Plan B If Laid Off Before Fulltime
With rate hikes likely causing deal volume to crash, I've been wondering whether or not I'll even get the chance to start my FT offer in July, and this makes me worried whether or not I'll even be able to stay in finance.
I know that earlier threads say that in 08/09, analysts were able to simply rerecruit months down the line and reenter finance.
However, my FT offer is at a MM that isnt terribly well known. This scares me into thinking that if I get laid off, there's no lower rung that will scoop me up. As an extreme example, if you get laid off from Goldman, BGL will still hire you. But if you get laid off from BGL, is there any hope to ever return to finance?
Am I going to have to completely give up on finance and do something like law school to get back on the same level of career payoff? Can't focus on anything and every little thing I hear about the economy makes me feel like I just wasted 4 years of my life.
Christ, fella, I wouldn't want you in my foxhole... You're extrapolating your perception of possible rate hikes to the extent that you've convinced yourself you've wasted 4 years of your life and will have to give up on finance? Tell me there is some hyperbole here, please?
Let's just take a step back. Even in the worst version of the scenario you've described, I'm not sure how you're coming to the conclusion that you'll need to change fields entirely? Your career will span 40+ years and, despite what this forum sometimes implies, your first job will have little meaning in the grand scheme of things. I graduated college with 0 real internships and nothing lined up. I was a shit head that found my footing well after graduation and still got opportunities in banking/PE/Corp Dev along the way. You, presumably, have a nice resume for yourself at this point and most importantly, have a FT offer in hand. Be thankful! That is a great accomplishment!
As hard as it is, and as unhelpful as this "advice" is, I'd encourage you to try and relax. Think about all the kids graduating with no job prospects or better yet don't think about this shit at all. You don't want to look back in 5-, 10-, 15-years and recall your final semester of college being tainted by the invasive thought of your career being ruined before it even started.
Good luck, stay positive, get off this forum.
You are very articulate
If you happened to have a FT offer with SVB..... this is my formal mea culpa.
Jesus Christ. Posts are getting more and more depressing here. OP, go to a spa or resort, and just relax man. It's not the end of the world if you get laid off or anything. Can't believe college students think like this nowadays
From someone who was actually laid off by BGL between internship and full time during Covid, there is no reason you should be worrying about this. If you were smart enough to get a full time offer, you’ll most likely be able to find another decent path to take. I’ve ended up in a significantly better position than I would’ve been if I actually started at BGL and getting axed was probably the best thing that could’ve happened for me. Life is weird and not everything is going to go exactly the way you plan. Enjoy life, figure shit out on the fly and you’ll be fine.
No don’t worry about this. First off, I would be surprised if a bank made those cuts without telegraphing. Are current first years getting cut now? You would be able to tell already if you weren’t going to be able to start in July.
I got laid off with only a few months full time experience and it was rough but definitely not impossible to stay in finance. I was at a mid tier bank that gets frequently dunked on on WSO. I was recruiting in a very dry market for analyst opps and still spoke with many niche boutiques and ten man shops. Ended up with two offers out of a ton of processes. If you have enough hustle to break in once, you can claw your way back in if your first gig gets fucked up.
But seriously if you haven’t gotten the actual talk about starting late or finding a new spot yet, you don’t need to solve this. Keep your network close and ask mentors for advice going into full time. Also chill out, have a beer and enjoy senior year. We might not be in the same market a year from now.
Which bank?
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