Are there any bankers on this forum? For those of you who have experience here, can you share how you broke in? I realize deal time is weak, I’m just exploring the potential opportunity.
Don’t most people do it right out of undergrad/business school?
Say someone does not do it out of undergrad but returns to B school. What are the chances of breaking in afterwords?
You better goto a top 10 b-school then –
I’m not a banker but I’ve done a good deal of research on mba and post mba career options: It doesn’t seem very hard (2008 not withstanding) to break into BB IB coming out of a top 15 school. Most people who get IB associate jobs don’t have IB exp (they are generally looking for bigger & better things). It is still doable from a school outside the top 15. I know a guy who just graduated from a school ranked 30-40. He and a few classmates got IB jobs at UBS. Coming out of a school of this level would gove you a shot at a MM bank or something like TD securities. Basically, if you are willing to work 100 hrs a week, you do ok in interviews and you come from a good school, you shouldn’t have a problem.
It definitely depends on whether you’re shooting for BB or MM/boutique. If you have solid work experience &/or education, BB is a possibility. If you’re open to MM or boutique firms, your odds are definitely increased as competition isn’t so stiff. I’m at a boutique firm after spending 3 years in corporate finance, no MBA.
Thanks buyicide. I have contacts I’m in touch with. I’m trying to gauge how realistic my idea is.
Steph: Are you ana analyst or associate? That is a fairly uncommon transition. How did you pull it off? What type of corp fi did you do before?
buyicide Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Steph: > > Are you ana analyst or associate? That is a > fairly uncommon transition. How did you pull it > off? What type of corp fi did you do before? I’m an analyst. I sometimes wonder how I did it, too. I didn’t have applicable experience or a standout education (state school UG), but I interview really well and had stellar references. I was in Treasury at a large corporation before.
Congrats!
steph96 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > buyicide Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > Steph: > > > > Are you ana analyst or associate? That is a > > fairly uncommon transition. How did you pull > it > > off? What type of corp fi did you do before? > > > I’m an analyst. I sometimes wonder how I did it, > too. I didn’t have applicable experience or a > standout education (state school UG), but I > interview really well and had stellar references. > > > I was in Treasury at a large corporation before. So how did you manage to get the job? Care to share the strategy here. Congrats by the way.
+1 on share the story.
Sure, no problem. I saw the job posting, and almost didn’t apply b/c I figured I didn’t have a chance in hell. Decided to go for it, and sent my resume and a cover letter. I know there’s debate about whether cover letters are necessary, but I’m a good writer, so I feel like it’s a must. (I should mention that I did a fair amount of campus recruiting in my corp fin job, which has definitely helped me in my own job searches.) I got a first round interview, and tried to do as much homework as possible. As it turned out, there were no technical questions in the first round; it was very much a get to know you round of interviews. I got a second round interview, and was assigned a fake project in which I had to build an excel model and do a write up. This was challenging, because my modeling experience at that point was VERY limited. I probably spent 25 hours working on it. Most of the questions that time were centered around my model, my lack of MBA/CFA (I was the only remaining applicant that didn’t have one or the other or both), and my lack of applicable experience. I assured them that I was willing to do whatever necessary in terms of education, and that my personality and drive are more suited for i-banking than corp fin. The third round was a phone interview. I think they were still nervous about me, and about bringing in a 25-year-old attractive blonde female into an all male gray-haired company. (Then I welcomed them to the 21st century.) And then I got the job. I think my references were key – I was told they were the best references they had ever spoken with.
^, bummer. I hate to say but your story sheds no insight to wannabe bankers. You got in because you talk like a girl, dress like a girl, smell like a girl, and blah blah like a girl.
steph96 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > they were still nervous about me, and about > bringing in a 25-year-old attractive blonde female Well, hello there! 
phBOOM Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > ^, bummer. I hate to say but your story sheds no > insight to wannabe bankers. You got in because you > talk like a girl, dress like a girl, smell like a > girl, and blah blah like a girl. Ohhhhhhhh, right. I forgot to mention that the job posting said “preferred candidate has MBA and b00bs”.
So… self-proclaimed attractive girl, on a scale of 1-10, where do you stand?
All right!!.. Another blonde female on the boards … Steph, no worries … We know we bring something other than the above to the tables … It’s hard to find intelligent women in the financial industry … If a company can find one, they’ll snap em right up! What these guys don’t get is that “we” have to work twice as hard to be taken half as serious …
daviskr Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > All right!!.. Another blonde female on the boards > … Steph, no worries … We know we bring > something other than the above to the tables … > It’s hard to find intelligent women in the > financial industry … If a company can find one, > they’ll snap em right up! > > What these guys don’t get is that “we” have to > work twice as hard to be taken half as serious … Agreed. I’m no feminist, but it can be frustrating to detect skepticism of my intelligence in an initial client meeting. I always win them over eventually, though!
kblade Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > So… self-proclaimed attractive girl, on a scale > of 1-10, where do you stand? In a CFA testing room: 10