Why would anyone want to go into the auto industry?

Please help me understand this - one of my friends couldn't find a job at a BB. He had several corp finance roles at F500 companies and ultimately settled at GM. Isn't the auto industry a dying one? My friend mentioned that there is a lot of activity going on - m&a, restructuring etc. However, wouldn't it be smarter going into tech or media?

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I don't think I would classify the US auto industry as dying. Just consolidating and refocusing. You are seeing long needed brand elimination and refocusing on core brands. With the govt basically guaranteeing GM I would consider it a safe place to work and there are a lot of deals going on if your friend is in the right area. Don't know if I would want to live in Detroit though. Guess the upside is your friend could buy a mansion for what a small apartment in NYC or Cali would cost.

 

I agree with you about being hard to get back into IB. The way I read the post sounds like the person had a bunch of corp finance in the past, tried to break into IB and decided on a GM position instead. If anything the GM position might set them up for a solid MBA later on. Michigan is close by, might be a decent way to get into Ross or something.

 
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