Most investment banks hire undergraduates with a bachelor's degree in any field, but economics, finance, or mathematics makes the hiring process faster

Investment banks do not require a specific degree to enter as an analyst or associate. You can walk in with a bachelor's in English, history, or physics. What matters is that you have a four-year degree from a university they recognize, plus the ability to pass their training program and pass a background check.

That said, the path is smoother with certain degrees. A bachelor's in finance, economics, mathematics, or accounting teaches you concepts the bank will assume you know—present value, financial statements, probability. If your degree is in something else, you will learn these things during your first weeks on the job, which means slower ramp-up and more pressure early on. Banks hire from both tracks, but the non-finance route requires stronger performance in other areas: test scores, internships, or demonstrated interest in markets.

For roles above analyst level—associate, vice president, managing director—the degree matters less than your track record at the bank. You move up by doing the work, not by going back to school. An MBA can accelerate the move from analyst to associate at some firms, but it is not required, and many senior bankers never got one.

Key Takeaways

  • Investment banks hire undergraduates with any bachelor's degree, but finance, economics, or mathematics degrees reduce your competition and speed up hiring.
  • A non-finance degree does not disqualify you; it means you will learn financial concepts on the job rather than in the classroom.
  • Your internship experience and test scores matter more than your major if you are coming from outside finance.
  • An MBA is optional for moving up within a bank and is not required to reach senior levels.
  • The degree must be from a four-year university; community college transfers are less common in analyst hiring.

Why banks care about your major less than you think

Investment banks are not looking for people who already know how to value a company or build a financial model. They are looking for people who can learn to do those things quickly, work 70-hour weeks without breaking, and handle pressure from senior bankers and clients. A degree in finance teaches you the vocabulary, but it does not teach you the job.

The hiring team cares more about your ability to think through a problem, communicate clearly, and handle numbers. A mathematics degree proves you can do complex calculations. An economics degree shows you understand how markets work. A physics degree shows you can think systematically. A business degree is common but not preferred—banks assume business school teaches you less rigor than a pure discipline.

What actually matters in the hiring decision: your GPA (usually 3.5 or higher at target schools), your performance on the bank's online test or case interview, whether you have done an internship at another bank or in corporate finance, and whether you went to a school the bank actively recruits from. Your major is one signal among several, and not the strongest one.

Which schools and majors get you in the door fastest

Investment banks recruit heavily from a small set of universities: the Ivies, Stanford, MIT, University of Chicago, Northwestern, Michigan, and a few others depending on the bank's region. If you go to one of these schools, your major matters less—the bank assumes the school filtered for intelligence and work ethic. If you go to a state school or a less-known private university, your major becomes more important because the bank has less information about what your degree means.

At target schools, banks hire finance, economics, and mathematics majors in roughly equal numbers. At non-target schools, a finance or economics degree is a stronger signal that you are serious about the industry. A degree in an unrelated field is not impossible—people with degrees in philosophy, music, and engineering have become investment bankers—but you will need to compensate with internship experience, a higher GPA, or both.

The bank's recruiting team keeps a list of target schools and updates it yearly. If your school is on the list, the bank sends recruiters to campus, holds information sessions, and reviews resumes from your school more carefully. If your school is not on the list, you can still get hired, but you will compete against fewer candidates from your school and more candidates from target schools.

How your major affects your first weeks on the job

If you studied finance or accounting, your first two weeks will focus on the bank's systems, culture, and deal flow. You already know what EBITDA means and how to read a balance sheet. If you studied something else, your first two weeks will include a crash course in financial statements, valuation methods, and accounting basics, usually delivered by senior analysts or through online modules.

This does not slow you down permanently. By week four, everyone is building the same models and writing the same pitch books. But in those first weeks, the finance major has an advantage: they can ask smarter questions and spot errors faster because they are not translating concepts in their head.

