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May 31, 2024
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Control what you can, remain positive no matter how boring the staffing may be, ask questions, speak with confidence and identify the good and bad apples early.
Check for bruises around the skin/peel. Bruising makes the fruit more susceptible to infection.
There are analyst/associates that appreciate summers and help them learn the different facets of the job. Then there are the analyst/associates that insist on making your life miserable and pride themselves on insulting you in front of others. I witnessed a SA at my bank get yelled at everyday by a 3rd year who wanted a different intern in his group. Just be aware of the various actors.
Find the kids in your group and befriend them. If you don't come from a finance background pay close attention - if you do come from a finance background - be prepared to be bored.
Top 3 suggestions:
1) Don't fuck up the same thing more than once 2) Be likeable / positive (don't complain) 3) Go to all the social events you are invited to
Your experience will vary depending on the bank, group, and your team so hard to give categorical advice on what to expect there. I would just mentally prepare to be in the office 9am to midnight four days a week (I was able to leave between 7 and 8 a few of my Fridays) and coming in the on weekends.
also...don't be a "bro"....be friendly, be likable....be eagar to do work....don't think anything is above you...its not a frat house....be a professional....and friendly to everybody.
Do your supervisors expect you to come in without them saying anything? Or is there like a dialogue that usually takes place before the weekend?
9-5? Are you in the wrong forum?
It's actually pretty easy to figure out timing as a summer intern - you get there earlier than everyone and you leave the latest.
It is very unlikely that you know something that the analyst does not. Do not try to prove them wrong
How often would the senior people try to raddle new SA/interns? How would one handle the situation given their abuse have no effect on the intern, even boring at times? Do you give them their satisfaction or just keep ignoring them?
No matter what, the most important part of the job is undoubtedly satisfying the whimsical emotional impulses that drive the sadism of your bosses.
If a keyboard flies towards your head from an enraged MD, just suck it up and take the hit. Not worth dodging it and making him/her angrier.
Disagree. You need to pretend that you tried to dodge it, but take the hit nonetheless. This makes it more satisfying for your boss.
When Russel Crowe was an MD at my bank, SAs knew how to do their job...
I did three BB and EB banking internships because I was just that asshole so here are some tips. None are particularly new or different than what's on here a gazillion times, but they're still not easy and I can't even begin to count the number of kids who fuck these up every summer.
Put in the hours, even just for the facetime. Don't be the guy trying to weasel their way out on Thursday night when the full-times are getting stuffed. They will resent you and see you as nothing more than an entitled intern. That being said, don't let people know you're there for that reason or you'll come across as a brownnose. Find some useful shit to do, even if it's taking on extra boring work.
Offer to help out, but within reason. Know your capacity and never offer if you can't follow through. Quickest thing to get you dinged is if you commit to getting something done for a busy junior banker and don't get it done and leave them swinging in the wind.
Be a culture guy. I don't care where you are, every group prioritizes culture above almost everything else. Unless you're top 5 in your class at Wharton and are gonna model better than any full-time, whether you'd be a good guy to work with is the most important piece of information bankers use to figure out if you're worth a full-time. So go to the events, make jokes (gauge the group / bank tolerance for these though), and generally have a friendly disposition. Don't just be a yes man, because we all bitch in banking, but keep your complaining low key and in line with the full-times. Spend a week watching and then make your moves to integrate with the guys.
Don't try and big dick people. I don't care if your dad is fucking Jamie Dimon, don't act like. Don't show up day one with your Gucci loafers and Jaeger watch thinking you're a dealmaker talking about all the guys your daddy knows. Don't try and name-drop your senior MD mentor at the firm or anything like that. Keep your connections back pocket. Trust me, everyone knows who you are and where you come from. Hell, half of them are probably from similar backgrounds. But they respect you if you don't act like it. Banking internships are a lot like pledging. The little shit who thinks his older brother entitles him to get it easy is the one who reveals themselves most needing of some "education."
