How Do You Keep Going After Rejections?
As the title says, how do you keep going? I've just gotten another rejection to add to the pile. I'm an incoming Y2 at a semi-target in the UK, and so far, 0/73 springs, 0/29 summers.
I've worked on my CV, formatted everything properly, I have work experience in a different sector before university, secured relevant society experience, gotten certs in everything I could possibly think of, tailored each CV to each role, each cover letter, division.
Cold emailing firms for a summer, I chose firms with a low number of people, found analysts, connected, reached out, tailored each email to the right person and firm, researched deals, and at the end of my whole Y1, from September 2024 to September 2025, 0 experience. Everyone in LinkedIn, all ghosted. All I asked was for a short chat to talk about their experience. Not even an internship.
0 internships. I'm at a loss. How do you keep going? I might lose it if I have to sit through another 100 rejections to get an internship or even a job. All the firms I sent emails to said "We don't do short term internships", "We don't do long term internships", "We don't take interns" when I'm literally looking at someone on LinkedIn with "Happy to announce I'm starting a new position as Intern at [Firm Name].
Yeah, I'm guessing some of you might say choose another job, maybe finance isn't for me, and I agree. But it's all I've known. I've dedicated about 10 years now to finance and banking, not M&A. My aim was to get into FICC derivatives or ESG product structuring. But I can't even get into the door at small firms with all my knowledge, projects, extracurriculars and pitches. I'm so lost.
10Ys into dedicating yourself to finance and your only coming into 2nd year ???
Son you should have been cracking those CGP books so you could have got into a target
i got my first unpaid internship after sending out 300+ cold emails just stop whining and keep pushing
Life is tough, it is unfortunate, and it is also extremely unfair.
The reality is - by feeling sorry for yourself, the only person you punish is, yourself.
This is one of those things where you need to keep your head high, learn from your mistakes, and keep pushing forward.
Jobs are like dating - you’ll likely get a lot of rejections before you find the right one. Further, as a guy anyway, it can be a numbers game.
Same for women. Also don't work at Wells Fargo if you have a brain ethics or want to learn anything.
Currently in the same boat. I guess you either keep going or tap out.
All it takes is one. Just keep going
You wanted to do FICC derivatives trading since you were 10 or 11? Really?
I'll ignore the part about you dedicating the last 10 years of your life to finance even though you're 20. Maybe if your parents are/were in finance and basically were reading you the FT as a goodnight story then maybe I'd believe you, but I digress.
I am also in a similar boat, but I am a 3rd year, so I'm pretty much fucked for the next couple years.
I'm basically numb to it at this point. I haven't sent an application in believing I would get an interview for the past 6 months.
I don't really have any advice that's gonna be unique. I basically just am going through the same rinse and repeat cycle. Coffee chat, apply, wait, reject, and move on. I don't sleep well at night and the stress definetley has ruined my mental health but I figured I rather send 500 apps in and get rejected than send 200 and leave stones unturned.
Keep going dude. 3/800 apps. 0/16 superdays, 200+ interviews. I'm not stopping until I get a job, neither should you.
Have you tried the phone? I'm in sales, and while other methods work, the phone is still a good way, especially with larger firms. Also, I attend local meetings of a finance group (this is in Toronto), they welcome students.
Yeah, and by telegraph and pigeon mail too.
I got my first internship (unpaid) through a mentor/friend who was two years above me during my first year of college and got my first paid internship after ~150 cold emails and a shit ton of first rounds. Second paid role took 10 cold emails. It's just luck and numbers and luck.
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