When to apply for ER Associate jobs

Hi Everyone,

I am a biotech Ph.D. who is currently set to graduate in September. I was hoping to get some feedback from some people currently in the sector about how close to graduation I should be before starting to apply for ER associate jobs. I have a solid amount of experience from a startup business and an ER externship, but when I tried to apply in May, a few employers said they were looking for someone to start sooner. I haven't seen too many new job postings after this, but I would love any advice on applying to ER positions and anything else I should be aware of.

Thank you!

409 WSO Academy Equity Research Session Reviews: 4.83/5

Class of '25 Nov 2026 Cohort

5.00/5

Equity Research Career Roadmap (optional)

“Chris was very easy to talk to and made the session feel relaxed and genuinely useful. He gave me clear, actionable tasks that I can go away and work on straight away to expand my network. I hope to reconvene with him at a later date to discuss the progress I have made and get his feedback on the work I have been doing.”

Springfield College

Class of '29 Sep 2026 Cohort

4.85/5

Equity Research Mock Coffee Chat

“Craig gave me a really clear picture of how sell-side equity research actually works. The biggest takeaway was that research is a service business built on trust, not on picking stocks, and that analysts are paid on rankings rather than on whether a call is right. He was honest that even a 60% hit rate is excellent, and that it matters more to understand where you went wrong than where you were right. I also liked his point about not being “unintelligently wrong”: own the mistake and explain it well. On the practical side, he told me to start now by running a blog, posting on Seeking Alpha, using Koyfin as a cheap Bloomberg alternative, and using AI to draft commentary so I have more time to think deeply and explore other sectors. He also explained that research recruiting is much more targeted than IB, since sector teams are fairly autonomous, so I should reach out to senior analysts in specific sectors and recommend based on fit. His own path from no finance background, through China, to Wharton was encouraging. My one suggestion would be a quick walkthrough of what a strong first report looks like beyond the core pieces (recommendation, risks, summary, price target).”

See All 11,551 WSO Academy Reviews

1 Comments

Braininajar

O

10y

Best Response

Consequatur magni et laudantium ab. Itaque eos at explicabo earum provident. Delectus quis assumenda ut dolore. Voluptatibus eum quod aliquid laudantium quod ratione porro. Consequatur dolorem voluptatem excepturi qui maxime molestiae. Error minus voluptatem accusamus sapiente quis illo. Rerum in unde qui officiis expedita ut quam et.

+13	Is Equity Research Dying - Where Are the Future Opportunites?	4	1d
+10	Associates who stuck around for > 5 years working for the same analyst. Why?	4	6d
+9	UBS ER SA27 Superday	7	3w
+9	Detailed Revenue and Cost Builds	3	1w
+7	Analyst with no coverage or ranking	5	1w
+7	Uiuc or Ross or UChicago	8	2w
+1	IB SA -> ER FT	4	2w
0	Equity Research Rankings	1	1w

1	redever	99.2
2	kanon	99.0
3	BankonBanking	99.0
4	Secyh62	99.0
5	GameTheory	98.9
6	Betsy Massar	98.9
7	CompBanker	98.9
8	dosk17	98.9
9	DrApeman	98.9
10	Mimbs	98.8

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

When to apply for ER Associate jobs

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Score Breakdown

Feedback

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

Elite Career Bootcamp. Top Job Offer Guaranteed.

When to apply for ER Associate jobs

See All Comments - 100% Free

Trending Content - Equity Research Forum