Out-of-luck monkey in need of some advice
Hello fellow monkeys,
I’m a senior at a very selective non-target school. I failed at SA recruiting for the 2023 cycle and landed a risk consulting internship at a Big4 firm last summer (common sequence of events). The pay is good (90-100 per year for FT), but not IB levels of good. I mostly attribute my failure to a lack of internship/experience during my freshman summer and my communication skills.
After paying for my last year of college, my total family net worth (including retirement savings, properties, and the car) will be around $15k. I have a younger brother going to college a year after. My ultimate dream was to get an IB analyst or similar-paying position and use my bonus to pay for his education (I do not mention my personal situation in my interviews of course).
I work part-time and do classes most of the week, which means that I do not dedicate a lot of time to networking. Currently, I land interviews at big firms for high-paying positions, but they all end up being behavioral-oriented (even the superdays) without almost any technical questions that would allow me to show my skills. I feel like I’m in an uphill battle, and every rejection drives me crazy because of lack of explanation behind it (again, no interview really pushes me to the limit in technical knowledge, and I follow the STAR format for my behavioral answers).
I read the Wall Street Prep Guides, the 400 Questions guide, and various WSO guides. With my last year of college remaining, what are the steps I can take to repair my situation, or is everything hopeless? Is it just networking that I’m missing? Am I out of time to get a high-paying job in IB/ER/ST/CO with most positions closing at the moment?
Best, A lost monkey
First off you a good man with a good heart to think about your family.
Second, I don't know everything but Id say because you just graduated and you have a chance to still get into IB and Big 4 on your resume (not like your coming from a leasing company). When you are in interviews yes STAR and technicals are important but also remember to be a person and be likeable. They need to know that they can work with you until 3am and not want to rip your head off. So your problem could just be nerves and tensing up, try to be relaxed cause they can notice the difference which in IB they want the cool collected type not tense and worried.
Goodluck going forward!
it's a hard time even for people with previous IB internships who got no returned, i don't think your odds are good
do an mba after 3-4 yrs
Why do people always comment to do an MBA so nonchalantly like it doesn't cost any money? It's extremely expensive.
Fair point but if one can get into a T15 and swing a BB/EB IB role believe the ROI should be well worth it?
Because there's two entry points to IB. This guy missed the first one.
Your comment “I do not mention my personal situation, of course” really struck me. It sounds like your interview technique is based around what you think the interviewer expects / wants to hear rather than being authentic. I’ve interviewed loads of analysts and much prefer an authentic interview when I get to understand what motivates people and I feel like I get to know them a bit. You should, of course, never disclose more than you are comfortable sharing about your personal situation but telling an interviewer that you are motivated by your younger brother will resonate with a (perhaps) surprising number of people.
Best of luck to you!
What does selective non-target mean?
A big 4 is a fine safety net. Work there for a year and then try to reapply to first year analyst roles or off-cycle analyst roles.
In my group we love to hire a kid with one year work experience as a first year over a fresh college grad.
Probably like a Caltech
Cal tech to Big4 Risk is a pretty big miss
Johns Hopkins?
Focus your interview prep on more of the "why IB," "why this group," "what make you get to where you are today and why would that help you in IB," etc. - more behavioral and culture questions. Anybody can memorize the technical questions - these are just a check the box. Obviously you can't screw up on them but preparing for behavioral, situational, and culture questions will get you to the next round. Also come with very insightful questions and really read up on the deals that the team has recently done and why you think they would be a good one to work on
hehe you called yourself a monkey
aren't we all?
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