Hello, WSO!
I’m an aspiring investment banker, currently an undergraduate student trying to land a summer analyst internship with a BB. Does anyone have any advice regarding resumes and cover letters? Anything that would increase my chances of getting selected? Things to steer clear of?
Thanks!
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What year are you, for starters? Major, target/non-target?
Focus on getting a high gpa - aim for 3.5+, if non-target you may need 3.7+.
Try to get a boutique bank internship. Cold emailing alum and asking for a summer internship or off-cycle internship during thr school year is your best bet. That’s how I got an off-cycle boutique internship.
Networking is key. You should try to have spoken to 100+ bankers to learn about the industry, recruiting, etc. try to send 3+ emails a day
Resume - you can look up a number of different templates. Usually education is first, followed by work experience, followed by leadership and extracurricular activities
Remember that bankers have to work with you at the end of the day, so to get a referral you have to be likable
Lmk if you want more insight - because your question is very general I’d be happy to answer more specific things if I missed anything
Hello, did you get my last message/comment? Sorry I'm new to this platform and think I typed it and it didn't send :(
Wow, I don't know how I managed to mess up the last message, I guess I forgot to send haha
Here's what I had typed:
Thank you so much for your reply, it is very helpful!
I go to American University, it isn't a target school, but some BBs recruit here. I'm currently in my fourth semester, and will be a junior in spring of 2021. I'm a double major with international relations and business administration, and I am studying Mandarin. Also, my GPA is 3.7, but I'm working to bring it up as high as possible.
Thank you for the advice! How did you find alum to cold email? Was it through LinkedIn? How about bankers? Also, when you email, do you ask for an internship opportunity right away, or do you build a relationship with the person first?
Thanks for the resume advice, I'm working on my resume right now.
Thanks again!!
nice, american is definitely a non-target but that doesn't mean you can't get a summer analyst internship in IB. Having a 3.7 GPA and studying mandarin with business administration will work for you if you know how to pitch it correctly.
You should know that a lot of the BBs have already finished their hiring process but some are still hiring. You can check all websites regularly. There are also probably some forums online that will tell you about it.
In terms of finding banks - I would look up "boutique banks in DC." To name a few: Olsen Palmer, KippsdeSanto, Clearsight Advisors... and try to get an internship. I think some of those banks are hiring for summer analysts at the moment.
There are plenty of places where you can find how to get a job in IB. Start by reading the stuff on mergers and inquisitions. Typically, banks recruit spring of sophomore year, fall of junior year for junior year SA.
However, there will still be banks hiring for junior SA right now. You can still get one. That will be the case if you can get referrals at these banks.
To get a referral, you usually have to cold email someone at the bank. Can find them on linkedin if its a larger bank, then look up the email format for the bank. If its a smaller bank, you can usually find their bio and email under the "team" section.
Next, they have to like you and your resume to pass your resume to HR. Do you have relevant internship experience in finance? Is your resume tidy, easily readable and easy to scan over with eyes?
They might ask you technical questions about IB to see if you have done your homework - how does $10 of depreciation flow through the 3 statements, how do the 3 statements connect, walk me through a DCF, how do you get from enterprise value to equity value and vice versa, walk me through an LBO, etc... you can find the answers all of these on various forums.
Once your resume is passed along, you will usually get an interview. You have to perform well pitching yourself in behavioral questions - why do you want to work in IB, who you are as a person. This is arguably the most important section to get a job. Technicals are expected to for everyone to get right, and those answers are always right or wrong. The behavioral are who you are as a person - so you can get creative with these, but be honest.
Then comes a 2nd round and a super day. The amount of technical and behavioral questions asked to you (the interviewee) will vary based on the firm.
So, tell me how much relevant internship experience you have, if you're involved in any student investment funds, etc.
Like I said, there's so much information all over the internet on how to get into banking so rather than spending a bunch of time telling you how to do it you should get to reading forums and articles. Best of luck!
Thank you so much, this is incredibly helpful! I'll get to work!
Thanks again! :D
You should really change your name + profile picture. It’s best to not post personal info on an anonymous forum
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