Reconsidering Wall Street?
This is primarily for the college kids:
Has the recent financial crisis caused you to reconsider a career on Wall Street at all? What are you most worried about going forward: job-security, pay, or something else? Are you optimistic about the future state of the industry?
If you have reconsidered finance, are you considering moving away from business alltogether or just going the consulting route?
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Poll
WSO Employment Rate: for those of you searching for a job, have you received an offer yet?
Yes
51%
No
49%
Total votes: 109
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been out of a school for a few years
ive been out of school for a few years but the concerns im hearing is more towards job security. undergrads are still considering wall street but more for the exit options.
in the short term, for current seniors, they are looking more at corp fin/consulting gigs for a few years then grad school and then a high paying job.
It had for a split second,
It had for a split second, but I'm going to suck it up for at least the 2 years and take advantage of the exit opps....markets are cyclical, and this what happens every so years
NO, I still want to be on
NO, I still want to be on Wall Street but looking towards exits even more intenty than before.
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So what do you do?
-I work for an investment banking firm.
Oh okay; you are like my brother, he works for Edward Jones.
-No, a college degree is required in my profession
Slightly
The lack of job security is frightening, and corp/bus dev jobs have become a bit more intriguing. That said, I guess you have to understand this is a cyclical industry.
maybe we should have a poll
maybe we should have a poll on which paths people are now reconsidering to take?
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you guys keep using the exit
you guys keep using the exit ops argument but we don't even know what the future of private equity or HFs will be like. There might be fewer of those in the future and you might end up with no kick ass job after your two year stint. You can move to corporate strategy but you can do that from the very beginning to and you can do that after consulting as well. Also, little leverage will reduce the ROE at p.e firms which might not even make bonuses that attractive after all. I'm not saying this is a bad career choice, but I'm just saying it's important to fully consider the future of your prospective exit option too. Also, for instance you join a bank, and market conditions force the firm to fire you within a few months, what then? You don't have the skills for a kick ass exit op and you're stuck with an exorbitant lease in Manhattan with little or no savings thanks to the tax rate.
When I say exit ops, I do
When I say exit ops, I do not necessarily mean PE/HF.
I could be referring to Bus Dev/Business School/Think Tank w/e
My whole point is that I'm graduating from a top school, but yet I do not really have a skillset, and I'm convinced Investment Banking will give me that, and then I'm out.
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in the short term, for current seniors, they are looking more at corp fin/consulting gigs for a few years then grad school and then a high paying job.
as a senior graduating from a non-target in december, this is my feeling exactly.
i doubt PE/HF/VC activity
i doubt PE/HF/VC activity will slow down significantly in the coming years
money hungry risk takers that are loaded with $$$ will keep looking for the next big thing, VC investment in alternative fuels/clean energy has exploded in 2006-07..and now everyone's talking about these 'exotic' markets like vietnam, some south american countries, Kazakhstan etc etc.........my point being the buy side people will keep investing in what they think is the next big thing
Luckily it's still a few
Luckily it's still a few years until I graduate, and I'm still content to go into finance after graduation. However, I'm honestly a bit worried how this will change the business, but there will always be opportunities, so I'm not giving up on my plans just yet. . .
I dont graduate for three
I dont graduate for three more years, but I am still planning on IB.
Concerns
I'm not too concerned about job security as much as the uncertainty of the industry in general. Despite everyone's opinions on the board about where the economy is heading, what comp/bonuses will be in one or two years, and what the exit ops will be, nobody really knows for sure. Just the fact that it is so uncertain is what is worrying me these days.
i know that a lot of people
i know that a lot of people at my school have outright not applied to investment banks or even bothered showing up to their events. and no, i'm not just saying this. this is from recruiters telling me they're surprised
...
I'm not too concerned about job security as much as the uncertainty of the industry in general. Despite everyone's opinions on the board about where the economy is heading, what comp/bonuses will be in one or two years, and what the exit ops will be, nobody really knows for sure. Just the fact that it is so uncertain is what is worrying me these days.
You probably bought in to that 'supercycle' bullshit as well. We found out, once again, that the cycle is not dead. Funny that.
There will always be smart people working in finance earning outsized pay checks and hiring cheap, smart graduates to help them. They may not be called IB/PE/VC/HF etc... but they'll be there.
CKnew
What 'supercycle' are you talking about?