I have been a long time reader of these forums - since college has started, really. It has helped me tremendously, and I really would like to give back. This past summer I summered at a top bank (GS,MS) and got an offer to return, which I accepted. The SA season doesn't start for a while, but I would be happy to answer any question.
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What was the most challenging part about getting a return offer?
What did people who didn't get a return offer do wrong?
Keeping a smile on your face after all the long hours doing mind numbing and useless work. Anyone who tells you they loved the work they did as an SA is lying or very fucking weird.
From my perspective, they had personality problems weird/arrogant and didn't fit in well with the other SAs and the group.
Everyone was accomplished in some way or the child of someone very accomplished. Mostly everyone had pretty good interpersonal skills. The ones that did not have those skills didnt get offers to return.
The cabtest works pretty well here. Treat everyone you encounter with respect and respond with enthusiasm when asked to do something by someone hire up.
I definitely think they are your friends. Sure, you're all competing to some degree, but as long as you are pulling your weight and producing good work, you really shouldn't worry. It all works out in the end, anyway - whether at your SA bank or another one. You're going to be spending at least 3 months together, so why have an enemy mentality. We went out with eachother a lot and helped eachother with work related shit.
You always want to be professional with those hire up than you, but dont be a stiff. If they act more cordially, then you can follow. At the end of the day, you want those hire up than you to want to be cordial.
Same shit you would probably talk about with anyone else. Sports, news, work, the city, college life...really anything. But expect the SAs to talk a lot about offers and all that crap.
^^Nice followup, if I only had a banana left.
This might be a difficult question to answer since you are a guy, but I am a girl working at a BB this summer. I have heard it's a bit of a guys' club. What were some things you maybe saw your successful female coworkers doing as far as networking and fitting in?
Oh and congrats! You must be stoked!
Thanks for giving back
Just FYI, I'm guessing that English is not your native language so I'll cut you some slack, but you really need to learn the difference between higher and hire.
^^Troll, please ignore him.
How was that post a troll? I kind of agree, OP should work on their grammar.
Oh, the irony.
How much do you have to prepare? Is it worth it reading a whole Damodaran valuation book even though I have to study for exams? Some of my fellow interns have done summer internships at other banks before, won't they have a huge advantage?
I was bored and drunk out of my mind last night - you think I give a shit about my grammar when writing on this forum? The fact that I wrote anything coherently after day drinking all day is impressive enough for me.
Anyways, to the girl, you probably have the upper hand over male SAs. The female SAs I worked with were treated "differently," usually other women in the group will look out for you.
How much do you have to prepare? I didnt do anything to prepare. If you really wanted to, brush up on basic accounting and finance stuff. If youre going into an industry group, read shit about the industry, so you have some idea of what theyre talking about in the office. And most importantly powerpoint and excel skills, but youll pick that up as you go along.
Is it worth it reading a whole Damodaran valuation book even though I have to study for exams?
Fuck no. Youre not going to be modelling anything and even if you do get to see a model, the person showing it to you will explain. I dont know how technical your interviews were, but if you could get down to FCF from operating income, you should be fine.
Some of my fellow interns have done summer internships at other banks before, won't they have a huge advantage?
To some degree they will have an advantage. They will know what its like to work in the environment and whats expected of them. Just be eager to learn and learn shit quickly without fucking up too many times.
Thanks man, that helped me so much.
what were the most 2-3 legit things (live/closed deal, attending a client meeting, modeling, etc) you worked on as an summer analyst?
what were your hours/what time did you usually get off work? weekends?
How did the guys without interpersonal skills make it through the interviews to get an SA offer? In the 'How to compete against Asians' thread, most posters said the way to compete against Asians is through fit. Are those without interpersonal skills just good actors during the interviews?
what were the most 2-3 legit things (live/closed deal, attending a client meeting, modeling, etc) you worked on as an summer analyst?
Worked on several live deals (mostly lots of bullshit, things like putting working group lists together). I wont really go into more detail for the sake of being anonymous. I did some modeling for a pitch, but it really isn't as glamorous as it sounds - plugging in numbers into a template isn't rocket science.
You might get to do more than I did, but it wasn't common.
what were your hours/what time did you usually get off work? weekends?
In by 9 out usually by midnight sometimes earlier, sometimes way later. Worked almost every weekend, at least 1 of the days. The days I didnt have to come in I still had my BB wherever I went, praying that I wouldnt have to come in. Everytime it would vibrate from a bullshit email, it was one of the worst feelings, so even the free days arent really that free. All my friends who did banking this summer had similar sentiments.
How did the guys without interpersonal skills make it through the interviews to get an SA offer? In the 'How to compete against Asians' thread, most posters said the way to compete against Asians is through fit. Are those without interpersonal skills just good actors during the interviews?
Yeah, thats probably how they broke in. Much harder to really get to know someone after 30 min than it is after seeing them everyday for 10 weeks. That being said all of the no-offers in my group landed at other top places for FT, so its far from game over.
Also, shouldve said this sooner, but I am sure work quality played just as much of a role in the offer selection process. Having said that, learn quick from mistakes and make sure youre always improving. I saw firsthand that the first 2 weeks are crucial in setting the tone for the rest of the summer, so make a good impression in the way you carry yourself and in the work you hand in.
Thanks for doing this
Hkw did the exiting analysts place into private equity or hedge funds? Did tmt or m&a (depending if you were at gs or ms) actually do better than other groups or is that a myth?
Curious as well.
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