Alternatives to M&A
I am a Junior preparing for SA recruiting. I've been looking primarily at IBD, but am wondering what sort of alternatives there are to consider.
Apart from M&A, there's Sales and Trading, Asset Management, etc. However, I'm wondering what might be the easiest to transition to IBD after a couple of years. Capital Markets (ECM/DCM) comes to mind, but are there any other? Maybe equity research/public finance?
I only ask because I am going through a rough time with personal issues. A family member is ill, and I don't think I can devote 100% of my time to work. I know hours are hours, but working 60-70 hrs would be considerably better for my situation than the consistent 85+. Visiting on weekends/holidays would make the world the difference.
What are other FO/MO that make similar base to IBD/similar work experience? Should I be considering jobs such as corporate banking/investor services/treasury services?
Thanks in advance for any advice.
It's completely dependent on the skills you gain and how you can translate them to being effective for IBD. As you've probably read here, there are many ways to get in, as long as you know your way around valuation and accounting basics combined with a strong concise story on why you want to transition into IBD. Taking into account the above you should be fine, don't be afraid to open yourself up to various areas of the financial sector; there are many ways to make a killing and depending on your preferences can be much more fulfilling than IBD.
Hours at a lot of middle market and boutique banks will fall within that 60-70 hour threshold, especially for a summer analyst. If M&A is the end goal, you can always consider banks with less of a sweatshop reputation. It sounds, however, like you are a bit confused about what exactly your end goal is. I think you need to start there.
I would say my long term goal would be a corpdev position at a (preferably tech) company, and a shorter term goal of business school and/or PE.
Thanks both of you for the replies.
In that case, almost all of the alternatives to M&A that you initially outlined are probably not the wisest choices. A treasury role at a bank is not going to translate into corp dev at a technology company. I realize this is just an internship, but from the sounds of it you are probably a competitive candidate for other roles.
Have you looked into internships with F500 tech companies? Management consulting (not sure what the hours are like for summers, but I'm sure someone else can comment)?
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