Trying to find work experience in gap-year (UK)
Hi all,
Sorry for the incoming long post.
I'm currently in a gap-year & my goal has been to get some form of 'unstructured' experience within summer 2024 at boutique IB/AM/VC firms, and develop on my past work experience which was an insight into a regional M&A team. I've been trying to do so by cold-emailing seniors and/or reaching out to boutique firms, with the hopes of getting a more in-depth experience to try better understand what field(s) I would actually like to begin a career in post-undergrad & also a chance to speak to people who have considered/gained exp. in multiple fields, further education, and so on.
I'm based outside of London, so have emailed local firms to try get some form of an internship/work experience. Equally, I've also emailed firms based in London (as far back as last summer given I saw uni students apply for SA almost a year behind at structured BB/EBs) with hopes for even the ability to shadow in summer 2024, but I also know I'm competing against uni students here.
Typically, I try to be concise in my emails but personalise them using the skills I learned from past work exp + my A-Levels & my interest, to explain why I'd want to be gaining an insight into the firm's work. I make sure that personalising is not just listing off where they work + what they do.
There is usually no response to the majority of my emails (as expected), or I find I am lacking eligibility (i.e., internships ran strictly for uni students), or I am just unable to ultimately convert the opportunity. For example, one of my emails once got me to a call interview, then a real interview, but I was ultimately rejected. I did get feedback from them which was positive but was told there was just no headcount.
Overall, I have to say it has definitely resulted in a few positive relationships to help me when I'm at university (i.e., people offering to review my CV, future internships I can apply for etc.) which I'm extremely grateful for, but hasn't achieved my goal of an internship.
I hope this is sufficient pretext for my question of how realistic my goal of work experience/an internship prior to university is, & if there may be any added tips for securing something in my year out. I know this is probably one of the toughest job markets there have been in a while. But, given we are getting closer to the summer, I thought this may be my final month or so to use any advice from this post & throw out some emails to see if anything could potentially arise.
By any chance, if anyone reading this may run (or know of) any relevant internships/work experience for gap-year students like myself (within the UK) I'd love to know too.
Thank you!
Ahoy there!
Navigating the choppy waters of securing work experience during a gap year, especially in the high-stakes world of boutique IB/AM/VC firms, is indeed a formidable quest. Your strategy of cold-emailing and reaching out directly to firms is commendable and, frankly, a necessary part of the treasure hunt. Here are some nuggets of wisdom to potentially boost your chances:
Sharpen Your Sword (CV and Cover Letter): Ensure your CV and cover letter are not just polished but tailored to each firm you're reaching out to. Highlight relevant skills and experiences, especially those that align with the firm's focus. Your insight into a regional M&A team is a gem—make it shine.
Map of the Realm (Networking): You've already started building positive relationships, which is fantastic. Consider expanding your network through LinkedIn, alumni from your future university, or even attending industry events (virtual or in-person). Sometimes, the key to the castle is held by someone you've yet to meet.
The Mage's Advice (Seek Mentorship): Find a mentor who has navigated similar paths. They can offer personalized advice, introduce you to their network, and maybe even advocate on your behalf.
The Quest Board (Internship Portals and Forums): While you've been focusing on direct outreach, don't overlook internship portals and forums like Wall Street Oasis. Sometimes, opportunities are posted in these places before they become widely known.
Crafting Your Spell (Personal Projects): If direct work experience remains elusive, consider starting a personal project related to your interests in finance. This could be a blog analyzing market trends, a portfolio project, or even a study on a particular sector of interest. It shows initiative and passion, qualities that are golden in the eyes of employers.
The Guild's Support (University Careers Service): Even though you're on a gap year, some universities offer pre-admission career advice. It's worth checking if your future university can provide guidance or even access to internship opportunities.
The Scroll of Inquiry (Follow-up Emails): For firms that haven't responded, a polite follow-up email can sometimes unearth opportunities that were buried under a pile of correspondence. It shows persistence and genuine interest.
Your quest is ambitious, especially in a competitive job market, but not unattainable. The relationships you're building now are invaluable, and every rejection is but a step closer to your goal. Keep your spirits high, your emails personalized, and your network expanding. The right opportunity might just be on the horizon.
