anyone feeling overwhelmed?
I'm a rising sophomore recruiting for IB right now. I tend to be a bit of an overthinker, so this post may sound dramatic, but I'm just looking for guidance. I'm involved with a student-managed fund on campus, and I'm at a non-target. Seeing all my peers shoot for BBs and working in M&A makes me believe I should, after all; I might as well get into the "hardest/best" thing then pivot out if needed. But through my coffee chats with investment bankers, I'm only being pulled farther from the industry. They all get on the call sounding drained, bags under their eyes and all, talking about the sacrifice and the 80+ hour work weeks. They all say it's worth it, and I don't doubt it is, but I cannot see myself doing that and being happy or even satisfied with my life, even if it is just 2 years. The traditional exits (PE, HF, VC) also are not particularly appealing to me. I've been looking into DCM, corporate banking, or aiming for AM/PC (I know, unlikely) as alternatives; I heard hours were a bit better, and the work sounds interesting to me from the people I've spoken to/things I've read (I'm pretty interested in credit in general). But then the what-if kicks in, and I wonder if I'll regret not shooting for traditional IB straight from undergrad.
I am a believer that you never really know until you try, but once I try, I'll already be a rising senior with limited FT opportunities.
I don't expect anyone to tell me what career I should choose; I guess with accelerated timelines and all, I'm wondering if any other sophomores feel the same way? I still feel like I am in high school sometimes lol. Any advice is greatly appreciated.
TLDR: Rising sophomore at a non-target, recruiting for IB but questioning whether it’s actually for me. Coffee chats with bankers showed me the tough lifestyle, and PE/HF/VC exits don’t appeal much either. I’m more interested in DCM, corporate banking, or AM/PC because I like credit and they seem more sustainable. But I’m worried I’ll regret not taking the “hardest/best” path while I have the chance. Wondering if other sophomores feel the same and how they’re thinking about it.
Dude, I feel the same. I'm trying to fix my resume up, and it's kinda hard
TLDR. Stopped reading at "Non Target"
updated lmao
dude you're also at a non-target holy shit
Aint no way a “tulaner” is talking shit lmfao
The only thing you can do is do the best you can. Once you’ve tried your best preparing for recruiting, weighing up your options and committing, there is nothing more you can do. Hopefully that helps a bit; once you’ve done all you can you should put your mind at ease as that’s it. Even if you fail, you wouldn’t have done any better otherwise, and you outcome is sealed.
Do your best and let God do the rest.
Shoot for the moon and if you miss at least you'll be among the stars. Kinda corny but true, if you try for ib recruiting and fail, at least you'll be easily set up for S&T or equity research. Easier than deciding last minute you want to pivot into IB from S&T, which would be much harder
Bump. Recruited and studied as much as I could for IB, had a couple superdays that didn't pan out but I got a cb offer which I'm very happy with
How easy is it pivot to S&T recruiting from IB?
much easier than pivoting from S&T to IB
^ Bump - can't stress this enough. This is the correct way to think about it
Going against grain - you don't need to do IB. If you dont want to after doing research into it then don't do it. There is no need. Life is too short.
all the time.
personally, i hate it when the president of my investment banking club is late for our weekly meeting.
imo the ‘wondering if banking is for me’ is valid; most of the time it does just become a case of choosing an acceptable tradeoff – what do you want and what are you willing to give up in exchange. Generally, you’re trading lifestyle now for optionality later.
That’s why the traditional exit ops discussion is so prevalent; far more people who become bankers want to become PE/VC/HF investors than want to remain bankers.
With that in mind though, the fact that the traditional exit ops don’t appeal to you kind of changes the math. You’re effectively trying to optimise for optionality without knowing what you want the optionality for.
Regardless, having an IB stint on your resume will make it easier to get wherever you want to get, once you figure it out. But if you already know what kind of interests you, why not prioritise that instead of hedging for the sake of hedging?
The other thing i’d reflect on is other motivations you might not have explicitly considered. Gunning for IB just bc everyone around you is completely irrational (though understandable).
Tangentially, I wouldn’t treat it like a once-in-a-lifetime opprtunity. DCM is an easy example of this: people go from capital markets to M&A all the time. Not that it’s easy or the path is always clear-cut, but I do believe that if you want it, you can find a way.
Would second this. Lots of folks transfer into coverage or another product after 2 years in ECM/DCM.
That said, everybody’s path is different. Once you get into the workforce you realize every job is just a job. There’s good parts and bad parts alike. Finding a place you like enough and is sustainable, but contentment is your choice. There will always be somebody else in a “better” job and another in a “worse” job.
Please. If you want something DO NOT give up on it. Find something that you’re truly interested in whether it’s AM/PC/IB and do not give up on trying to get it. Doesn’t matter how crazy it is just dedicate yourself and make your life about getting it.
If after college you get a job that isn’t in line with what you truly wanted, 2 things can happen. 1 you settle for what you got. Or 2 you can’t settle and you regret not pursuing what you wanted.
Both, in my opinion, would fucking suck.
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