I'm a freshman at a target school. I see a lot of conflicting information about whether ECs matter to finance interviewers.
Some people say that only GPA is considered but some say that ibanks place a lot of importance on ECs too.
If you do think that they are important, what kinds of clubs do you think ibanks prefer?
Thank you.
i am not in the industry but i think holding leadership positions/role in some finance/investing club or some sort of sports team (intramural/club) would be good. I also think during your college years you should try to join something that you are passionate about and can have fun with.
both ECs and grades are important. you dont want to be president of 15 clubs and have a 2.5 gpa. try to focus on a few that you truly enjoy and can make an impact on.
During most of my interviews we sent more time talking about my non-finance ECs than my finance EC....pick EC's that you are genuinely passionate about.
During most of my interviews we sent more time talking about my non-finance ECs than my finance EC....pick EC's that you are genuinely passionate about.
I would ADD that you focus intensely on your grades and internships though as your primary goal.
Your secondary goal should be to choose 2-3 extra curriculars and 1 outreach job.
It's kind of sexy to have strong grades, strong internships, 2 extra-curric's where you were a leader and truly involved, and then add on top of that some legitimate, time consuming outreach like tutoring kids in math at a school or something cool like that.
The over-rated EC's are 1) camp counselor 2) frat/soro treasurer, etc. 3) normal job like Best Buy 4) other random bullshit
College ECs are important to the extent that they demonstrate that you are well-rounded and able to manage your time effectively. I know that my being an athlete in college played a significant role in a lot of my interviews. It demonstrated leadership, team player mentality, and composure under pressure. Just get involved in things that interest you (i.e. club sports, finance club, community service, etc.) I also coached several local youth sports teams, which was another differentiating factor on my resume amongst the mass of finance/econ nerds.
Thanks for the advice. I will definitely get more involved in school ECs to fill out my profile. Also, I have been actively participating in simulations such as JPMorgan's fantasy futures and a commodities trading simulation at my school. If I'm doing well in these, would it be worth listing on a resume (that seems frighteningly empty right now)?
Hahah, a job at best buy is an extra curricular?!?
You may like www.marketocracy.com as well, I put that on my resume and it was a good conversation starter... better than putting "invest on my personal account" (interviewer thinks, yeah his pathetic $2200 account...hmm. great)
So you're considering not doing an EC, which couldn't hurt your candidacy, because of potential resume conflicts? I think I had a stronger profile than you at Sophomore year and I didn't even think about anything like that. Do the best you can and don't worry about something trivial like fitting everything into a resume. You'll figure it out when you get there.
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