Building your own luck as a non-target to get into banking in NYC

For reference, I come from a non-target. In interviews people have mistaken what state my school is from because they have literally never heard of it. Still, I managed to break into IBD at one of the big three (GS/MS/JPM)  in NYC as a non-diversity and who's parent's aren't some hotshot clients/MDs. This is not a post to brag but rather the framework I used to break into banking. Hopefully this is helpful to all and provides some guidance.

1. Be shameless with reach outs, but very intentional with interactions. 

Reaching Out

I was sending full court emails to people I literally had no connection with. I was very breif in my messages and let them know exactly why I wanted to meet with them. Always make sure that you tailor emails, find a common connection with them. I know I say I am pulling full court shots but I would always have some mutual connection we could connect over whether its sports, interests, high school, university, ethnicity etc. I would probably send ~30 emails a week starting from September of sophomore year. For reference, the hit rate is going to be very low, you literally will go weeks without meeting people. NEVER send two people on the same team a cold email in the same week. I always asked for 10 minutes over the phone because lets be real, how many of these people actually have 30 minutes to spend with some random kid. Also, don't be afraid to email MDs or more senior people, I have found strong success in emailing them.  

Initial Chats - Sept to Dec Sophomore Year

Now you have gotten past the barrier of getting hold of these bankers. Here is how I approached chatting to them. I always started the conversation with a little bit of banter. Talk about something fun, what's going on that week. Then I would have my elevator pitch about myself and why I wanted to speak with them. How has my background led me to be interested in finance. I would say this should be about 60 seconds and slightly less formal than you TMAY for interviews. Sprinkle in some fun things about yourself and maybe you guys are both tennis players, sprinkle that in the end so that it could be a way for them to keep the conversation going. ALSO, this should come off like you are just speaking from your head but be carefully crafted and very unique to you. Talk about what they enjoy about their job, moving to NYC, unexpected things about the firm/job that outsiders really wouldn't know, what their firms likes to look for in candidates/how to succeed in their recruiting process. Have a few nuggets you want to get out of them but don't make it feel like you are interrogating them. Have a growth mindset, don't tell them you know exactly what they do, because chances are you have no clue. How do you strike this balance? Practice, I did about 50 coffee chats for second year firms and I think this is where I perfected this. Also, if you think the chat is going well, ask them at the end if there is anyone else they recommend chatting to get another perspective. This chain of people will be easier to expand your network then constant cold emailing. 

Keeping the Connection Warm - Oct to Feb Sophomore Year

Always thank people for their time. Does not need to be a long email but mention something memorable that you guys chatted about. If I felt the conversation went well I might ask for a second chat closer to recruiting to reconnect. I actually visited New York twice to connect in person with people I had previously chatted and I thought it went well. I always thought meeting in person was a way of making you stand out and show your ambitions, especially as a non-target student when nobody from your school works at that specific firm. 

I always followed up on old email chains so that they know they have interacted with you in the past. After all, they are speaking with a million kids and when it comes closer to recruiting, they is a very low chance they are going to respond to another cold inbound. When you apply, send a quick follow up email and let them know you have applied and that you would love to know if there is anything else that you can do to enhance your application (95% chance they didn't respond but still). 

2. Don't overcomplicate interview prep

Technical Prep

Quite frankly, this is the easy part. There are so many guides floating on the internet. What I would say, is actually understand them don't memorize. If they change the question by a little you are cooked. The way I went about this, was actually building financial models. Make sure that you are succinct when answering and this just comes by practicing out loud. Last thing I will say, is I liked to start by giving a correct but simple answer to their question. Often, they would ask/dig into your response and if you lay all your cards on the table you won't have any other detail to go into. You might also just dig yourself in the hole because you don't know what to say. 

Behavioural

MOCK. MOCK. MOCK. That's it. Reach out to upper years, record videos of yourself. You will get exponentially better. Have your 6 core stories that you can draw on for behavioural questions and I like to use a structure like the STAR method to answer these questions. Make sure that your answers are not generic and they actually tie to your overall narrative of why you are a good candidate for the job. Could show your communication, hard work etc. Don't just tell a story to answer the question. 

Market

Read the news. It's that simple. As Jim Donovan noted, literally just read like three articles a day. I would jot down a few key things each day and at the start, I literally did not remember at all what happened yesterday. But overtime it compounds, you start seeing the same key trends and themes and they start to stick in your head. This will literally take 20-30 minutes a day and make all the different. Its shows that you are actually interested in the world around you and can pick up on trends. 

3. The interviews – it's time to convert

Don't panic. Remain calm. It is a nerve racking environment but find a way to get yourself in the zone before interviews. Maybe a walk, a hype song, a speech, Michael Jordan highlights for godness sake. If you don't know a technical question, be transparent. I am not 100% sure but based on other knowledge I think X. Show your growth mindset because so much learning will be done on the job. 

Questions

ALWAYS prepare 3-5 good questions for the end. What does this mean? Nothing you should be able to find on the internet. Stock your interviewer to find out personal information so maybe you can personalize your questions. Literally just don't be generic. You could ask similar questions as you would in chats bar the why firm, what do you do everyday questions that you will typically ask in the early stage of coffee chats. 

 Why Firm

This should be personally crafted through all the chats you have done. The overarching themes might be slightly generic because lets be for real they just will be. BUT, mention specific anecdotes you've herd from chats. Examples of adding depth, maybe they volunteer as a division once a month with X charity and that hits close to home because of your charity involvement or a training program that is know to develop top talent and talk about a past intern experience with the program. Keep this response to 60-90 seconds. 

Carrying Yourself

Smiling is so important. Look like you want to be there. Firm handshake and be full bubbly. Look the interviewers in the eyes. Don't be looking at the floor or the wall. Be fully engaged. I am not saying you need a $10k Tom Ford suit but make sure it fits. Dark grey or navy. White shirt and plain tie. I always thought that patterns and crazy socks were a no go (maybe that's just and old school thing) but I prefer to be safe than sorry. Also, you need to believe in yourself. Don't be cocky, show humility but you do need to think that you are "that guy" before these interviews. If you don't think you deserve the job, then why would they give it to you. 

I think you can tell by the length's of the three parts that I broke this into, connections/networking is most important especially as a non-target. I know everyone says it but unless you have some very strong existing pull from your school or people at the firm your resume will not be pulled (on this topic, put in standard finance template, they are floating around. Don't have any spelling mistakes and make sure you quantify everything). Hope this helps and provides some inspiration and shows that you can create your own luck. Let me know if I missed anything and good luck everyone!