How did you apply/land your job?

I'm curious to know whether most of the people on here got their current role through applying or networking?

Before landing my current position, I had gotten a few offers through previous connections but actually accepted an offer from a firm that I applied to online and knew no one there.

 
Stoo:

first job, - applied online through craigslist
second job - recruiter
received a few job offers from networking as well during my job search (but had already accepted my current position)

How did your networking offers come about? Did you build a relationship and over time they eventually offered you while you kept in touch?
 

A lot of companies are posting jobs on LinkedIn now. Coming out of school I didn't have many contacts in AM... the way I got my job was finding a LinkedIn post, applying for the job, then searching out people on the HR team in that office. I would send very brief individual notes to every HR person I could find basically letting them know I applied and that I was very interested. That method landed me the most interviews BY FAR, and is the reason I got a buy-side job fresh out of undergrad.

 
DBW521:

A lot of companies are posting jobs on LinkedIn now. Coming out of school I didn't have many contacts in AM... the way I got my job was finding a LinkedIn post, applying for the job, then searching out people on the HR team in that office. I would send very brief individual notes to every HR person I could find basically letting them know I applied and that I was very interested. That method landed me the most interviews BY FAR, and is the reason I got a buy-side job fresh out of undergrad.

How do you email or message an HR or higher up employee from company after applying without sounding desperate and basically saying " gimme an interview"?
 

Weird question since, by applying, that's exactly what you're doing... but I would say something like this.

"Hi XXX, I saw your firm's job posting for XXX position and just applied. I think my experience and career aspirations would lend well to the position and I am very interested. I would love to be given the chance to further discuss the opportunity with you, or another person in charge of hiring for the position. Best, XXX"

Don't waste their time with babble, just be short, sweet and to the point.

 

my first job at 16 (i turned down an offer from McDonalds at 15) was being a busboy in a restaurant in safeco field (baseball stadium in seattle)

after that, i believe every job i've had i got because of someone i knew, referral, etc (non finance roles)

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AndyLouis:

my first job at 16 (i turned down an offer from McDonalds at 15) was being a busboy in a restaurant in safeco field (baseball stadium in seattle)

after that, i believe every job i've had i got because of someone i knew, referral, etc (non finance roles)

Why woul dyou interview at McDonalds if you werent going to accept?

 

Honestly the top top jobs will be posted somewhere and you'll go up against everyone good to get it. I don't really think 100% networked jobs exist unless you are taking a step down and have a lot to offer. If you are winning you are likely applying. It's like a broker from Eastdil calling you about an "off market" or "lightly marketed" opportunity #doubtItBruh

 
Best Response

First job - Applied online Second Job- Applied Online Third Job- Recruiter

Everyone knocks applying online but it really does work if you know how to put together a good resume that hits key words. Here is a brief list of companies I have interviewed with from a cold online apps only (not including referrals/relationships and recruiters) from when I started interviewing in college and beyond-

  1. Top 10 semiconductor manufacturer - Finance
  2. Fortune 1000 semiconductor manufacturer - Corp dev
  3. Big 4 tech firm (Amzn, FB, goog, Msft) - finance
  4. Fortune 100 manufacturing - Corp dev/strategy
  5. Fortune 100 manufacturing - finance
  6. Fortune 1000 manufacturing - finance 7.Fortune 1000 energy - finance
  7. Fortune 100 energy - trading
  8. Big 4 airline - Pricing
  9. Early stage oilfield services - Corp dev
  10. Lower MM investment bank

Out of these interviews i received - 4 formal offers, one informal offer (turned down before formal offer), and 6 rejections.

Applying online works you just have to have design your resume well.

I should note that despite my winding interview path I made my way into real estate. All's well that ends well I suppose.

The last act is tragic, however happy all the rest of the play is; at the last a little earth is thrown upon our head, and that is the end for ever.
 

I sent the head of the company (regional developer) an email from out of the blue. Completely different market, absolutely no connections. I called him a few weeks later to congratulate him on one of his projects in the news, as well as asking if he got my email. He said next time I was in town to call him and he might be able to meet for coffee.

Met him a few weeks later for 15-20 minutes he had in between meetings downtown. A few weeks after that he emailed me asking if I could make another trip back to meet more of the team. About a month after that meeting, I received a text asking if I was still interested in a potential job opp. I accepted, he outlined the offer details, I packed my bags. All in all the process took about 2.5 months.

 

Two words: affirmative action. Just kidding, but I've heard they really like to pick up minority kids, even if they don't stack up as well as everyone else.

In my friend's analyst class, he said they brought in some random girl from Howard (an all-black school)who was woefully inept and dumb as a brick. Not to say you're any of those things, but there is certainly more than one way to skin a cat when it comes to getting into IB.

 

hires from Howard, Spelman, Morehouse b/c of affirmative actions. In my experience, most of these students are not smart at all and wouldn't have even got an interview at a target school. They get in because of affirmative action, but can't even get to FCF in a DCF.

 

I do think that many people on this site only offer a lot of hype/second-hand information and I do think there are other factors to explain discrepencies/anamolies.

1) I think what people say is that information which gives you the 'best possible chance'. Nothing is guaranteed, one way or another. But obviously a kid with a 4.0 from Harvard w/ 3 summers of BB internships and who is quant-strong and whose dad, uncle, and closests neighbors are all MD's is going to have a better chance than a 3.2, non-target, non-quant, non-everything who just shoots an app. in on a whim.

Obviously a polarizing case, but you get the point.

2) I think a lot of people here either a) puff themselves up because it is "cool" to be "cool" on an internet message board or b) there are actually those people who did have a 4.0 from Harvard, etc. and they are protecting their turf/confirming themselves as part of what really is an exclusive club.