Don't be a cuck though. Bankers who make it have that secret killer instinct. They act humble as per above, but they know they're a fucking shark. You need to have that boost and that little bit of sicko there. Act humble, but don't be meek and submissive. Stand up for yourself, be confident, be direct, and act like you belong. Finding the balance between being both humble and confident is the hardest part so don't take it lightly.
Going off that point, act like everything you do is being watched. It is. Banking is like gossip girl and people spend too much time in close proximity not to talk. People say shit and people will notice how you act, what you do, where are you are. Don't let that freak you out but be cognizant of it all the time. Especially at the social events / when you drink with colleagues. I can't tell you the number of kids I've seen fuck themselves a few beers in. Don't be those kids. You're better than that. You're a fucking investment banker so act like it.
"You're a fucking investment banker so act like it" - awesome dude. Agreed, you are the top tier of society so be a man and scoff at the peasants who order the cheaper beer at happy hour.
I never would have thought to work hard and not be cocky at an internship, this was excellent advice. I'll pass this on to kids looking for banking internships.
That's a pretty pathetic attempt to roast me. Take a lap and give it another go.
Be hyper cautious about starting - or even participating in - bullpen conversations about analyst exit options, your friend who is interning at a more prestigious firm, or anything else along those lines. Most of the people you'll be working with (associate on up) are or aspire to be career bankers, and while they understand that's not the path for everyone, they do expect you to give your all to the job for the two years you have it.
1) Attitude - I’ll always take the kid who needs a few more Excel/PPT reps but doesn’t complain once during the summer over the rock-star Excel guru who rolls his eyes whenever he gets 1 hr of busy work.
2) Make a good first impression - unfortunately they matter and can’t be changed.
3) Attention to detail - print out your work before sending, double-check your emails, etc. Mistakes will happen and are expected, but multiple careless mistakes will hurt your reputation.
4) Best piece of advice I can give - make the life of the people above you / on your team easier. Manage the call log, send out meeting invites, offer to open that 6am call the day after Independence Day...etc. These small tasks always exist and someone has to do them. If the analyst/associate don’t have to deal with them and trust you to handle them as the summer progresses, you’re in a good spot.
If your existence makes my life easier, I’m going to bat for you when offers are being decided.
Coming from a top BB internship and full-time offer here are my personal commandments.
1) Write stuff down. Always. Bankers hate repeating themselves so keep a little notebook close by. Unless you are super pressed for time, spend a few more minutes trying to figure something out yourself rather than asking.
2) Be humble. Take critical feedback with grace no matter how it is delivered. DON'T GET DEFENSIVE and don't take it personally. But that, of course, does not mean that you have to be (or ever should be) a pushover.
3) Show improvement. When you get mid-internship feedback (which most BBs give), make sure to write it down, etch it on your heart, and show real, tangible improvement in those areas. If they don't give it to you for some reason, ask for informal feedback.
4) Double check everything. Sometimes you get banker brain from staring at a model or an important email for too long. Step away. Get fresh air. Then come back and look at it one more time. Ask others to look over it too.
5) Take care of yourself. Look after your physical and mental health by eating well, getting the sleep that you can, and doing something for yourself every day. While the other interns are looking pale and sickly, you'll have the mental stamina it takes to get the job done.
The advice in this thread is excellent, particularly around work habits. Personally, I struggled mentally in my first couple of weeks on the desk. An associate I was working with told me that the best way to come into the next day at work strong is to spend 15-30 minutes decompressing at home before going to bed (even if it's 6:00 AM and you are cutting into an already short period of sleep). A few things that worked for me were:
Take a quick run (although this can take closer to 35-40 minutes factoring in time to change or shower, it's worth it for the chance to sweat out some of the stress).
Read a book (not related to finance).
Have a drink (just one) and spend time catching up on interesting articles, sports news, or general goings-on that you missed during the day.
I found that doing this helped me maintain focus and gave me something to look forward to each day, which helped me get the return offer.