Finding an internship as a freshman
Hello guys,
I’m a freshman looking for a two week to one month internship in a bank this summer to put on my resume.
I know banks don’t usually take first years because they lack technical skills but I have a certification (BMC) and am planning on getting the MOS excel specialist certification so it should be all right, no?
Looking for any advice on how/where to look for internships or if an internship in another industry could be good for my resume as well. Thanks!
In a bank is basically impossible. Small funds, family offices, local companies, etc. with no structured recruiting process are your best bet. A couple(hundred) cold emails should net you something, but it'll likely be either min wage or unpaid.
I usually advise freshmen to do something more interesting with their summer, like research or a volunteer summer. I'm always more interested to hear about a student who did RUE or volunteered their summer to a political/personal cause than one who got coffee for analysts at some no name firm, but that's just one man's opinion.
Thanks for the advice, volunteering looks very good as well
As a freshman in college I hear this opinion a lot actually, people always saying they’d prefer to see freshman do something normal with their summer like be a lifeguard or something, but it seems contradictory because you are expected to then be a expert for recruiting which starts right when you get back for summer. Like to any freshman wouldn’t it make sense to just get early experience so you can understand what you are talking about during coffee chats etc.? Just my thoughts because recruiting is only getting earlier and earlier I don’t see why internships your freshman year are discouraged so much.
I don't think I've ever had a coffee chat where I expected a freshman/sophomore to be an expert. Quite the opposite. What I look for is passion and curiosity. I'm in the markets, so it's a bit different(as the markets are definitely an area that emphasizes passion) but I'm never really impressed by a student who knows technicals. I'm much more impressed by a student who:
If you can make an impression on me, I'll be way more likely to recommend you. You gotta remember, in coffee chats you really aren't expected to do much of anything. For coffee chats, read the news every day and find things you think you'd like to ask someone in that industry. If you read something on say, the new capital raise that Amazon did for Ai data centers and you're talking to someone from capital markets, you'd likely be able to form some question as to the process and DD that goes into a deal like that, or how new Ai debt is driving debt capital markets, or how their team is evaluating risks within this area. It's all about forming good questions based on what you read.
And of course, don't treat it like an interview. Coffee chats are first and foremost an opportunity to meet someone. Just go into every coffee chat to have fun, never to get a job or something. People can sense when you have ulterior motive. Obviously, everyone knows you're doing this for a job, but we can tell when you don't give a crap about anything we're saying and just want to cut to the part where you ask for recommendations or references.
Thanks for the input that makes a lot of sense, but even considering that wouldn’t having a sortve low-stakes unpaid role during your freshman summer help with all that? Having the market knowledge and like vocab to have a productive discussion with you during a coffee chat? Like as of right now I’ve been having chats with some alums majority on the buy-side and since they are mostly new-grads they are telling me if anything start prepping right now since the recruiting comes so quick. Like upperclassmen who have return offers also say similar things that the earlier you start prepping for the sophomore fall the easier the whole process will be. Let me know your thoughts it’s just getting more and more annoying as the recruitment process is pushed back earlier and earlier I feel as if within a few years it’ll be the widespread standard that freshman’s should have a good learning role their first summer.
So, thing is, you really won't be in a place or position where you'll actually gather much knowledge of things. Also, I would say while the recruiting is very fast nowadays, you shouldn't need to worry as much as you are. Like, yes, it's fast, no doubt about that, but for the most part it's kinda linear and once you get into the flow of it it's not that bad. I would say it's probably more beneficial to read a lot and to have some independent thought. Also, I would say try to find a mentor if possible. Mentors are really great to have while you're young.
If you're really that technical I'll pay you to put together valuation models for public companies just PM me
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