BB analyst - What can I do if I keep failing PE interviews...

I'm currently working at IBD in one of the BB in Asia. Came out of the target school.
I started to interview for PE about a year ago and up till now I've had more than 20 interviews. Got one offer but not ideal enough so i turned it down. I almost keep failing the interviews. At the beginning I failed because I was not familiar with the process. I gradually learned the interview tricks and buyside way of thinking through the interviews. It's really the interview process that makes me learn. But I've been incredibly unlucky.
There was one fund I paid huge efforts to complete an 1-week case study. I was simultaneously working around the clock for my IBD work at that time so I barely had any sleep for a whole week for the case. The presentation went well but I never heard back. I separately reached out to the interviewers who listened to my prez and both of them gave me great feedback. They were nice and asked me to let them know once I hear back from HR. But since then i've never heard back. I reached out to HR but he just didn't respond. I heard them starting another batch of interviews from round 1 recently. Both my headhunter and I have no idea what happened and HR doesn't want to explain. I guess they don't have enough candidates for superday so they start the interview process all over again. Since I'm not important so they decide to directly ignore me.
Then another fund, I got their final round notice. At that time I was so busy with a project and it was impossible for me to sneak out of the office, fly to another city and take an all-day interview. So I asked if it can be pushed to some time after holiday (it was close to a holiday back then) and the HR agreed and said he would arrange and let me know once the seniors' time is confirmed. Then nothing happened ever since even if I followed up for a few times. After a month I heard they gave offer to someone else. I dunno why they gave me final round invitation and then ignored me. Maybe I didn't perform good enough. What if I went to the final round at that time, probably they would give the offer to me.
I then had a bunch of interviews which I really nailed it. After the final rounds the headhunter told me the team had extremely good feedback and asked me to expect to hear back soon. then I waited and waited but still I havent heard back. I kept chasing the headhunter but HR just didn't respond. Btw that HR had been quite responsive the whole time. I just dont understand why these people disappear, at least they can tell me a result or tell me what happened...Anyways headhunter said probably they put the process on hold due to COVID 19 and market turbulence. Ok look how lucky I am to have my recruiting season clash with coronavirus, though everything alr starts to recover here in Asia, the headquarters of these companies are in US so prob they froze the headcount. It's just my guess.
Then there are a few names that even turned my resume down, because I dont have much m&a experience. Everyone in asia market should have known banks dont do that much m&a recently. I dont have much to say on this point, anyways this is a reason that makes sense. But this further narrows my choices.

Sorry for being long-winded. I'm too sad to tell this story. I don't like what I'm doing right now and I have a genuine interests in PE. Don't think there's anything wrong with my background and preparation. Yes probably I'm not solid enough to pass all those interviews. Why such bad luck anyways? I know the longer I stay in banking the harder to land a PE job. I feel so hopeless right now. I'm considering change to m&a team in another bank or mba. Of course far from ideal.

Any guidance or advice on this?

 

Molestiae consequatur eveniet blanditiis et dolores. Dolorem quibusdam qui enim beatae nemo. Dolores et aut id aut laboriosam vitae ipsa ut.

Dignissimos maiores quae magnam dolor non inventore facilis. Voluptatem soluta expedita quo quia earum et voluptate.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. New 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

April 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (87) $260
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (14) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (205) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (146) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”