I graduate in Dec. and have had no luck so far with any full-time offers yet. I even had a few second round interviews with the company saying they won’t be hiring anyone currently because of the current economic situation. I really wanted to get into Investment Management and I feel that I have the skill-set for such a career (MS.Acc, BA.Fin,Decent GPA,Decent school, couple internships, level III candidate). I don’t know what I have been doing wrong, I have been very aggressive in my applications, atleast 20-30 everyday and yet I don’t get any reply back or get turned down. The way things are going, I don’t really mind starting off my career in any field. I see my friends in supply chain or accounting having no problems getting offers with half of the knowledge I have and its just frustrating. I really don’t mind working any where now and in any field, just so that i can ride through this mess and hopefully learn some deep skills in whatever industry i get employed in, which could be used later. I feel that getting a job in some relevant field is gonna be very hard at the moment and I sometimes worry that it will affect my future chances of getting a job in what i really want. And my question then, do i really need to worry so much about my future prospects? How much of an affect does one’s first career have in the person’s life? Thanks
To be honest, I think it sets the tone for your career. I don’t want to discuss too much on my personal situation, but if someone has landed an ibanking position its likely that their future would be pretty set. There are more options for ibanking people than you can ever imagine.
20-30 per day applications is way too much. 3-5 is more realistic if you are doing it right. I think you would have more success if you spent more time writing thoughtful and succinct cover letters to employers that really interest you.
Finance is a tough field to get into. If you have friends in accounting or supply chain that can get jobs, why not ask them to lend you a hand? It’s a tough market out there. During the last recession, I remember my friend bringing my resume for a position in his office. After getting no response and a rejection, he told me not to feel bad. They got 5,000 faxed resumes for that position. Imagine getting 5,000 resumes for 1 position? I think its probably worser now.
I wish I had more experience to draw on to give you better advice, unfortunately I don’t (I’m a college senior). With that said, alumni I have spoken with have told me it’s best to accept any decent job considering the job market, gain some experience, and then when the economy and finance field start recovering, try and land a job in the specific field you are looking at. Right now, I personally don’t think being picky is a good strategy, have to keep an open mind. No question it’s frustrating, I haven’t had much, if any, luck in my job search either. Hopefully things start picking up in a year or two, and whatever we decide to do in that time period, helps long-term.
sparty419 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I graduate in Dec. and have had no luck so far > with any full-time offers yet. I even had a few > second round interviews with the company saying > they won’t be hiring anyone currently because of > the current economic situation. I really wanted to > get into Investment Management and I feel that I > have the skill-set for such a career (MS.Acc, > BA.Fin,Decent GPA,Decent school, couple > internships, level III candidate). I don’t know > what I have been doing wrong, I have been very > aggressive in my applications, atleast 20-30 > everyday and yet I don’t get any reply back or get > turned down. The way things are going, I don’t > really mind starting off my career in any field. I > see my friends in supply chain or accounting > having no problems getting offers with half of the > knowledge I have and its just frustrating. I > really don’t mind working any where now and in any > field, just so that i can ride through this mess > and hopefully learn some deep skills in whatever > industry i get employed in, which could be used > later. I feel that getting a job in some relevant > field is gonna be very hard at the moment and I > sometimes worry that it will affect my future > chances of getting a job in what i really want. > And my question then, do i really need to worry so > much about my future prospects? How much of an > affect does one’s first career have in the > person’s life? > > Thanks with that background, pretty sure u can land a MO risk management position or BO product control
Thanks for the inputs…yea…well…those 20-30 applications include mailing alumni…applying on career search websites like monster…talking to recruiting firms…etc…and no luck so far…and i am also an international student which i guess makes it even worse… i am just hoping to get sumting in the finance field…so that i can try networking around…(networking hasnt helped me so far…most ppl i kept in touch with themselves lost jobs and in the lookout for new ones…and they say that their firms have a hiring freeze at the moment…)…its like i am stuck with choosing my home country for work…or the middle east… US seems dead…hong kong seems dead…and australia dead too… from the ppl i am in touch with…
it’s a contact sport right now. just keep applying/networking and keeping yourself out there. i know it can seem hopeless when you dont hear anything back, but you need to keep it up. if you dont mind me asking, from where will you be graduating in december?
