recruiting while abroad

sorry for the double post

Muuuk:

I was in another country than the one I applied to last fall and was able to do the first round over a video conference. Generally, they seemed quite flexible. But, I'd say it was a bit harder to perform well during a VC since you couldn't really structure your thoughts on a piece of paper as you would during a normal interview.

thanks for the reply Muuk

what really worries me is not being able to attend the career forum at my uni hence hindering my retworking possibilities.

how would you guys approach this problem, specially the networking. Maybe I should start right now? To who should I focus my networking efforts (I can find Analists and Associates from my school but no managers or partners...)

Thanks all for the advice!!!

beta26:

To put it bluntly, it's tough man. Just got off the phone with a recruiter abroad for an internship position at a top consulting firm. They originally called to tell me that they were going to give me an interview, but once I told them I was a 1,000 miles away they reconsidered. On the bright side they've moved my application for full-time positions to give me an interview when Fall recruiting comes around. Your situation might be different since you'll be applying for FT, but still, these kind of things differ from company to company. So to stay on the safe side you should avoid going abroad.

Having said that, seeing the world while you are young is not something to take for granted. If you really want to go to Australia, you should do it, but you need to be on the ball for recruiting. A strategy that I wish I had taken when applying for internships would be to: figure out what firms you want to apply to now and reach out to them explaining to them your situation. This should be fairly easy since you go to a target. Use your career services center's alumni database to search for current consultants who are at your targeted firms and you should be able to email/call them. I did that with an MBB and they were kind enough to put me through their early recruiting process when I came home from break.

Great advice man. Believe me, as much as I want to go to Australia if I could have delayed the exchange or something I would have done it. But for some reason the international exchange is compulsory in my undergrad program, so there's nothing I can do regarding that aspect.

I will definitely try contacting alumni. Does an analyst/associate really have that much influence in the recruiting process?

Thanks!

jmdude:

I actually have spoken to a number of people who got jobs in their exchange city.

One did an exchange in Australia, interviewed for MBB in Sydney got the offer for BCG and worked there for 2 years until transferring back to his home country.

The other did an exchange in France, interviewed with JPM in London and got the offer.

Thanks for the insight, but what I am focusing is on recruiting in my "home country" while I am abroad. My exchange is compulsory (im in the first batch of an updated undergrad program) and will be abroad during the beginning of recruiting season this fall. For personal reasons I want to start working home and then transfer abroad...

persimmon:

Video Conferencing and phone interviews worked for me abroad, then they flew me out to the office for the final rounds. Shouldn't be a problem as far as interviewing is concerned. Networking? Good advice in above posts. Good luck.

Thanks for the insight persimmon. I have heard of people being put in a flight for the final rounds, but I don't know if they are willing to fly me from Australia to Europe...

Anyway, I have taken note regarding networking. Thanks for all the advice!

One of my non-target friends said he felt incredibly disadvantaged with recruiting (general finance) his first semester because he was abroad. He ended up going to one of our terrible job fairs second semester, and stood in a line of 200 for Vanguard. Ended up getting an interview and a job from that fair.

I know this is slightly different from your story but if they want you, they'll accommodate you.

I also think you should have some contacts so you can explain your situation to people at the firms you're applying to (in addition to HR).

Some banks don't interview people who are abroad at all. My MM basically only interviews people who are abroad if they need to fill slots after all regular recruiting is done, which is pretty rare. To any students thinking of going abroad during the Fall of junior or senior years, don't do it.

I think you're good on the timeline, but I feel your pain man. Missed out on alot of recruiting events this past season and put all my eggs in less than 3 US banks that didnt go through (superday w/ Wells) before having to leave for abroad. Thought I was fucked but landed a IM/PE gig in Asia so watch out for opps like that while you're there.

Get on as many calls as you can to the states and try to shed color on the fact that you're experiencing the China market. It's a good ice breaker & discussion point with people in the states (most american's don't know their ass from their elbow regarding China or Asia). Could maybe even inquire from them how your work in Shanghai relates to their day to day work & how you can translate the skills ur learning into working for them ;p.

Again, don't miss out on the chance to develop alot of contacts in Asia (especially China). It's the top emerging market deemed to become the world's biggest economy by 2030. Business there is very relationship based, which brings unreal opportunities to get exposure/relations/positions that you couldn't even dream of by climbing through the steep pecking order in the US at a junior level.

I highly doubt there will be interviews in the spring. If you had a network at some banks and got in touch with recruiters, maybe an accelerated interview in the summer?

Maybe they'll do a video interview for a screen and fly you out for a superday? Not sure how the process works in that case, but I'm going to go ahead and say no to spring interviews.

Some BBs have an accelerated process for people going abroad. Look it up. Should be happening pretty soon, so get to work.

you should've started earlier you still have 2.5 months, get cracking

You most definitely would need to do a physical interview, so do it before you leave.

has anybody heard back about GS yet?

Hope it works out for you.

I was once told by a recruiter that Study Abroad kids just get dinged because of the increased difficulty in the recruiting process. There's probably 100 kids just like you, who they don't have to skype interview and can meet in person. If you don't get the Dec. Superdays, network hard so an alumni or friend can make sure you get the consideration you deserve. Don't get me wrong, it works out for a lot of people, but some people also get screwed. Good luck

Good point Office_Farva. It's tough already from a target to organize these interviews, can't imagine if you won't be able to come to NY and/or are from a non-target without alumni who can vouch for you.

Any one for MS or JPM?

You mean you'll be studying abroad in the spring? I believe almost all BBs offer this but have no idea about MM firms/boutiques. I'd just go ahead and try to contact recruiters at the various firms to ask them directly.