my referalls are leading nowhere
I've been networking like a dog and have had numerous people say they will refer me for an interview or "make sure HR sees my resume". However, in none of these cases have I landed an interview. In one case I talked to 10 people at the bank and they all liked me and kept connecting me with more people on the team, but then I got an auto-rejection email from the bank (Macquarie).
I'm wondering if this is normal? It feels like everyone who is applying must have a referral, thus negating the impact of my referrals. I'm from a non-target with no previous finance experience, but am STEM with a 3.7GPA and engineering internship experience. Maybe my background is what is holding me back? Is this just a case of HR fucking me despite the bankers liking me?
What has your experience been with referrals, are they supposed to always lead to interviews? Do you think these people are actually referring me?
I was referred to HR several times, thing is... in some cases my skill set wasn't a great match or another candidate got the job. They may not tell you this.
For a competitive firm, a non-target degree and an engineering internship might not be enough.
Look at it this way, a good financial firm have enough candidates with financial experience and possibly a better degree. If these people are not really hyping you up, you are just another resume on the pile.
yeah it sucks cause I've spent hours learning all the technicals and know that I could crush an interview just as well as the next guy/girl
compared to my engineering classes this stuff is quite straightforward
Bro have heard Macquarie is a crapshoot. The HR holds a lot of power at Macquarie and I had a similar experience as you. I was told I’ll be put in the accelerated process but didn’t get anything there.
What level of people are you talking to? I have seen that at most banks analysts don’t have too much of power as such. Would focus on talking to senior associates/ VPs instead. Also, try getting to the staffer or the person/team leading recruiting. They have a lot of influence to put you into the process
I'm talking to associates and analysts. At one firm I was referred by an associate to talk to the director of the team. Then I see on here people are getting superdays for that firm and I haven't heard anything.
I was dinged from the Macquarie accelerated process as well. Are we able to re-apply for the normal process?
Maybe it’s because you go to school in Canada? I know you mentioned you are a US citizen but I would imagine it would still make things difficult.
Have no idea about the question regarding Macquarie. I gave up on the firm after that acc. process fiasco lol. Ended up at a top group so it all worked out in the end.
I feel your pain, have had multiple referrals lead nowhere, and sometimes had a couple of chats at one bank and still got the interview. Alot of the time its the luck of the draw, how hard your referral actually pushes for you / if they end up reaching out to hr or just say in a chat they will refer you and don't end up doing so because they got busy. Or it has to deal with who reviews resumes, and if its the right person you could get lucky. would just keep it up, I'm sure you will land something. Its always a good thing if you keep getting connected with others.
Thank you for the encouragement, I'll keep grinding. Process can feel defeating at times.
international?
US citizen but go to school in Canada
It’s your background
I'm trying to fix that by landing an internship, but you need internships to get the internship lmao
It's not just that -- it's also your school and grades
To be honest man if you’re in a non target in Canada that’s probably why. A lot of hr is ignorant and will automatically throw out your resume if they see that even if you don’t need a sponsorship. Engineering internships are also not related at all you have to remember there are kids with ib experience you are competitng against that look like way better candidates. If I were u I’d do this summer or next at a boutique ib and then re recruit maybe double major in finance if it is so easy for you
appreciate the advice, I know competition is very stiff.
I'm trying to land something for next summer, hopefully that works out for me.
do you go to a highly ranked engineering school? eg waterloo.
if so you're better off applying to consulting and lateralling to ib/pe later on.
not waterloo, but it's highly regarded
I have internships at the best engineering firms, but doubt any IB HR recruiters know or even care lmao
recommend you try getting relevant exp in: big 4 TAS/CF, restructuring/turnaround/strategy consulting, project finance, strategy/corp fin in O&G/PUI, sector focused ER
as it stands you have little to offer/stand out vs someone from a target with relevant knowledge. it's rare to see engineers in IB unless they did a relevant masters, went to a target or lateralled in
i did chem e at uni
Im sorry about that. You will eventually land a job in IB.
On another note, do you mind sharing on how you got the technicals as an engineer graduate, and also how long did it take.
probably a few weeks, are you STEM?
I have taken a finance class and an accounting class as electives and did very well so I already had a foundation. Went through the guides and did 30 hours of the modeling courses. What worked for me was understanding the underlying concepts not just memorizing the formulas. I'm not saying I can get EVERY technical, but I'm still working to get there.
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