40-50hr/week part-time IBD + college. Doable?
Hey pals,
Going into Jr year, and am taking a full courseload (albeit with no problematic courses difficulty-wise). Have the opportunity for a part-time fall IBD position at a solid tier-2 investment bank (think Roths, Jefferies, HLHZ etc). They want a 40-50hrs/week commitment.
What would you do? Is the trade-off for this vs lower grades worth it in the end for SA recruiting? After all, SA apps here are due before this semester's grades are out, so it shouldn't matter a ton. But 40-50hrs is what normal people call a full time job - wouldn't be easy.
Thanks!
Can you jam your courses earlier in the morning or later in the day/night?
I only go to class 3 days a week, and all my classes (besides one day) are in the morning. So scheduling is not an issue. And my school is around 10-15min from the office anyway.
The question is the time spent working could be used to boost my GPA. Which is more valuable? Having an IBD position on your resume, or a 3.5 vs 3.4 GPA difference?
The work experience for sure
It sounds like you have your classes aligned in the best way possible for you to do this. Doing both is doable, but you have to be very disciplined with yourself in that you're either going to be sleeping, eating, working, or studying. But at the end of the day, that not only is great banking experience for a rising junior, but awesome in that it proves you can take at least something comparable to IB hours. Plus, recruitment might not matter if you do a great job for this bank. I say go for it
I've worked full time and gone to school full time at both the undergrad and MBA level. It's completely doable as long as you can schedule classes that make it doable. I was able to take classes at night so it was really easy.
I think you should do it. It'll be a great test to see if you can handle a big workload and hours (as well as a good talking point for future interviews proving your worth). Also, maybe work in an online class or two if possible to lighten the in-class load (make sure to use rate my professor to make sure it's not one of the hard ones though).
Like others have said, it is definitely doable (and definitely worth it if you can do it). But I think the "if you can do it" part is going to be GPA-reliant. You mentioned the difference between a 3.5 vs. 3.4, and I question whether the difference would only be .1 points. My argument would be that if you drop from a 3.7 to a 3.5 or a 3.8 to a 3.6 then absolutely worth it. BUT (as you mentioned might be the case) a drop to a 3.4 or 3.3 might not be worth it. I don't know where you're coming from, but I would make sure to be above a 3.5 because so many banks have such a strict cutoff these days. If you don't meet the cutoff then it doesn't matter if you have the best talking points in the world....
Right now I am at 3.5 rounded. Does this mean I should concentrate more on my studies? Will HR really be that strict with cutoffs if I have this type of experience?
I would say it is definitely a judgement call (that you are going to have to make, not us) as you know yourself better than we do. You just need to take a step back and think hard about whether or not your grades will drop. I can't remember right now which banks have 3.5 cutoffs, but I do know of people who have been removed from the process because they were below it. I simply wouldn't chance it.
Sorry for two posts, but I just thought about this after I posted the other one....I was trying to think of a way to argue for the experience (because I think that it is an awesome opportunity and will be worth it in the long run) as my posts have seemed pretty against it.
Do you have an idea of which banks would be your targets for next year? I would look into those and try to figure out what their cutoffs are and whether they are "hard" or "soft" cutoffs. Since not all banks are at the 3.5 it could very well be that your tops choices have a 3.2. In this case, you would be a straight green light to take the job, and have plenty of room for a drop (though I would try hard to keep it at the >3.5 level).
Do the job and just get above a 3.5 .. Don't give yourself any excuses and just knock it out of the park. Take the easy classes if you have to, because at this point you are good to go with experience as long as you get the GPA. You'll be at a HUGE HUGE advantage of BB's or Elite Boutiques and maybe even snag some out of school PE/HF gig you play the field 100% correct.
You have a chance to do something huge, just do it Shia LaBeouf voice.
I work full time and go to school full time. Monday through Wednesday are absolute HELL. However, you have a lot of money to live really nice and do stuff others can't in college (i.e. I'll be taking a weekend trip to NYC pretty soon just for the hell of it).
If you utilize your time, then you won't have a drop-off in grades. Use your weekends, and wake up early, and you have a chance of a good GPA still. If you workout, wake up workout, then go to class/work. That way when you get home you'll have time to do work before you go to bed. If you don't workout, then wake up study, then go to class/work, then come home and study some more. It'll be a grind and you'll come pretty close to burning out, but you'll make it through it. The weekends are an excellent way to take away some of the pressures of the schedule I described though. It shouldn't interfere with having fun either. (I.E. wake up at a decent time Saturday and Sunday study for a good amount of hours, then go to pool or out or whatever)
I did something similar, worked 30-40 hours 10man shop plus managed a full work load. With the right planning and the right schedule its possible and your GPA wont suffer. Funny enough, one my highest GPA's was when I was busiest because I knew I had no time to spare and couldnt fuck around, so often I would get class assignments done ahead of time. IMO I would rather interview a kid who has relevant experience even if your GPA isnt a 3.8 or whatever. Your GPA is already somewhat competitive for some banks, that experience could really give you an extra edge.
There's always a trade-off. My experience is that the level of commitment you can bring to the table in a part-time internship will always be valued at a discount vs. a full-time intern. even if they asked you to stay late, for example, you are tied up by your academic obligations. Consider whether you'd be better off waiting for full-time internship recruiting and keeping your GPA high meanwhile.
I dunno man... you're only in college once.
I would say do it. Even if your GPA falls, your SA apps will be out before then and you'll have 3 additional semesters to boost your GPA (if you want to). Consider (if you can) not taking a full course load this semester and take an extra class next year. I would advise you to work 13-15 hours a day Mon-Wed and keep Thu-Sun free for school (and socializing) if that's possible. It'll be tough work, but nothing compared to actually starting as an analyst. Should give you very strong bonus points for both work experience, motivation, commitment and 'ability to work long hours' (for lack of a better word) when applying for internships and with a 3.5 I'd say you should take all the extra points you can get.
Absolutely do it - the experience will set you up nicely for future opportunities
The other reason to do it is b/c most of the times these kinds internships will get you an offer for SA position by the end of the internship so you will pretty much have an offer in hand before you recruit for SA (should you choose to do so) and that is huge saying you already have an offer in an interview
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