Breaking into IBD in other cities?

I'm graduating in dec 09 and I have already had internships in consulting/ibd/accounting ....I go to a non target however, and my gpa is eh....3.4 cum gpa / 3.8 major gpa....A BB internship in nyc given the current economic situation, seems totally out of the picture...

my only hope is a boutique firm....Also, I'm sort of realizing that the only real reason I was able to take advantage of those internships earlier on was because I happen to go to school in New York.

My question to all of you is....would it make sense/put me at an advantage if I went to another city, lets say boston/chicago, and tried to contact firms in the fall for a summer internship (for next summer obviously)...given that I'm coming from nyc with more experience/modeling/LBO/DCF's?

Any insight would be great, thanks!

8 Comments
 

I wouldn't just assume that, given your GPA, you have no shot at a BB internship. Get out there, use your connections from your past internships, network the hell out of your school connections, and give it a shot.

Firms in other cities see top level candidates as well. Boutiques are always an option and I'm sure you could probably land at one, but I'd still try the BB route if that's the route you really want to take. I do not think it's your ONLY hope though.

 

if you have prior investment banking experience you are a strong applicant imo. You did three internships and you seriously have no contacts in the business?

Also, whats wrong with the ib firm you interned at previously. Its better then nothing.

 

The boutiques are sort of tough to break into without a personal network, imo.

But, that said, just make sure if/when you approach them (in Chicago esp.--i worked there) that you're not rubbing the NY experience in their face. I think they get enough guff for not being at an NY iBank. Also, consider that not living in NY for a summer is like a bonus in and of itself, lower COL.

Good luck.

 
Best Response

Given your expierences you might have a slightly better chance in other cities, but it really depends on the city. Keep in mind that while there might be less people looking to work in City X, there are probably also significantly less jobs in City X.

Boston is tough, with lots of colleges in the area, esp. Harvard and MIT, and the fact that the city isn't that large but generally considered a desirable place to live I doubt things get any easier. (maybe even harder) There are also a lot of Boston nuts, who will never leave that place.

San Fran is similar but probably not as bad as Boston, its just that everyone interested in finance on the west coast wants to go there.

Competition appears be less in LA, Chicago, Houston and Charlotte as these cities all have a significant amounts of finance jobs, but are for whatever reason not as desirable to a lot of people. I could see someone having a better chance of securing an offer in these cities.

On a side note, Chicago is one of my favorite cities in the US and I have never understood why some people don't want to live there. I guess some people are afraid of the winters, or don't want to be in the midwest...stupid.

 

Can you up your chances of getting an SA stint if you ask to be placed in Chicago? I've always thought I wouldn't mind living there compared to NYC, it'd certainly cost less.

 

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