Networking gone wrong

In all seriousness, do some networking call workshops with friends or your career office. Most IBers have severe restrictions, and trading stocks is an after-thought.

I'll chime in before the snarky people get to this thread:

Investment bankers do not trade stocks; their job is more related to facilitating transactions between companies. My guess is that the banker heard your question and thought you were woefully under-prepared, and thus did not find it worth their time to speak to you. (They work a TON—like, 80+ hours a week—so they're really doing you a huge favor by picking up the phone for you).

My recommendation is to read up a bit on the investment banking industry before you start to actively network. mergersandinquisitions.com was a really helpful resource for me starting out, and has quite a few articles on what the job does and is actually like. It's not perfect, of course, but it'll give you a decent background.

Good luck!

Well, for starters...

You dont ask bankers about what stocks they trade, for many reasons. Do your research why, plenty of resources here.

Second, I assume you dont know the answer to questions like "So what is investment banking?" or "Why are you interested in investment banking?". Once you know the answers to these questions you will be able to ask others and connect with them.

I know you are junior/senior whatever in school but lack of research and preparation is what separates interns from prospects.