And remember, every great adventurer once stood where you are now—on the brink of their journey, ready to make their mark. Keep pushing forward, and may your gap year quest lead you to the treasure you seek!
Best of luck, and may the winds be ever in your favor!
Sources: Some advice on getting a job or internship by Monty09, Stanford vs Wharton vs Booth vs Columbia for PE, https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forum/investment-banking/should-i-take-a-gap-year-before-university-uk?customgpt=1, Cornered - What to do?, The paradox of getting an internship
Bump
Tough job market, most people don't consider students who aren't in uni, I'm imagining based off what you've told us that your intro email is probably too long. But yeah, even in the best of markets, what you're trying to do is rare. Your going assumption should be you get nothing.
What may improve your chances? Writing a concise email - no matter what justification you have for not doing this, the reality is a long email will simply be deleted. Requesting an informational call instead of an internship - much easier to ignore larger requests than smaller ones. Expanding your remit - you're targeting industries that are hard enough for target undergrad students to get exposure to, maybe step down the totem pole a bit.
I’m in a similar situation as the OP and have been advised to apply to small Investment Banks, however this is a long shot and so was similarly looking to expand my search. What sort of industries/companies would you suggest targeting. Would you suggest other, less competitive types of banking/finance related experience or completely different fields? Essentially what is stepping down the totem pole in your opinion.
Anything else in finance. Look up the CFI careers map. Throw a dart.
Last thing I meant to add to you and OP is to chill out. If you get nothing, not the end of the world. If you're worried about not getting springs. Again, not the end of the world. Even if you don't succeed in the first round of summer apps. Again, not the end of the world. So relax a bit! Enjoy your youth.
Also plenty of other resources to get some insight into an industry without actually working in it.
I had that feedback pretty quickly into doing it (of the email being too long) initially and adapted it to be much more concise.
I get what you're saying about dropping the target down to just an informational call. But with informational calls, what can I really ask? I'm honestly a bit lost because I feel they'd immediately see through that tbh (that I'd be trying to butter them up for an internship or something). Would it not just be just as easy for them to answer in an email - for example if I were to ask more about the firm's culture, if they run internships etc..
What could you ask? Do you think you know everything about IB? About getting into IB? About what the job's like? About how that person thinks about deals? About what their journey was? I'm guessing no. There's plenty of stuff to ask, especially when you know so little.
Let me also tell you to never ask a person what a firm's culture is. If I asked you what the culture of the UK was, what would you say? Personally I'd struggle for an answer, where to start, what the question even was intended for. If you think about it like that, it's a pretty broad and hard to answer question. Realistically everyone's just gonna say "everyone's smart and friendly, and we work hard but play hard too, and we value our clients above all else". Which is BS but that's what they're gonna say because it's easy to say. If you want to find out about culture (which rn you probably.dont because this is for an internship for your end of HS summer and it doesn't matter), then ask specific questions which you can use to form a holistic view without just straight up asking "what is the culture".
And also no one really wants to answer that in an email. I can't really explain why but even if it takes longer, it would be a lot less draining to hop on a call than to write an email answering a list of questions.
Is the person going to see through your request for a call as covert for an internship solicitation? Yes. Does it matter? Absolutely not lol. If they have internships, great, you have a good call, they now know you better and you're not some easily deletable bunch of pixels on a screen, and you've shown interest and hopefully a half decent level of knowledge/personality etc. Now they're more primed to help you out even further. If they don't have internships, whatever, you've made a new contact and you've learnt more about the industry. It's just like a sales funnel.
The call doesn't have to feel like pretending. You can actually just go in planning to learn at a minimum with any more as a bonus.
Anyway sorry for the rant, but yeah.
Not sure if it applies for you but in Continental Europe it's very common to take a gap year between bachelor and master to complete 2x 6-month internships. The first one is the most difficult one to obtain but then I saw many peers doing off-cycles at GS/MS/JPM in the second half
Sounds like you haven't even started uni?
If so, yeah places are really not going to be open to hiring an 18/19 year old with no uni under your belt. It's not even very useful as any pre-uni experience will be VERY heavily discounted. I've seen people take gap semesters to work but they are 2nd/3rd years.
I would just chill, travel and maybe take a course or two for credit. But you're not going to get much work experience pre-uni
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