FT recruiting Hopecore

This is the post I've been dreaming of making for 2 years. 

I finally received and signed my offer for a FT analyst role at my dream firm, in my dream city in my dream niche of RX.

This post is to share my story, and encourage both the actively recruiting students and remind those with offers to help and mentor those without!

There is hope! For anyone still recruiting, I urge you to never stop trying until you get to a place that makes you happy. I received my RX dream offer after being rejected by every shop from Goldman Sachs to "No name family-owned bank." After being rejected and told everything from "please apply again next year, we loved you," after my PJT superday, to "There was literally nothing you could've done better," after McKinsey & Co's final round, finally being told, "we think you'd be an asset on our team, and we'd like to extend you an offer" is the biggest weight off your chest. I can finally enjoy my senior year, rather than spend 20+ hours a week networking, calling, emailing, researching firms/employees,  doing mocks, doing applications,  learning new sectors (since i have to take advantage of any open role), and doing actual interviews. It's finally time that I'm safe (especially in RX too since a global recession means I won't lose my job). 

As of next week, I'll have been actively recruiting for 2 entire years. During which time I completed 900+ applications,  240-260 interviews, 18 superdays, and 1 offer. Like I said, finally I'm safe. But it's more than that, I got my dream offer, with the highest pay, the best people and in my target location. It feels like all my work has finally been rewarded. Praise God! A little more hope and encouragement for those still in the process, here's a Bible verse I looked to almost every day to keep me going: "But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded" - 2 Chronicles 15:7.

You guys got this!

And for those of you who already have an offer, I urge you to help your friends that haven't gotten them yet, there's so much fear finishing college without any assurance of employment, and so much social pressure at competitive schools to know where you're going before Valentine's day your sophomore year, but regardless of if you get your offer as a sophomore, or the week before graduation, as someone who needed all the help I got from peers, please seek ways to encourage and support your fellow students, it's really the only thing that can keep you constantly accountable and constantly working!

Some context: I'm currently a senior, strong GPA, ~target public university, strong resume, full technical understanding, and a great background in public speaking. Meaning I present well on paper and in-person. Also, there's no inherent flaw going into an interview/process. Yet I'm 1/~900 on job applications, so don't feel bad if you're struggling too. There's so much luck involved, eventually the dice will roll your way. 

Note: While technically in that time I received offers and completed internships (without the chance of return offers for FT) at a hedge fund (unpaid), an investment bank (unpaid) and a private credit shop (underpaid), but since I had no job security I've been actively seeking a real junior summer internship (like a summer analyst role) and the subsequent FT offer, or a normal FT analyst role.