This is tricky, because of the state of the market. If you’d asked this question 1 year ago, I’d have said first job is, IMO, the most important. It does set the tone for your entire career. As an example, I had trouble getting a job after graduating (3yrs ago), go nowhere with graduation applications and in the end decided to just take a job in an IB to get some experience and then hopefully move into Reserach, which was what I really wanted. So I took a job in Prodcut control (partly just to pay the rent!!), and now I regret it. Back/Middle office is like a big black stain on my CV. I’ve had interviews in the past for research, where the guy seemed a bit confused what area I worked in, and explicitly told me after explaining, that if he realised I was from MO, he wouldn’t have asked me for interview!! Made me feel like rubbish. (Hence, why I’m now doing CFA, to give me some credibility at interview!) So, in short, hold out for what you really want. You only get one shot at your first job, make sure its something you really want.
Yep, echo the above. Took me years to get out of BO. Having said that, today’s markets may limit your options…
If you need to eat, pay rent, and if you’re in need of $$, I wouldn’t hold out. If you hold out, who knows how long you’ll be idle given today’s global slowdown. Take a job to get by while continuing to work toward that career goal. Whatever your choice, good luck.
My first job following college was at a grey market car importer. The DOT send them all a computer program that measured emissions from DOT inspected vehicles so they could be certified as legal in the US. My job was to hack the program and change it. Did that set the tone for my career? I hope not…
JoeyDVivre Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > My first job following college was at a grey > market car importer. The DOT send them all a > computer program that measured emissions from DOT > inspected vehicles so they could be certified as > legal in the US. My job was to hack the program > and change it. > > Did that set the tone for my career? I hope > not… How many years did you spend working before going to finance?
I went to grad school after the govt shut us down. Edit: You know why I took that shitty job? To buy my now ex-wife a nice engagement ring. What the heck was I thinking? I was the stupidest guy on Earth then.
Well, at least (maybe) you’re happier now? We seem to marry late among my siblings. Maybe thats a good thing - I am definitely putting my career first for a good 5-10 years.
my opinion would be to get an audit gig at a Big 4 accouting firm for now. that would most certainly look better on your resume than any BO / MO gig at this time (that is if you dont want to go into Sales & Trading).
JoeyDVivre Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I went to grad school after the govt shut us > down. > > Edit: You know why I took that shitty job? To buy > my now ex-wife a nice engagement ring. What the > heck was I thinking? I was the stupidest guy on > Earth then. LOL. Weren’t we all back at some time in our younger lives. Man, I worked for Safeway for 9 years till I was 30 before I landed this Treasury job. I stayed there so long because I was making “great money” and it allowed me to do a lot of partying with my buddies. Granted, I lucked into this job because I knew someone who got me into a basic finance position in the company and I’ve worked my ass off to get to where I am now. Your first finance job doesn’t mean jack sh!t if you don’t do something to prove your worth. Eventually you’ll get your foot in the door. Until then, do what you need to do to survive. Keep your head up, things won’t be this bad forever.
actually that audit gig at a big 4 is a good idea during these times. Auditors will always be needed, even more so now. Plus, I work at an IB, and a lot of people in front office/research are ACA’s that’ve made the move. I don’t quite understand why, but apparently being an auditor is better than getting relevant experience in back office. Looking back now, I should’ve taken the job offer at PwC, rather than go to BO.
Actually - the Big 4 (at least Deloitte) is letting Auditors go. I know another firm is not recruiting at all in Texas (Dallas Office) so I assume the national picture is worse (since the economy isnt that bad here right now). I think some of the ramp over the years for SOX is coming down and after a lot of M&A activity or going private they dont have the same book of business.
I worked for 2.5 years at my first job and then decided to do something different within the same field. I was able to switch and was successful in my decision. My second job was pivotal in my career. My first job helped me understand the 9-5 routine, how to use the fax machine etc.