Positions to target if I can’t get a ER gig?
I’ve gotten a general sense for what professions to target if I can’t get an offer from an ER gig, but just want to know WSOs thoughts. I’m graduating from a non-target in May 2024, doubling in finance and accounting, and sitting for level I of the CFA in August. I’ve competed in a few stock pitch challenges, and am currently president of our investment club. While I feel like my resume is somewhat competitive, I’ve done 2 internships and both of them aren’t in the ER field. My goal is obviously to get a offer to an ER shop (sell side is likely where my chances lie), but I have my worries that that may not happen. What roles should I be applying to as my backup that yield the fastest-track into getting into ER as soon as possible?
What do you want to cover?
If I had the luxury of picking, my top 3 would be healthcare, technology, or consumer. However, this early in my career I would take whatever I can get.
You don’t necessarily have to be in finance to lateral over.
Also healthcare is huge. I’m in HC ER. Every analyst I worked for came from industry (including myself although I’m still an associate). For example I know a HC services analyst who came from Washington and used to work as a CMS lobbyist (smooth transition). Now his channel checks are him calling up his old buddies in DC and he has an edge on the street. I’m in biotech and came from medical school. All the analyst I work with came from PhD programs or practicing medicine. I know that’s a tangent but point is you don’t have to come from finance for this job. There’s probably a ton of CS guys in tech for example.
But to answer your question some solid seats to lateral from in finance could be IBD or equity sales. The lateral is significantly easier to break into obviously.
If those don’t work out consider working in corporate finance, but do it within a coverage space you want to cover in ER. For HC services consider UNH. For consumer consider Walmart.
Hope that helps.
When I interned at a MM bank most of the associates I met were laterals. Their first jobs weren't ER, but were related somewhere/somehow in the finance field. Off the top of my head, one was from a small random mutual fund where all he did was collect data, one worked at a random firm calling people, and another tracked hedge funds all day.
Realistically if you can't get a ER job straight away the next best thing is having a research role anywhere. Working at the credit ratings, I imagine, would be an easy story for how the skills you learned can transition into ER. It all depends on how you spin it.
Yea working at moody’s or something similar
Big 4 Vals/corp fin etc.
Credit rating agency research
Can anyone speak to the ratings agency -> ER transition? Wondering how smooth / feasible the path is
Probably smoother the closer to junk rated the companies are.
Would look into consulting as well. Started my career in a boutique consulting firm that focused on a specific sector and then transitioned into ER covering the same industry. Honestly there are lots of similarities between the two jobs, particularly in the type of analyses that you would be doing, though obviously consulting is much less markets focused. It also gives you an edge because it gives you a broader understanding of the industry from the company side that can be useful even when you transition to the investor side, so think that could be a good option to consider.
A lot of good answers here already. To add some areas Ive seen people come from: financial analyst at a company in the sector, wealth management, valuations, accounting
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