Of course it's not a legitimate reason. The conversations would be the following:

"Hey, my name is NESCAC. I saw on LinkedIn that you're a Director at Evercore in their TMT group, and that you're white. I'm also white, and interested in learning more about investment banking. If possible, I'd love the chance to chat for a bit over the phone and speak about this further. Thank you very much for your time."

"Hey, my name NESCAC and I saw on LinkedIn that you're a VP at Citi IBD in their M&A group and are also black, like myself. I was wondering if you'd have a few minutes to spare to connect, as I'm highly interested in pursuing a career in investment banking. Thank you very much for your time, and I hope to hear from you soon!"

What made you honestly think that it's a good idea?

 

With the recent acceptance of "trans-racial", this seems like a good idea. To the black members of this forum, how accepting would you be of this idea? I am a middle aged woman utilizing a perm and significant amount of bronzer.

 

I wouldn't (and haven't) ever done that. HOWEVER, if you are going to cold email/call/invite someone to coffee, it would be to your advantage to reach out to a fellow minority. Assuming you are using LinkedIn or have a picture attached to your email, they will be able to see that you share the same ethnicity. If its truly a non-diverse field, they may be more willing to take time for you.

But PLEASE don't write that in your approach to them. Let it come up in person, IF they seem receptive.

 
Best Response

I'm mixed (black, white, etc.) and I'd be severely weirded out if someone did this.

if it was an organization that has a color bias, that's fine (NAACP, black MBA assoc, racially biased fraternity/school). but just looking at someone's pic, that's risky, because here's the rub: don't judge a book by its cover. there are plenty of persians, arabs, indians, etc., that look as white as jeb bush, plenty of blacks that identify as latin, plenty of mediterranean people that identify as black/african, you get the idea.

unless you know their last name comes from the same village in punjab that your last name comes from, you're assuming too much and grasping at straws. I'd find another angle.

 

I have seen this work... but ethnicity probably plays a minor role here... its more about having a similar background,.. chances are that you would have a similar background as another person who grew up in a similar fashion as you, e.g. if you lived in a small town and grew up on a dairy farm, chances are you will connect better with a wall st guy who also grew up the same way... similar backgrounds may help get more responses to cold emails but you still need to know your stuff cold if you want that person to recommend you..

 

Well, it would probably help, but explicitly mentioning it would be sort of ridiculous. But yeah, I'd likely vouch for a fellow Asian more likely than someone of another race if all other criteria were identical.

 

I would view the person as needy and lacking in tact.

>Incoming Ash Ketchum, Pokemon Master >Literally a problem, solve for both X and Y, please and thank you. >Hugh Myron: "Are there any guides on here for getting a top girlfriend? Think banker/lawyer/doctor. I really don't want to go mid-tier"
 

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