Hey guys,
As we near the end of the recruiting cycle for lots of top banks, I find myself at a standstill as all the potential opportunities and superdays I've had have come back negative, and now, I'm essentially in the footsteps of someone who hadn't even had those experiences at all. Sure, I may have gotten some invaluable practice having been exposed to the direct pressure of the recruitment process, but now I feel so burnt out as I'm sure many of you all similarly feel, and wonder what else is next.
A little about me, I'm a Finance major in a target school, and have tried to take the most advantage of OCR. I've sent hundreds of e-mails, leveraged some to acquire relationships, but now, there's nothing in store for me. I honestly wonder - for those of you in a similar position, or those of you who have conquered similar situations, what is next? Is there a new cycle going on right now? Should I start looking other ways? Is there some other form of prep I can utilize now to get a foot in the door for FT recruitment? I have hardly any finance experience beyond finance club involvement and coursework.
I really hate coming to this forum for pity or advice, but at this point, I'm really, really beat down and at a loss of momentum. I had that grind within me when OCR dates were within comfortable reach, but now, the speed of recruitment has died down, and there's nothing in my hands.
Thanks all.
Look at other finance jobs that have transferable skills.
See if you can find an internship in corporate or commercial banking, valuation, or perhaps something on the corporate finance side. Then network before fall recruiting and go for IBD again. Also network with boutiques, their cycle is less defined. It’s not the end of the world not having an IBD internship junior year, it certainly makes things harder but you can still win offers.
The bold part is key and often under looked. What kinds of work experience do you have? Have you considered internships/part or full-time jobs in Asset Management for a non-profit or corporation? What about equity research?
The point is to find role(s) where you have transferable skills. For example within asset management depending on the size you may have opportunities to interact with various funds and have exposure to what its like to be on the other side of the table looking in.
If you target equity research positions you'll get exposure to macro and micro levels of thinking and analysis on industries and companies plus potential modeling skills.
You can then use the above to show why you "fit" into IB or at least why they should even bother interviewing you.