3) Don't hate me, but this is my impression, or at least this seems to be the case with Doostang... many people on these boards are non-US citizens from India, China, or Korea who are fighting/scratching/clawing to get into a US IB and in order to differentiate themselves from the 400 Indian/Chinese/Korean fellows who have a 3.65 gpa in engineering at Cal/Michigan/UCLA/UT, "THEY" need to have a 4.0 in Math from 'Harvard' as there will only be a handful of them.

In my opinion, call me crazy or whatever, but I really think #3 is the most accurate.

 

but most of the kids are 2nd generation Indians, Koreans, or Chinese. They speak fluent english and are citizens. Most of them are very competitive, but people you can talk to about sports, partying, and girls. However, at the associate level, they're non-US citizens and have very tough time acclimating into banking envrionment.

 

I realize that might happen with some, but I think my situation is a little different...I will admit that I don't always put as much effort into things as I should, but my IQ is over 150, and they get us started on dcfs sophomore year at my school. I think people tend to have one or two bad experiences with minority students who aren't very smart and tend to generalize it to everybody...just my opinion

 

Congrats. Don't let whatever negative comments you hear about AA affect you. Bust your balls, work your ass off this summer, and make the most of this opportunity. You deserve it. Forget the people who tell you otherwise, I'm sure whatever BB you're working at knows better than your detractors on this board.

 

An IQ of 150 isn't out of the ordinary in banking. And we DO put a lot of effort into everything. I know of one analyst whose Wechsler test topped out at 187 who still busts ass 120-130 hours a week and is only barely doing well enough.

You can rely on your brains to sail you through college. You can't rely on your brains to get you through a two-year analyst stint.

 

Thanks ivybanker :)...and Mis Ind, my point was just that minority hires aren't dumb by definition. Besides, from what I've read on this forum and others, it seems like being an analyst isn't necessarily that intellectually challenging.

 

It is and it isn't. Certain bits of it will require every ounce of your intellect -- not your training, not your education, not your memory, but your raw intellect, the tool you use to approach and solve brand-new problems. Most of it will simply be a grind. Sometimes it will be a twenty-hour a day grind for an entire week. What gets you through that isn't intellect; it's either desperation or mule-stubbornness.

 

I wouldn't worry about how or why you got the internship..the point is, you got it, so make sure you do a good job and get that full-time offer. That being said, I should warn you that people are going to be able to tell you're an AA hire from the resume book. While it's true everyone isn't a 4.0 from Harvard, most of your summer analyst class will be 3.5+ GPAs from ivys or other top 20 schools. No one's going to say anything to you or be overtly obnoxious, but just don't go in there bragging about how smart you are or acting proud about getting the internship, because people will scoff at you since race clearly played a huge part.

Also, you may have to prove yourself more than the other interns since your group will have your resume. Just keep that in mind and don't get discouraged if you're given the easiest work starting out..once you prove that you can do work as well as the guy sitting next to you from Princeton, you'll be fine.

 

luck honestly has a lot to do with it in my opinion...i got an internship lined up for the summer with a top 10 as well..and my GPA doesnt even reach 2.8..hahaha

but through 8 rounds of interviews, i was lucky they didn't ask anything to hard..

so bless the opportunity..and as ppl say here..bust your balls off and pull off the full time offer this summer

 
small potatoe:
luck honestly has a lot to do with it in my opinion...i got an internship lined up for the summer with a top 10 as well..and my GPA doesnt even reach 2.8..hahaha

but through 8 rounds of interviews, i was lucky they didn't ask anything to hard..

so bless the opportunity..and as ppl say here..bust your balls off and pull off the full time offer this summer

then u prolly lied on ur app. theres no way they wouldnt ask for ur gpa. if they asked and u said 2.8, then i quit.

 

Ever look around the office and think...really?? you got in??? I think that would be the most frustrating thing of all.

Haven't started yet but will be working with a moron this summer as an SA and I have no idea how they got the position (we were recruited from same school).

 

I ask myself the same question everyday....how in the world did I land an internship?! I'm glad I came on this board after I got the offer (to find out what IBanking is, since that's what I'll be doing), because otherwise I probably would've thought that I had no chance at all. Ignorance is bliss, and helps the confidence during interviews and helps you to be yourself. Maybe that's why?

 

I am a junior finance major at University of Florida. My GPA is 3.82 and I have some studying abroad experience. What are my chance to get a job in I Banking. Thanks in advanced

 
jorgetrueba:
I am a junior finance major at University of Florida. My GPA is 3.82 and I have some studying abroad experience. What are my chance to get a job in I Banking. Thanks in advanced

Think about the number of kids who have the exact same stats you just listed: non-target, 3.8+ GPA, other experience. How many people do you think have those stats? Upfront, those are your odds.

Ya gotta give more than the first 2 lines of your resume.

 

any thing is possible...but you have to seek opportunities for yourself. If you haven't started seeking opportunities yet, then I dunno because the recruiting season has almost ended...

I'll say get a finance internship with a fortune 500 if you can this summer and network aggressively for a FT offer in your senior year

 

Hey xistgurum thanks for the reply. Besides the orher stats I also speak fluently spanish and very good french.I have lived in Cuba, Spain and France.I havent really worked in the field yet. However, I am very informed in the banking world, and rad lots of banking books.

 

Ack. The English is not so good. In English, you would say, "I speak Spanish fluently," but never "I speak fluently Spanish." In English, adverbs don't always directly follow the verbs they modify. Also, past tense of the English present-tense word "read" is "read". "Advanced" is a past-tense verb; what you actually meant was "Thanks in advance."

I know it's frustrating -- English has got to be one of the world's least logical languages. Unfortunately, it is essentially the language of global banking. It's tough to make it through those interviews if the English is not superb.

 

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