Managing the investment banking recruitment timeline is a challenge. The process starts early and demands your time, effort, and energy.
This post will not delve into what investment banking is, which coverage/product groups you're interested in, or other basic information. For basic info on investment banking, use Google, the BAC website, or ChatGPT. This article assumes you are determined to get a job in IB.
For a great free guide created by Breaking Into Wall Street, click on the following link and signup for their newsletter + 50 page course. Take the course with a grain of salt. Some of the information is slightly overboard. I highly recommend looking through this site's other information as well.
The information below will not guarantee you a job. The following is based off of my experience.
Timeline
Freshman Year:
Recruitment begins the first day you step on campus.
Your first job is to keep as close to a 4.0 GPA as possible. For some majors (like engineers) this is an impossible task. Try your best. You may want to take prerequisite courses that are slightly easier to do well in to achieve this 4.0. Since you recruit during the second semester of your sophomore year, you have three semesters to achieve/keep this GPA.
Next, you should attempt to get into a banking or finance club. These organizations are difficult to get into. Don't be discouraged if it doesn't work out. Banking At Cornell has a full course dedicated to club recruitment. Click on the button below or navigate to the resources tab to access our course.
Beyond finance clubs, you may want to consider stock-pitch, investing, and case competitions. The more experience the better.
Freshman Summer:
Getting a freshman summer internship is a challenge. I recommend searching through Handshake and other platforms to see which companies offer them. The key to landing these internships is networking. Cold email employees and ask for a coffee chat.
If you don't land a finance-related summer internship, that's okay (many people fall into this bucket). Get a regular job and try your best.
Over your freshman summer you should begin reviewing technical and behavioral guides to prepare for the interview process. Upperclassmen have Breaking Into Wall Street guides that should adequately prepare you for the technical portion. These guides average around 100 pages long per section.
You don't need to master the guides before school starts, but you should at least be familiar with them. The earlier you start the more prepared you will be for the interview process.
You may want to start networking with investment banking professionals at this point in time. Start with smaller firms to get a handle on the art of coffee chatting. Practice makes perfect.
Be sure to send thank-you emails and maintain your relationships (keep your leads warm). Applications for Junior internships won't open up for the next couple of months, so make sure your leads still know who you are by then.
Sophomore Year - Semester 1:
Maintain your high GPA!
I advise you to network really hard the first semester of your sophomore year. IB employees get less Coffee Chat requests semester 1 than semester 2. Your response rate will be higher.
You can download a Google Chrome extension called Streak or use another CRM to help manage your emails and follow-ups.
Now is the time to start practicing and mastering your technicals and behaviorals. Use online guides and rely on upperclassmen to help you.
Some guides you can / should use:
Breaking Into Wall Street
WallStreetPrep Red Book
WallStreetPrep Blue Book
If you want a copy of these guides, reach out to a friend in a finance club or purchase it on your own.
Be sure to attend info sessions for all banks (found on Handshake). Similar to club recruitment, demonstrated interest is important in landing the interview. Get the names of all IB employees who attend the info sessions and send them a thank you note / coffee chat request. These employees are most likely a part of the "Cornell Recruiting Team". This team is dedicated to recruiting Cornell students. Make sure they like you.
Some applications may already be open (Guggenheim, RBC, and more have historically opened before Winter break). Be sure to apply within 1 - 3 days of the application opening. Interviews are months away but the applications open months in advance.
BAC has an internship tracker on its site to assist you.
WSJ article about early IB applications: https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/companies-are-already-recruiting-their-2025-summer-interns-aa6d78a9
In addition to Junior Summer internships, you should keep an eye out for Sophomore Summer internships. More experience makes the resume look better. Cold email everybody and get the Sophomore Summer internship.
We recommend forming a group chat with friends going through this process. Make a pact that you will all be honest and open about resources and application openings. You need allies in this fight.
Remember, keep your leads warm.
Sophomore Winter Break:
Spend all of winter break mastering the guides and the behaviorals. Don't underestimate how long this will take you.
Network as much as possible.
Apply to internships within 1 - 3 days of applications opening.
Sophomore Year - Second Semester:
Finalize your technicals / behaviorals.
Practice for HireVue interviews.
Network like a mad man.
Keep your leads warm.
Apply within 1-3 days of applications opening.
Attend info sessions.
Get the Superday.
Get the offer.
Conclusion:
While daunting, this task isn't impossible. Make sure to have a plan B in case it doesn't pan out.
Banking At Cornell is here to help. Contact us with questions and for advice. We are your allies.
Good luck!
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