Federal Reserve Internship?

Anyone know anything about interning at one of the federal reserve banks over the summer? I may apply because it sounds like an interesting gig. Its either that or probably a no name boutique, which would look better for IB? I will be a junior this fall. The application requires 2 professor interviews, I have a couple of professors in mind but I only did well in their classes, not really a personal relationship with them. Would that be a problem? Also any ideas on how selective the process is?

This would be at one of the smaller fed banks. thanks.

How Valuable is a Federal Reserve Internship?

As with all internship experiences, how valuable a Federal Reserve internship is depends on what you end up doing and how much you put into the job. WSO user @Black Jack" recommends pursuing the opportunity because:

  • The fed gives you something interesting to talk about.
  • No name boutique isn't all that interesting and you'll be expected to know IB questions.
  • Fed pays pretty well (12-15/hr I believe), hours are not bad (40-50)- not a bad gig at all.

The work isn't always the most exciting from talking to a few former interns, but I know people whose only finance experience was at the Fed and ended up with offers with top BBs. Definitely worth pursuing.

Is the Federal Reserve Selective?

On the interview process, @Black Jack" shares his insight as well:

As far as the process goes, they have a GPA cut off of somewhere around 3.2? maybe 3.0? I received an offer from them last winter (pursued something else) with no real experience, but I had a friend apply this year with a contact and he did not receive an interview. Guess it depends- some of the regions are more selective than others.

Recommended Reading

 
Best Response

I promote the Fed like none other on here- particularly if it is in DC or NYC, but the others are fine as well. Most will say that a no name boutique is better, I think they are pretty comparable- the fed gives you something interesting to talk about (particularly if they have you working on an interesting project). No name boutique isn't all that interesting and you'll be expected to know IB questions. Fed pays pretty well (12-15/hr I believe), hours are not bad (40-50)- not a bad gig at all. The work isn't always the most exciting from talking to a few former interns, but I know people whose only finance experience was at the Fed and ended up with offers with top BBs. Definitely worth pursuing.

As far as the process goes, they have a GPA cut off of somewhere around 3.2? maybe 3.0? I received an offer from them last winter (pursued something else) with no real experience, but I had a friend apply this year with a contact and he did not receive an interview. Guess it depends- some of the regions are more selective than others.

 
Black Jack:
I promote the Fed like none other on here- particularly if it is in DC or NYC, but the others are fine as well. Most will say that a no name boutique is better, I think they are pretty comparable- the fed gives you something interesting to talk about (particularly if they have you working on an interesting project). No name boutique isn't all that interesting and you'll be expected to know IB questions. Fed pays pretty well (12-15/hr I believe), hours are not bad (40-50)- not a bad gig at all. The work isn't always the most exciting from talking to a few former interns, but I know people whose only finance experience was at the Fed and ended up with offers with top BBs. Definitely worth pursuing.

As far as the process goes, they have a GPA cut off of somewhere around 3.2? maybe 3.0? I received an offer from them last winter (pursued something else) with no real experience, but I had a friend apply this year with a contact and he did not receive an interview. Guess it depends- some of the regions are more selective than others.

Yeah i did see you recommend it in your networking post. by receive an offer, do you mean an internship offer?

 
ChrisHansen:
Black Jack:
I promote the Fed like none other on here- particularly if it is in DC or NYC, but the others are fine as well. Most will say that a no name boutique is better, I think they are pretty comparable- the fed gives you something interesting to talk about (particularly if they have you working on an interesting project). No name boutique isn't all that interesting and you'll be expected to know IB questions. Fed pays pretty well (12-15/hr I believe), hours are not bad (40-50)- not a bad gig at all. The work isn't always the most exciting from talking to a few former interns, but I know people whose only finance experience was at the Fed and ended up with offers with top BBs. Definitely worth pursuing.

As far as the process goes, they have a GPA cut off of somewhere around 3.2? maybe 3.0? I received an offer from them last winter (pursued something else) with no real experience, but I had a friend apply this year with a contact and he did not receive an interview. Guess it depends- some of the regions are more selective than others.

Yeah i did see you recommend it in your networking post. by receive an offer, do you mean an internship offer?

Yes- last year the Fed was one of a few places where I tried to secure an internship.

 
Black Jack:
G.M.Trevelyan:
Interns do not learn very much there

I would say that this is true at 95% of places

Ah, I don't think you've ever had a BB internship before. Fed internships are not worth the hassle. That's why the people who do real work at those CBs are Grad students; they can make useful econometric models, and excel in large monetary models -- undergrads simply can't handle a Taylor model.

