Will my age be a problem down the road?
I didn’t have money to attend uni straight out of high school so i went to work blue collar jobs for some years to save up for it. Now i have 4 years’ worth of tuition money and got into a target here in Canada, the problem is: by the time I finish my bachelors, I’ll be 27…
Will that hurt my chances at high finance/IB down the road?
Like, will they care that I’d be 5 years older than my to be analyst co-workers?
Thanks in advance lads
Hey Achillesk,
Honestly, being a little older isn’t a dealbreaker at all. Most firms care more about your skills, drive, and network than your exact age. You might be 27 at graduation, but that extra life experience—working and saving for school—can actually make you stand out in interviews.
Some things to keep in mind:
Bottom line: you might be slightly older than the typical analyst, but that can be spun as a strength. Many people in IB/finance start in their late 20s, especially in Canada. Your age isn’t going to hold you back if you have strong skills and experience.
Thanks for answering, wirkutskijkarl. I really appreciate the reassurance, but the downvoting of your comment by others is kinda making me worry about it being realistic or not... Am I fucked?
Above sounds like chat. I don’t think it’s a problem. As the response above me noted you can craft a very strong story. Remember there are career switching MBAs who could be like 28-30 joining as associates. I wouldn’t worry
Agree with the Broker, I think people are downvoting it (as Spam, specifically) because it looks like ChatGPT wrote it. But the points are probably true regardless. Plenty of routes to IB
Here I am someone with similar situation as you. Except I was the opposite of the spectrum… I didn’t work until 27, was travelling and spending time with elder family members back in home country. All the sudden I realized many of my friends from school were busy making a glamours title of themselves in the industry. Had a couple promoted to VPs. Between getting married and settle down I chose to get out and make a name of myself. Age is not a problem, keep networking, be very strong of the technicals, prepare a really good storyline for your experiences. You will find people who are generous to help and mentor you along the way. Sure you will land in the spot you wanted. You might notice some difference in terms of health tho, I found myself getting slower in recovery from pulling late nighters than I was back in college. The only thing you should worry about is AI emerging and there might be less junior headcount in the industry especially with Canada which already less capita per person in terms of banking jobs. Keep a positive mind and don’t let age be a thing to hold you back
It won’t be a problem at all from the employers perspective. Depending on how you live your life, you might find it annoying having peers who are in a slightly different stage of life, but that’s probably a non-issue as well.
Lots of veterans at my firm are 25+ you’d be fine
You’ll be fine, and you have a story that shows you have that dog in you. Best of luck.
With the current state of Canadian IB your age is the least of your concerns. Might even help you blend in as FT IB Analyst postings are starting to look for 2-3 related yoe instead of new grad. Consider working in your home country instead unless it's Pakistan / Canada / DRC / DPRK tier
Started that late as well. All fine, there are some Assos a bit older but who cares. If you want to do it, do it!
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