How did you break in?
Hi everyone,
I'm a sophomore at a non-target looking to break into ER. I have a regional PWM internship set up for the summer, but as I move forward looking at how I can position myself for an ER internship junior summer I'm kind of stuck as far as how cold calling and getting interviews works with equity research.
So I guess what I'm asking for is how did you do it? What was your process for securing ER internships and FT offers? Any insights or advice would be much appreciated!
If you haven't started already, you need to network ASAP. Get an executive portrait (headshot for business) that looks good by a professional photographer, put it on LinkedIn, and shape up your LinkedIn page with some feedback from any mentors or experienced businessmen or women. Ask to sit down for coffee or a beer and talk about how they got into ER, etc. Like others have said, you make a network NOW so you can use it later...not when you actually need it. I commend you for being proactive in thinking about summer a year from now, so get to it by networking and have relationships already formed and maintained so that you can call upon them in the near future for internships and advice.
Thanks for the reply, that's kind of what I figured. I'll start reaching out to people as soon as possible then. Any advice as far as informational meetings go?
Just be succinct and honest about your ambitions and current level of knowledge. If you can, try to make some connection with them (alumni, interests, etc) when you reach out but point is that you're simply looking for advice on career direction and have questions about their experience. I've noticed that older people are relatively more receptive than younger people, but don't assume anything. Also, when you're done with a meeting ask if they know anyone else who would know more about what you want to do specifically and just make sure you keep in touch every so often.
Just wanted to comment that this is one of the tightest suggestions I've seen - following this to a tee should position you for success.
I'd add two things, both relevant to networking 1) Coming from a non-target, I'd focus between now and your internship start on both learning the mechanics of PWM inside and out, and also start strategizing on how to utilize the PWM network you're getting exposed to for ER connects. 2) Look into Tip Ranks - loads of analysts are profiled on that site and you can see their coverage universe. Then you can hit up the analysts that cover companies you're interested in (as an aside, I would start thinking about two sectors that interest you strongly and you wouldn't mind learning more about on the side, it'll help you stand out in your networking, and subsequently in interviews for ER roles covering either of those sectors as you will have already started, organically, building an industry expertise of sorts).
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