But I have one question: can you even lift?

 

It's going to look good on a resume, that's as much as I can tell you without you giving us more info (we'd need your school gpa, school name or general ranking by USNews helps, ECs, other internships, what you ultimately want to do, that kinda thing)

"You stop being an asshole when it sucks to be you." -IlliniProgrammer "Your grammar made me wish I'd been aborted." -happypantsmcgee
 

GPA is around 3.5 from a non-target. I'm not even going to talk about my school rank because it's pretty bad!
Very strong extracurricular with a risk management experience from last summer.

Do I have a chance of breaking into FO roles for any of the BB?

 

Meh, class rank isn't really important.

There's always a chance to break in, you just have to network. You're located in NYC, which is the perfect opportunity to contact some alumni and try and meet up with them and get some info. Also, remember, coming from a non-target, everyone that went to a non-target is a potential contact (wish I remember who first said that, they deserve credit for it).

I can't say anything about the FRBNY specifically, but I'd imagine that would be right up there with an IB or oeob / congress internship. Lastly, this forum doesn't get much attention, I'd click "Edit" on your original post and move it the I-Banking Bullpen

"You stop being an asshole when it sucks to be you." -IlliniProgrammer "Your grammar made me wish I'd been aborted." -happypantsmcgee
 
notaspammer:
I'm assuming UBS is PWM, not ibd. If you want to work in PE take the PE offer and don't look back. Provided the responsibilities are legit that's an awesome internship for a freshman.

Definitely. Even if it doesn't turn out to be the ideal place, doing a PE internship your freshman year will set you up very well for IBD or PE later on, much more so than PWM would. Congrats on the offer!

 

NVO good luck with your prospective opportunity. I should probably start my alumni networking as well! And I didn't think the Fed had opportunities for freshmen

"Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt." --Abraham Lincoln
 

PE all the way. Even though you may not be given heavy duty assignments or projects, the exposure is worth it all. I would reach out to the school of business and connect with the alumni mentoring program, specifically asking for an alumni mentor in PE or IB. Its a short list but they have a few,

"Don't compare yourself with anyone in this world...if you do so, you are insulting yourself.” -- King Microsoft
 

Do you guys think it might be worth passing up that internship in order to cold call/ wait on something more in line with investment banking? Or just go for it?

Here's the positions description: The Risk Analysis Unit (RAU) provides the Division of Supervision and Regulation, the Board of Governors, the Federal Reserve System, and the broader financial community with timely practical analysis of financial industry issues and trends that have relevance in supervision or policy making via research and analytical papers, legislative and regulatory policy responses, public presentations, and discussion forums. The selected intern will assist staff in conducting research on various supervisory topics. They will also will be required to help maintain and expand the Risk Analysis Unit's Sharepoint site. The intern will help writing VBA code to assemble/aggregate large datasets and produce datasheets and charts for internal Risk Analysis Unit products

In terms of computer skills I'd be getting Visual Basic, more Excel, and Bloomberg Terminal experience.

 

You can rest when your dead. Seriously though, I wasn't aware that the FED worked liked dogs. Pretty sure they work 40 or 50 hours a week tops. And your F500 program won't entail hours much worse than that either. So if your concerned with "working like a dog before starting my full time job with 0 rest in between" than you may not be cut out to work the 80-100 hours per week in banking. I would take the position at the FED as it might help a bit in the future.

 

Asperiores non eveniet repudiandae. Porro voluptatem nostrum aut fuga ut et ex. Non minima sunt et omnis excepturi laborum eos.

Est voluptatum qui distinctio qui. Vel beatae odit doloribus laudantium a tempore debitis. Veritatis laboriosam culpa voluptates aut. Accusantium cum eos qui sint.

 

Sequi assumenda unde tempore voluptates voluptatem ut velit. Dolore maxime veniam omnis quidem.

Distinctio et accusamus molestiae quaerat sed. Dolores consequuntur sint eum praesentium qui voluptatem eos. Soluta sunt nulla et ad tempore sed.

A voluptate ut fugit animi. Ut sit necessitatibus nobis. Totam sit quia et eius perferendis. Dolor sit molestiae delectus facilis. Quis harum voluptatibus sapiente asperiores et. Ad debitis dignissimos minima velit corporis. Dolorem consequatur voluptatem aut assumenda inventore consequuntur.

In illum modi nihil sint quidem alias eum. Et nemo perferendis ea consequuntur quasi dolores ea.

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. (++) 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (13) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (202) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (144) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”