What kind of internship should I go for if I am an accounting major with no previous experience? I go to a non-target school (Montclair State University), but have a 3.7 GPA. My only experience has been working as a back of house associate at a retail store. Need some righteous advice
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Why are you majoring in accounting if you want to go into IB...
You really can't be picky, dude. Take what you can get and be thankful for the offer.
Accounting is extremely relevant to Financial modeling and M&A transactions
That's why you slap on a accounting minor or even finance and accounting double major. More likely to get stuck in auditing for accounting majors...
Thanks for the reply, but so basically the reason why I chose Accounting over Finance here at Montclair State because the Finance major here is not as prestigious as an Accounting major here. I read a thread on here about how you should major in Accounting at a non-target school over a Finance major because a Finance major supposedly only looks great at a target school. Feel free to correct me if I am wrong. The finance major here basically looks like this: "Business Administration with a Concentration in Finance" just seems sort of b.s compared to Accounting. But let me know what you think because I am now contemplating in at least minoring in Finance.
Why not finance & accounting double major??
After hearing your explanation, I actually think you have a valid point.
What year are you in school? If you're a freshman you'd be smart to try and get a last minute finance job this summer, really any type of finance except bank teller. Start cold emailing small firms in the area to see if they'd let you spend a few weeks there. Networking is key from a non-target for freshman/sophomore internships and later IB, so get comfortable emailing and calling.
I am currently a Junior. Have any of you tried the Invest Like the Street program? I am halfway through and am curious to know what your thoughts on it are?
As a junior you have fewer options because most IB jobs are filled by junior SAs, which is over at this point. IB is very competitive and most people have 2+ internships. You should be looking for any finance internship for this summer as I said in the first post. Invest like the street is fine but an internship will help you way more.
For full time agree with the recommendation of big 4 or a boutique
If you'rea a junior non-target with no experience I would try to get into the Big 4 or a boutique bank. I feel like Big 4 may be easier cuz of your lack of credentials.
For the time being, would it be awful to work as a part-time teller at a bank like TD Bank to make money at the moment?
As a junior, I think it is a bad way to go. I go to a nontarget (but top 50 Undergrad) and used my sophomore internship as a way to show my ability. If Big 4 or boutique is not possible, try to get something at a F500 company.
TD Bank is a F500 company. Do you mean like try getting a different position there?
Not sure if I would classify MSU as a non-target to the fullest. For my BB, the incoming class last time I checked the data had a plethora of MSU guys/girls coming.
I'm guessing you're a junior? Since you mention grad of May 2020 or even 2021 which would put you at a sophomore. In this case, if you haven't landed something for Rising senior year then you're best bet is to find as many MSU alumni in whatever BB/EB/MM (you get it) that you want to work for and LinkedIn them as fast as possible. Also, not sure if MSU has a student managed fund but try to get involved with that and see if there are any alum from that niche.
MSU is soo close to NYC. I used to joke that I could jog in their rec center and see the smog coming from NYC. Get as many coffee chats as you can and hop on the train into NYC.
It's all a numbers game. Start sooner than later so you can build up a reputation for FT recruiting which starts in august/September. You got this man!
Best of luck.
NonTargetHardo2019 thank you for your response. Would you say that I should switch my major to Finance then??? Doing so will not affect my graduation date whatsoever as I have already taken a few classes towards a Finance degree since some of the finance/accounting classes here intertwine with each other. Would love to hear your opinion/feedback. Thanks
Glad I could be of help.
That's a tough question to answer and I'll give you several POV's I guess.
You could do the double major which would push you back to being a sophomore but would give you one more chance to secure a rising senior internship come junior year. Since SA 2020 recruiting is being pushed up so quickly, I'd make that choice sooner than later. Also, you mentioned you feel old I think in one of your previous posts? (24 or something like that). Haha dude I am 24 and am coming in as a first year analyst. Kids next to me range from 21/22 - 25/26 so do not stress the age factor.
Keep the accounting major and maybe take finance classes for fun so as to not mess with your grad date. It amazed me how I thought just having my finance degree was going to be enough until I took my pre-assessment in accounting and realized how important accounting is in terms of modeling, transaction processes, etc..
Switch to finance, keep same grad date, join a student managed fund, and study the WSO technical as hard as possible, and that could also be a sufficient route.
Options 2&3 will lead you to focus more on FT recruiting which begins around Aug/Sep after Interns either don't get their offer or decline to return. Whether you delay your graduation or not is up to you, but do not waste this time in between. Use WSO's guides, read the HOF forums on IB or whatever division you want, and network as hard as possible.
You got this man.
@NonTargetHardo2019"
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