well-structured approach that help clients increase value and mitigate risk. Our investment banking professionals are focused on the middle-market and bring deep industry knowledge to each transaction.

The primary goal of investment bankers is to execute transactions for their clients. Unlike management consultants, investment bankers become specialists, and the work they do has a definite end point for their clients.