The bank accounts for this. They do not expect an analyst with a philosophy degree to know what a leveraged buyout is on day one. They expect you to learn it by day five. If you are coming from outside finance, read a basic finance textbook or take an online course before you start—not because the bank requires it, but because it will make your first month less overwhelming.

The role of internships and test scores

If your degree is not in finance, your internship history becomes more important. A summer internship at another investment bank, at a private equity firm, or in corporate finance tells the hiring team that you have already learned the basics and can hit the ground running. Two internships in finance are better than one. An internship in a non-finance field—consulting, tech, government—is less valuable but still shows you have worked in a professional environment.

Test scores matter more for non-finance majors too. If you scored 750 or higher on the SAT math section or 170 or higher on the GRE quantitative section, the bank knows you can handle the numerical work. If you scored lower, your GPA in quantitative courses becomes more important—your grade in calculus or statistics matters more than your overall GPA.

The bank's online test, usually a timed assessment of math, logic, and reading comprehension, is the same for everyone regardless of major. Your score on this test is often the first filter. If you pass it, you move to a phone screen or video interview. If you fail it, your major does not matter.

MBA timing and whether it helps your career

Some analysts go to business school after two or three years at a bank, then return as associates. An MBA from a top program—Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Chicago Booth—can accelerate this move and sometimes comes with a signing bonus from the bank. But many analysts skip the MBA and move up to associate based on their performance at the bank alone. There is no single path.

If you are thinking about an MBA, the timing matters. Going to business school when ready after your bachelor's degree, before you have worked in finance, is unusual and not recommended by most banks. They want to see that you can do the job first. An MBA makes sense after you have been an analyst for two to three years and want to move into a different role—like moving from equities to private equity, or from banking to corporate development.

The MBA is expensive and takes two years. Many senior bankers never got one. If you are performing well at the bank, you can move up without it. If you are stuck or want to change roles, it can help. But it is not a requirement for any level of the job.

What happens if you do not have a bachelor's degree

Investment banks do not hire people without a four-year degree for analyst roles. This is a hard rule. If you have a two-year degree from a community college or a certificate from a bootcamp, you will need to finish a bachelor's degree first. Some banks have programs that allow you to transfer credits from community college to a four-year university, but the bank will not hire you until you have the bachelor's in hand.

There are rare exceptions for people with extraordinary experience—someone who worked in finance for five years without a degree might be hired as a senior analyst or associate—but these are exceptions, not the rule. If you are early in your career and do not have a bachelor's degree, finishing one is the first step.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I get hired as an investment banker with a degree in business administration?

Yes, but it is less common than finance or economics. Business administration is a broad degree that does not signal deep knowledge of any one area. Banks assume you have learned some finance, but also some marketing, management, and strategy. A higher GPA or strong internship experience helps offset this.

Do I need to major in finance if I go to a top school like Harvard or Stanford?

No. Banks recruit heavily from these schools regardless of major. A physics or mathematics degree from Stanford is stronger than a finance degree from a state school. The school's reputation carries more weight than your specific major.

What if I have a degree in a field completely unrelated to finance, like art history?

You can still get hired, but you will need to show strong performance on the bank's test, a high GPA, and ideally at least one internship in finance or a related field. You will also need to demonstrate genuine interest in the industry—this usually means reading about deals, following market news, and being able to discuss why you want the job.

Is a master's degree in finance better than a bachelor's degree in finance?

No. Banks hire people with bachelor's degrees, not master's degrees, for analyst roles. A master's in finance is more expensive and takes longer, and it does not improve your hiring chances. If you already have a bachelor's in something else and want to move into banking, a master's in finance can help, but a bachelor's is the standard entry point.

Do I need to pass the CFA exam to get hired as an investment banker?

No. The CFA is a professional certification that some bankers pursue after they are hired, usually after a few years on the job. It is not required to get hired and is not expected during the interview process. Some banks encourage analysts to study for it, but it is optional.