PE Recruiting: Preferencing Firms with Headhunters
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If you're not in a "top group" and don't have pre-existing connections inside some of the largest funds, giving preference to upper-MM firms is probably the better way to go. That said, the difference in competitiveness between MFs and upper-MM funds is infinitesimal - bring your A game.
Thanks I'm wondering what my changes are at any of the MFs or even upper middle market with my background (target undergrad, high GPA and test scores, non GS/MS/JPM BB, great deal experience)
Exactly how high are your GPA and test scores? Have you been invited to the recent cocktail and dinner networking events?
Depends most relevantly on: 1) how was your midterm feedback, 2) did your staffer vouch for you when called by headhunters, 3) how has your group historically placed (assuming it's a coverage group?) and 4) how did your face-to-face meetings go with the headhunters?
If you have a 3.9+, 2350+ SAT, strong reviews from your team, and a good relationship with headhunters, you'll probably get a shot at 1 or 2 megafunds if you're in a top group at your BB. If you're in an average group at an average BB, your chances are slim, regardless of your stats. However, if you read enough posts on this board, you'll realize that lots of people don't allow their stats to control their fate.
I think you're overestimating the importance of GPA and SAT scores a bit. They both matter, but the "cutoffs" generally aren't as restrictive as you make them sound. Some of this depends on how narrowly you define "megafund", but since you're from a target, if you're in a top group at your BB with good feedback and a solid headhunter meeting, you have a decent shot at picking up one or two megafund (assuming you define the largest, say, 15 active funds as "megafunds") interviews. With those same stats, you should manage several upper-MM (say, funds >$2.5bn) interviews as well.
Obviously, the process is extremely competitive, so any marks against you will affect your chances. No sense in fretting about things at this point though, see what your first round interviews is and make sure you perform well! Based on your performance in your first set of interviews, headhunters will typically adjust the type of interviews for which they target you.
NorthSider- Do you know how many people are invited to interview for a MF? And how many offers are extended? I know the exact numbers will vary by firm, but what would a representative average look like? Thanks.
Also is Rampant exaggerating or what? Basically if you are an analyst at CS, DB, BarCap, Citi, UBS, your chances are slim to none at landing even1-2 MF interviews?
Sorry, I should have been more clear. I said you need those stats to probably secure a first round interview. If your stats are slightly worse, but you still come from a strong group at an average BB, you will possibly get 1-2 MF interviews. As others have said, PE recruiting is a different animal. There's a lot of luck involved.
I am in a top group at my BB and we do a significant amount of M&A. GPA/SAT/gmat scores are at the high end, great midyear review and my recruiter meetings have been going well overall, some I connected well with the recruiter others were unmemorable. I know my deals well (1 closed buyside, 1 should close by the start of the process and an ongoing sellside). I was confident going into the process, but now I'm starting to doubt myself - seems like way too much competition for very few spots. Though, I do hear that there are less analysts this year compared to historically, which may swing the numbers in our favor a bit.
I do think you're right that a lot of people go into IB jobs underestimating the competitiveness of the PE interviewing process. The numbers don't lie: there are far more candidates for PE positions (especially at the larger funds) than there are interviews, and monumentally more than there are positions.
Deal experience ultimately means less than you might imagine when it comes to resume screening. How you communicate your deal work in the HH intro meetings is more relevant to your overall assessment. You sounds like you have great stats, and I'm sure you'll find yourself with a host of upper-MM interviews. MF interviews aren't necessarily the zenith of buyside recruiting; even if you receive a slot, there's a long way between you and an offer. Keep your focus and don't let the number of MF interviews you get affect your psyche. If you're feeling confident, you likely have reason to, and that will improve your interview performance.
Coffee chats and marketing events have started for firms like Warburg Pincus and Centerbridge, which should give you some idea of where you stand with HSP and Amity. It's a limited sample though, so I wouldn't read into things too much.
The other thing that throws a wrench into my candidacy (could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on who you ask) is that I spent a year outside of banking (thinking research, trading, sales) before laterally into banking. I have more experience/maturity but it certainly makes my story more complicated/unbelievable or unique/compelling depending on who you ask. I also felt like I did well with Amity and HSP, and I expressed my interested in MFs, but I'm probably not on their short list seeing as I have not received any coffee/marketing event invites. I wonder how many non GS/MS/elite boutique people make it to these things.
Honestly that's unlikely to move the needle much in the grand scheme of things, outside of how you framed it in your headhunter intro meetings. The overwhelming emphasis will be on your FT IB experience during the PE process. For largely that reason, the most statistically significant predictor of your success getting interviews is the historic placement of your group. Where are your current second years going? And the class before them? A couple years of data points should give you a pretty representative sample of the opportunities you can expect.
As for MF coffee chats, the lists are obviously short and generally focus on the groups that you would imagine. More than a couple but hardly a legion of non-GS / MS / EB analysts are invited to coffee chats, mostly dependent on how your intro meetings went and the feedback the HHs receive from your group. If you feel confident about how your meetings went, I wouldn't be worried about getting upper-MM looks. The process is still in its infancy, it's too early to make judgments about where you stand.
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