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Probably no 'hours' just get in before your boss and leave after your team
This should be a rule for all SAs.
Ideally as an SA you'd want to be paid on an hourly basis w/ overtime. I know a few firms that do this, and they'll tell you to go home if there's nothing going on; basically, no need for unproductive facetime.
Will co-sign on the above
Our interns are expected to get in between 8 and 9 and are basically kicked out the door at 7 pm, and can generally leave a bit earlier. They are unpaid (although will likely receive some sort of stipend at the end of the program). Not sure if this is par for the course.
Did you ask if there is a work hour expectation? I wouldn't take an unpaid gig without understanding what is expected from a time commitment.
If this is the only thing OP has in his hands now, the least of his worries should be the time commitment. Do it for the experience; it's only a few months anyway.
major +1
I am doing an unpaid boutique internship this summer and basically get in around 9 then leave whenever they are done with me. Some days are short and some are long. Don't bitch because it's unpaid even when everyone else in the office is gone but you. It happens frequently with small firms.
I haven't started mine yet but a lot of the postings I saw were only around 20 hours per week. Even if its 60 though, its only a couple months and youll be getting good experience.
20 hours per week? Is this a part-time unpaid SA?
Cool. Either way, my post above still stands.
awesome, thanks for the posts. i have not asked about the hours yet, but i figure since its only for the duration of the summer i'd suck it up and work my ass off to try and leverage whatever experience I can get for full-time recruiting in the fall. my main concern is landing the gig, but I just wanted to know whats normally expected for an intern if it was unpaid, as a lot of my friends doing SA positions this summer have told me what they are lookin at.
additionally, when would it be reasonable for me to ask (if ever) for a stipend or some sort of compensation? I don't mind doing an unpaid internship, but as it is in NYC, any bit of help for living/transportation would be super helpful.
There's no harm in asking, but I would wait until you have been there a couple weeks and have a good rapport with whoever you are working with.
From previous experience - some boutiques will take on a bunch of interns simply because they need the cheap/free labor (which really is fine - all you are looking for is some bullets on your resume). They'll have a bunch of grunt work that they have been putting off until they can dump it on interns. If you find this to be the case, my advice is to crush whatever grunt work you are given in the first couple weeks, then be extremely proactive about getting more meaningful work and training. Other boutiques will have more formalized programs, in which case you should have nothing to worry about.
I'm in my second week of an unpaid boutique IB internship. First week I worked about 65 hours or so (11-14 hours a day, and some weekend work). Generally I get in by 8:15 and leave after the team leaves (usually around 7:30 but I stay until 8 to 8:30 to finish work)
Cross your fingers and pray, this is a lottery man
20-80 hrs..... You should probably ask your boss what their expectations are
At my unpaid stint I just make sure I get to the office at around 9 (everyone shows up around 9:30) and everyone leaves at the same time. We finish up usually around 5:30 or 6.
Ask them what they want from you. They'll be upfront about it. When I was an unpaid intern I was usually busy enough to leave an hour or 2 after the rest of my team left. If the work is there being the first one in and the last one out speaks volumes about your work ethic.
ETA: I interned at a PE firm, not an IB.
Advice on hours for unpaid boutique IB internship? (Originally Posted: 03/14/2016)
So I have been networking for summer positions for IB roles at boutiques and finally got a call back today, I will be interviewing with them tomorrow. It is a boutique and we agreed on a trial unpaid internship first before I come in for the interview tomorrow. I think they want me to start asap part time and I am sure they will ask me about my schedule and how many hours I could work per week as an unpaid intern if I pass the interview. I am just not very sure what to tell them: Are two days from 8-5 per week standard? Or I should put more hours into it? Three days maybe?
I am a student and even though my classes are scheduled on only Tuesdays and Thursdays(so technically speaking, I do have three days a week to put in), but I do have school hw/responsibilities every week. So I just wanted to tell them I could only put in two days, but I am worried would that seem not enough? It's unpaid position though and I plan to continue networking until it leads to something better.
What's the industry norm for hours of unpaid positions at boutiques? Any advice? Thanks!
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