Feeling down about rejections

I’ve gone through 4 superdays and countless interviews but haven’t gotten an offer ... feeling a bit down and not sure what I’m doing wrong. I feel like I’ve done the most I could possibly do to prep and that there are not that many options left... any advice?

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Just giving some real, no BS advice here....but, you probably are terrible at interviewing. Luckily, this is the easiest thing to correct. WSO has some good mentor and interview prep packages, but absent that, I would try getting in as many mock interviews with friends and/or alumni as you can. Some basic tips that I have found to help me and others:

  • You need to have a coherent story. Why IB? Why this firm? Why this product/industry? Ya, it's all BS anyway, but you need to play the game.
  • You need to have your technicals down. Don't believe the "ya, I messed up two technicals, but still got an offer" stories. Even if they're true, it's like putting a gun to your head, pulling the trigger, and hoping it jams.
  • Once you can answer technicals 100% correctly, you need to expand on your answers. Don't just tell me that cash goes up by $10 if my AP does. I know that. Tell me why. Show me you actually know something about how the financial statements relate.
  • Be personable. I've interviewed hundreds of kids in IB and corp dev, and the vast majority get dinged because I cannot work with them. You don't need to be a bro, but be a guy (or chick) I could have a beer with.
  • Finally, you need a hook. Why should I hire you? Oh, you have a 4.0 from Princeton and summered at GS? Great...get in line behind the 100 other identical copies of you. Put an interests line on your resume, tell me how you paid for college by reselling on Amazon, speak about that cool club you started in college and raised capital for, etc. Find something. Everyone has something interesting about them....tell me yours!

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