How do I work at a search fund?

I'm a student at a T20 (semi-target) and I'm interested in IB/PE. I was wondering how to secure a part-time position working for a search fund during the school year to learn more about the industry and get some good experience for my resume when looking for internships down the line. This seems to be pretty hard to do and I feel like there isn't a ton of info as to how students can work at search funds during the school year so any help would be appreciated.  

10 Comments
 

It's not hard at all and if you're unable to get a search fund internship, getting an IB/PE one should be next to impossible for you. They need warm bodies who are willing to do sourcing work for free so just cold email dozens of them until one says yes

 
Most Helpful

well search funds are still considered private equity so I wouldn't be worried about lying. At the search fund that I interned at, I spent most of the time cold emailing/sourcing but the partner knew that all of the interns were doing it for their resume/work experience so he would let us play around with LBOs, give thoughts on CIMs etc so that we would have talking points and deal experience.  As you mentioned, I used that search fund to get a MM boutique by playing up the fact that I had gotten some deal exposure. 

 

Et explicabo libero vitae fugiat. Sunt quo odit exercitationem maxime aliquid fuga. Quia laudantium magnam magni ducimus facere dolor sit. Voluptas est reiciendis aperiam repudiandae perspiciatis in est.

Molestiae aut sunt et aliquam repellat sunt. Distinctio incidunt est sed eum et. Deleniti velit aspernatur voluptatem voluptates voluptas aliquid magni.

A aliquam assumenda nobis ipsum sunt quae. Harum id ex voluptatum esse. Dolore pariatur modi vero velit voluptas cum.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (67) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”