Delaying graduation: good/bad idea?

Mez — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 22:05:34 -0400

Who else is thinking about doing this? A month ago, I would have NEVER even thought about this, but now Im getting 'desperate' (I guess you could call it that).

If I dont get an offer by December, I'm gonna take my GMAT and either try to get into a 1 year M.Sc program to start next fall or delay graduation by a year. Hopefully 2009 fall FT recruitment will look a lot better than this.

Pros:
-It will give me another (and more likely) shot at trying to get an SA offer; learned from my mistakes from last year
-If I just delay graduation...it will be a pretty lax year; gives me time to 'smell the flowers'
-More time to network
-Wont be stuck in some BO job

Cons:
-2009 FT recruitment may be even worse than this year

Loving it...so clean!!!

Mez — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 22:18:54 -0400

Nice job WSO.com. It looks sleek!

Negative equity on books

Mez — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 15:47:11 -0400

How does this happen?

I know that it can occur when:
-Net Losses are reported on the income statement
-Additional debt is taken on to distribute dividends

What else can make equity negative? Can this happen during an LBO (post-recap)?

Thanks.

meeting with associate...do I outdress him?

Mez — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:41:31 -0400

Hey,

I have a little meeting with an associate tomorrow at a big Canadian bank...just an information type meeting. I imagine he probably works in a suit but I am not sure. I am thinking I shouldnt go full-out formal with suit/tie, instead I plan on going with just a nice shirt and (maybe) tie. Is this too casual? How will he perceive me? BTW, not sure if it makes a difference, he is pretty young (23 I think).
What is considered "safe" for this type of meeting?

Bateman moment: nicest logo

Mez — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 23:09:43 -0400

Im bored from studying (thats obvious) so I started wondering who's got the nicest logo from the well known IBs.

I actually like RBC Capital Markets. I don't really dig Deutsche's box-with-a-dash.

What would you say? Would you be pissed?

Mez — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 21:27:33 -0400

Hey guys,

ive been scouring everywhere for alums from my school to contact...I want to network as much as possible before FT analyst recruitment in the fall. However, I come from somewhat of a non-target (in Canada). When I say non-target, I mean Ive only found only about 10-20 people who hold/previously held i-banking jobs, and thats after extensive researching (literally to the point where i googled "[university name] Investment Banking/M&A/Private equity" and ended up going all the way to page 30 of the results, only found like 7 people)

So I found an MD (at a Canadian big-5) on the corporate website, who did his MBA at my school. However, there is no email/contact info. BUT I do know the email address structure of the firm, e.g. firstname.lastname@XYZbank.ca
Do you think it would be inappropriate to contact him this way? If someone did it to you, would you be pissed/annoyed?
I know it may seem extreme, but im obviously desperate :).

Thanks in advance

Another "give me your advice" thread

Mez — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 14:08:54 -0400

So I am in a little dilemma here. Ill try to give some background info. Non-target, 3.5+, good ECs, athlete, finishing up my Junior year. I currently work part-time (kind of an internship) BO at a large (good brand name) investment/insurance company for over a year now. I worked there FT last summer.

Meeting with some PE guys (Help)

Mez — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 10:56:53 -0400

Hi,

Im a ugrad, and Ill be meeting with some FoF PE guys tomorrow (going to their firm). I dont know a whole lot about PE other than some basic knowledge. I'd like to come off as intelligent and well-informed but not to much as it could possibly come across as me being "too cocky" or overconfident.
Anyways, here some of the questions/discussions subject I wanted to bring up:

So no offers up to now - 2nd option

Mez — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 01:20:53 -0500

I have a few potential summer offers (will know in march) from some "good" MM banks and small-medium IM firms. However, the other day I started thinking...maybe I could take the summer off and do something else I enjoy with my time which might lead me to actually rejecting the offers (if i get them).

the IB "skill set" ??

Mez — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 21:41:56 -0500

Ive read alot about the specific skill-set one learns doing IB. but what exactly does this mean? from what ive understood, this has included: extensive modelling/valuation skills, ability to work hard and long, do bitch work, learning how to BS

Can someone else (preferably a banker) talk about exactly what they mean when they say skill-set?