So, I didn't score the IBD gig for SA. I have been working at in er. For the summer, should I switch to an ops/middle office role at a more reputable player, or stick with the "front office" gig at the small place? I'm afraid I'll be losing out on networking opportunities if I don't grab another position, even in a less prestigious division.
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I'd personally stick with front office at a smaller shop. It's better and more relevant experience.
front office.
what should i say for "why didnt you intern in ibd?" how bad will it hurt me?
I would say you were more interested in ER, liked your current internship, small firm feel, etc. but have now realized that you prefer IBD for x y z reasons and a big firm for x y z reasons.
I would not tell them you were rejected from all ibd interviews..no one wants a reject. If they ask if you did IBD interviews last year, I'd say you did a few, but that you focused more on ER (don't take it any further - no need to tell them you got no IBD offers unless they ask, in which case be honest but say something like you don't think your interest came through since you were more interested in ER).
Just my thoughts. I interviewed with a firm my senior year that I was rejected from my junior year and they made me an offer my senior year. They never bothered to ask if I'd interviewed with them for an internship (I believe you get a clean slate for full-time).
How bad it will hurt you to not have interned in IBD will depend in a large part on how many BBs interview on your campus. If you're at a true target (all the BBs come), then you should be fine since you'll have lots of opportunities to score a full-time job. If you're at a semi-target where only a few firms come, obviously there will be less slots so you'll be in a worse position. I know quite a few people at my school who did all sorts of random stuff their junior year summer and landed BB positions full-time, although I'm at an ivy so there obviously are a lot of slots for students from my school.
Good luck!
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