Identifying the Attributes of the Investment Banking Role that Undergraduates Underestimate when Choosing Their Career

This paper sets out to discover which attributes of the investment banking analyst role undergraduates underestimate when they choosing their career that leads to such high turnover. Through the use of semi-structured interviews and surveys, data is collected which is then utilized to compare attributes between undergraduates and those who are within one year of their investment banking jobs. Several important attributes are identified to be significantly worse than most undergraduates expect, as well as changing in importance. Such attributes include ‘satisfying social life’, ‘predictability of time off work,’ and ‘being around inspiring individuals.’