Liberal Arts Majors, Investment Banks Want to Hire You – The Key Reporter (2024)

FAQs

How do you answer the question why investment banking? ›

To become an investment banker, you need a minimum of a bachelor's degree. Common majors are finance, business, economics, and accounting.

Getting Started in Investment Banking

Investment bankers are deal-makers, and getting themselves hired is the first deal they have to pull off. A college degree with a major in finance or economics from a prestigious school is practically a pre-requisite.

Impress the person you're speaking to by being charming, respectful, knowing their work experience, and asking thoughtful questions. Learn about any potential opportunities, the status of recruiting processes, or any advice to succeed in the interview.

Bulge bracket banks and almost all other investment banks will look at your GPA when applying for a job and you should include it in your resume. Typically banks screen resumes based on GPA and will often remove anyone below 3.5.

GPA Cutoffs for Investment Banking

The cut off for Bulge Brackets is usually 3.5 or an 80% average, but the median is much closer to 3.7 or 3.8. Expect 30% of banks to give you a call assuming the appropriate networking obligations have been met with a 3.6, 50% with a 3.8 and 80% above 3.8.

Some liberal arts majors are able to get jobs as investment bankers, but you'll be best off choosing a path that allows you to focus more specifically on the classes that are most aligned with your ultimate career goals. More important than the name of the school you attend is how well you perform at that school.

On a deal, the client pays for those. And even if the client didn't pay, these expenses are nothing next to multi-million dollar fees. Investment bankers make a lot of money because they sell companies for huge amounts of money while earning a generous commission and spending hardly anything in the process.

Is investment banking a high-stress job? ›

Investment bankers meet with clients, prepare offers, run financial projections, and work on pitchbooks, that help generate new clients. The work is lucrative but the days are long and stressful. Superior social skills are required for success in the field.

Despite having a low career happiness rating, investment banking remains one of the top career choices for new graduates; investment banking tends to tempt many. The allure of a six-figure salary in your early 20s and being immersed in Wall Street culture can be enticing when you're fresh out of business school.

Investment bankers score highly on extraversion, meaning that they rely on external stimuli to be happy, such as people or exciting surroundings. They also tend to be high on the measure of conscientiousness, which means that they are methodical, reliable, and generally plan out things in advance.

It's not easy, but a surprising number of people achieve it. It just takes commitment - and the right kind of partner. "If you're both working in M&A, it's a bit difficult," says an associate at one of the hard-driving boutique M&A firms in London. "You might not have time to see each other.

An example answer to the “Why Investment Banking?” question

Here is an example of how to answer the question concisely: I want to work in investment banking because it's the fastest way to learn financial modeling, valuation, Excel, and to understand the nature of large corporate transactions.

An example of a good response is:

I want to work in investment banking because I understand it has a steep learning curve. It will allow me to establish a strong foundation for valuation, Excel modeling skills, and an understanding of the XXX sector.

Investing is an effective way to put your money to work and potentially build wealth. Smart investing may allow your money to outpace inflation and increase in value. The greater growth potential of investing is primarily due to the power of compounding and the risk-return tradeoff.

Working in banking offers a huge variety of opportunities as well as the possibility of early responsibility, rapid career progression and good pay and benefits. It's also a challenging profession that looks to its talented new workforce to help boost the economy and restore public faith in the industry.