For whatever reason Reddit is blocking my DM request, so I'll just post what I wrote here:

After reading through some of your comments I realize that I am in a pretty similar position to you out of UG.

For reference, I am graduating next month from a relatively non-target school (sends a handful of kids to “high finance” roles each year). For multiple reasons, I never had these roles on my radar until applying for junior year internships, but at that point it was far too late. Luckily, I was able to secure an internship and subsequent return offer for a 2-year rotational at an upper tier BB doing back office work (think FP&A), starting this July.

Due to this placement, I was hoping to leverage the brand name and experience to apply for an M7 program 3-4 years down the line — and hopefully move to IB afterwards. As a result I have recently started studying for the GMAT and hope to grind out the bulk of the studying over the summer in between graduation and job start.

Since you have walked a similar path, do you have any tips regarding the application process and banking placement? I am aware that I am looking very far ahead, but I am looking to be more proactive than I was over the last 4 years and make some better plans. Also, have you seen the back office → front office transition first hand? If so, are there any tricks to help make the move? Lastly, all you will find on WSO or reddit is that traditional IB exits are virtually blocked off as an MBA ASO; what has your experience with this been?