Honestly, no f-ing around, Hair Tests

Absolute BS - too expensive and would catch too many of their potential hires. Keep in mind banks don't want to catch you, unless you're currently employed and they think you have a problem. They give you plenty of notice and unless you're an idiot with no self control, you should be fine.

thats what i would think, it makes all the sense in the world, but some person on the thread the other day said he said they might be cracking down this year. i thought he was full of shit

The cost difference is enormous, and more for appearances than effectiveness in and of itself.

They just want to see if you have enough self control to stop for a couple of weeks/they'd look shitty if they didn't drug test. Many - or even most - people finance did weed in college, and quite a few bankers do coke. They aren't serious about stopping drug use unless it impairs your work.

when do they generally drug test, when you accept the offer, or right before you start working?

Usually about a month or so before you start working. Some firms will fly you out to NY for a day of orientation where you fill out all the paperwork, take your drug tests, get fingerprinted etc. Some firms will wait until training starts to do this and will require you to get the drug test done on your own at least 5 days prior to training, but no more than 30 days prior to training.

i heard some send you instructions to go to a local testing center with your offer letter in march

yes, that is what i did - local testing center with offer in march

ive already signed on but havent talked about drug testing yet. what percentage of bankers do coke once a week? thats kinda scary

cocaine is only in your system for about two days.

do banks do random urine testing of all employees with a day or so notice once you're working there full time?

Goldman already administered drug tests to all that accepted full time offers .... They gave us a date (which was somewhat of a "soft" date) to have it done by. The test was urine. I know that they do the same at most other BBs, but the time frame is usually later.

how do they drug test you for internships if you're going to be studying abroad during the spring semester?

i recently was accepted to a fortune 500 corp finance internship. No heads up. Received offer,.....contingent upon a hair follicle test..... which can go back 3 years.... thats tests for marijuana, thc, opiates, cocaine, amphetemines, and etc. etc.

i pissed my pants.

3 years, i heard 90 days...

what do you do in that situation?

Im wondering about this too. I accepted my SA but noone has told me anything about the drug test yet. Should i call and ask or is that ridiculous? Also, any one actually know anybody who has had an offer rescinded b/c of a failed drug test??

To the person above me,

You will get a urine test. Chill. If anything, use the detox substance and just stay away from Mary Jane for a while.

UCLAfinance?

3 years? I'm pretty sure its 3 months to 6 months tops.

well its a minimum of 3 months. but the 3 years, is usually for girls who have long hair. Trust me, i've read every possible article online about it.

it's funny becuz 3 months ago, i had no idea i would even have an internship offer/knew i would be interviewing.

hair follicle test?? are you serious??? for summer internship?? i didn't even knew they tested for summers...jesus christ what are you gonna do? So basically everyone has to stay clean for at least 6 months to be safe?

Yes, and dont try to pull a britney spears and shave ur head. they will take armpit hair or wherever u have long enough hair...... if not, then u automatically fair.

wow, I didn't even get tested for my internship and it was at a BB

i was a SA at a BB three years ago, it was a sales desk. they did finger prints and urine tests. No hair test.

they do hair tests for full time workers who are reported to HR as suspicious of drug abuse. This is if your drugs are clearly interfering with your working ability. The point with the hair test is that it does go back 3 months, and if you are fired for drug abuse, they don't have to pay you any severance. Sounds like a good way to reduce staff especially at banks looking to cut costs. People make the argument that its much more expensive than urine testing, but hair tests are $100 per head, and the cost saving is huge to the firm if they truly are overstaffed. i don't think hair tests are out of the question for new hires at this time, so if you are going to mess around with different stuff, I would give yourself three months off before the test date. asking HR what type of test it is would make you look foolish.

You all are about to enter into the professional world. Is it that hard to lay off the drugs? Maybe at least for a little while? I think it is pretty pathetic that anyone would risk their job offer, aka their entire future, to get stoned. At some point people need to realize that this career path is not all about living the good life and doing whatever you want. You can try to game the system and time the tests, but sooner or later you're going to get caught, and no one is going to feel sorry for you.

Supposedly, I've heard CS is doing hair tests

i accepted a FT offer in early november, a couple weeks later i got a call from hr saying i had to get drug tested within 48 hrs of that call, they gave me a number to call to find the closest place by my school

My test last year was a urine test. I got it sometime in the spring alongside my benefits information and other forms. I think I had a 2 - 3 week window from the time my package arrived. My girlfriend, who took a non-banking finance job, was given 5 business days from the day she received her offer. She had nothing to worry about, but I imagine a lot of kids got caught with their pants down.

My friend has a FT offer for CS Ops and she told me its a hair test...I did say "supposedly"...I find it hard to believe

I had to take a urine test for both my SA positions as well as my FT position (starting July 08)

yes it was a urine test

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwR/preview/mmwrhtml/00000138.htm

Any ML SAs who were drug tested? Should I expect one in march or later when I start?

ML SA should expect one in March. You'll travel to NY for "onboarding" and group selection, and this is when you'll be drug tested. They'll give you a couple week notice.

Wasn't asked to take a drug test when starting at MBB or when I started at my current PE fund.

I guess some places are just more stringent than others.

The majority of firms urine test and generally give you a few weeks notice for front office positions. There are exceptions to the rule. In an old post someone said they got fucked over by a hair test from SUNOCO. http://www.sunocoinc.com/Site/Careers/RecruitingProcess/

Hair sample drug testing is a great way to detect whether or not a person has used drugs in the past 90 days. Whether in an office format or in the home, hair drug testing serves the purpose of answering questions about an individual’s drug use history.

From reading this post and others it seems like most people's offer letter stated when their drug test was (e.g. must pass a drug test within 2 weeks of accepting this offer) or HR contacted them and told them they had to take a drug test within 30 days of starting the job.

That being said, for those of you who took your drug test within 30 days of starting, did they ever mention a drug test prior to you getting contacted regarding the 30 day deadline (e.g. an email or letter saying you'll have to take one within 30 days of starting)? Also, when they finally did inform you of when your drug test was going to be, how did they do so (e.g. email, letter, phone call, in-person at a sell day, etc.)?

My SA letter mentioned that I will have to pass a drug test, fingerprinting, and a background check prior to employment, but I haven't heard anything else about it since. I quit doing everything as soon as interview season rolled around, but I got hammered on spring break and ended up smoking the mary jane all night one night so I'm A) pissed at myself B) a little paranoid and C) wondering how intense I need to detox.

Really any detail on what the SA drug testing process/procedure is like for people whose offer letter didn't specify one way or the other, would be greatly appreciated.