How did you get into investment banking? (non target guys)
I am pretty sure there must be many investment bankers with non target back ground. There are many kids who somehow can't attend top schools but really want to get into IB and high finance. This is for them.
Was working a 9-5 job, felt extremely underemployed and unhappy. Resume dropped here and there while working but of course, those never yielded anything.
One day while scrolling LinkedIn, came across a post from a Director saying their group is looking to hire. In-mailed, chatted, then about a dozen interviews later, I was in.
Breaking in at the junior level really comes down to luck a lot of times. After the initial learning curve, I ran laps around kids who got in easily through target school OCR / diversity. Point being, your alma mater has no impact on your ability to actually do the job.
Although I will say, once you get past the analyst level, this job becomes mostly political and that’s when some target school / diversity peers start to pull ahead.
Took me probably 75 phone calls which led to about 3-4 interviews and landed one
Getting the internships is the first step and arguably the hardest. As someone who interviewed for at least 20 roles, I can tell you that the key is improving as you progress.
To start, you need to understand the that you're fighting an uphill battle. Once you have accepted this, you can appreciate every small victory and you can learn patience as you reach out to hundreds of individuals / firms and have a low response rate.
When you do get responses, whether it be for an informational interview or an actual interview, come prepared. For informationals, have good questions, read up on the bank, try and understand the basic fundamentals of the role. I never really networked with the top bankers (e.g., PJT), but IMHO, I found that showing interest and being honest about what I didnt know went a long way. For actual interviews, make sure you know the technicals, but also make sure you are relaxed and composed. Everyone knows that you need to prep for walk me through a DCF, but you also need to be able to logically walk someone through your interest in the industry, come off as engaged but relaxed, ambitious but not a try hard, interesting but not pompous, etc.
For me personally, the biggest hurdle was getting over impostor syndrome and convincing myself that I actually belonged in banking. As a college student at a non-target, I had both confidence and self-esteem issues. This severely impacted my ability to succeed. I would overthink my answers, try to be someone else in the interview process, and lose confidence after making a mistake on one technical. I would also drink far too much coffee, which made me come off as jittery and led to unconcise answers.
However, through persistence, I continued to land interviews and I continued to work on my shortcomings. This is what will seperate the non-targets who land IB offers from those who give up and complain incessantly about diversity hires. If you refuse to give up, dont have a feeling of entitlement but one of gratitude, you can find a bank out there that will take you. I know I worked a banking internship for free just to get initial experience, but any relevant experience sets you miles apart from the other non-targets.
Once you get the initial experience, your confidence will increase dramatically, which in turn leads to more offers, and the benefits of all your hard work start compounding rapidly.
I am a firm believer that if you want it bad enough, you will make it happen. Look, IB isnt like med school, it isnt like trying out for NASA. Yes, it is brutally challenging to land your first role and yes there are a high number of heads competing for a small number of seats. But it will always be doable, especially at the internship level. The rationale is many students have a feeling of superiority and will turn up their noses at the 12 man shop in Charlotte, and will refuse to even take an offer if its presented on a silver platter. There will ALWAYS be shops that are looking for interns, and so long as you come prepared and appear ambitious, you will eventually land a slot if you refuse to give up.
I just hung out at midtown east bars and would shout “EBITDA!” Whoever looked my way I walked right up to and said “hey can I tell you what happens to the 3 financial statements when there’s a $10 increase in depreciation?” The rest is history.
Comes down to three things:
1.) Casting a wide net
2.) Being prepared
3.) Luck
The wider your net is, the luckier you get. The more prepared you are, the luckier you get.
I went to a literal farm school in bumblefuck nowhere. Good GPA, good activities, knew my shit, I checked every box but no one would speak to me. I got lucky and got into a summer role at a boutique through a friend of a friend of a friend and tbh, I sucked. I was in over my head and the guys I was working with ran circles around me. I redirected myself, went to grad school, got a masters, took my last round of recruiting knowledge, and went at it. Before I had even gotten to school, I had sent 500+ emails, had multiple phone calls, and was on top of it. Even then, I kept striking out. I was older, interviewing for internships, and not many banks want a 23 year old intern. But, because of my masters program, I needed to do that, so I pushed on. Finally in November, so like way past the traditional recruiting cycle, I got on the phone with an alumni of my program and he said the magic words “are you still looking for an internship?” Went through a flash process, crushed it, and ended up converting to full time.
I can tell you right now, failing a process and striking out sucks. It’s demeaning, it sucks, and I almost ended up taking a job as a wealth manager because of it (no hate to wealth managers tho). And I was lucky I was in a position where I could go to grad school and get a second shot. That being said, I also worked my ass off. Networking was my job. If there was anyone who had anything tangentially related to me, I was in their email asking to speak to them. I would speak to anyone who would give me 5 minutes and I spent weekends doing mock interviews. As a non-target, it really does come down to how bad do you want it? Breaking in when you don’t go to HYWSP is, more or less, self selection. now on the other side of it can look at non-target kids and know who has done their work and who wants it. Luck, although it does exist, is mostly what you make of it.
Was I lucky to be able to go grad school? Yes.
Was I luck to get a second shot? Yes.
Was I lucky I spoke to the right person at the right time? Yes.
That does not negate the fact that I had casted a wide net and I was prepared. It does not negate the fact that I wanted it bad enough to fuck up, fix it, and do it right. Embrace the fact that it’s gonna be a little harder for you, move on, and get it done. If you are good enough for this, the people you speak to will know. And if you want it bad enough, you will find a spot.