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I am having problems finding an internship with a bank. I attend Lehigh University with a double major in Finance and Accounting. I have an overall GPA of 3.55 and a Finance GPA of 3.8. However, I think my lack of a corporate experience is preventing me from obtaining interviews and internships. The only experience I have had are school projects, my personal trading portfolio, and an externship with JPMorgan.

What should I do with my summer because the recruiting season is basically over? Why I am not getting any interviews with any investment banks?

 
Best Response

Not trying to shit on your parade but there are thousands of other kids from non-targets with better GPAs if that's the main thing you have going for you. LeHigh isn't a bad school either, but it's still a non-target and the banks throw you into the same pile as kids from South Dakota University and ITT Tech. The most probable way that you will get into an IB, if that is your goal, is to go through your network. There are a couple of things, however, that could at least make your chances a little better.

1) Are you a junior? If not, then lower your standards and at least spend this summer doing something, most banks are done recruiting anyway. Check out PWM internships and be willing to work for free if that's what it takes to land a gig. Going through your contacts will also be very helpful with this. If you are a junior and really want to get into IB, you should consider staying in school for an extra year to give yourself one more summer, or look at a 1 yr masters program as mentioned above.

2) You said that you had an externship (wtf that is I don't know) with JPM. If you kicked ass there you should have some great contacts to reach out to. Either way, you should be spending a tremendous amount of time building your network. Your school's location puts you within a few hours drive from some of the best job fairs in the world for IBD and you need to take advantage of that. Sign up for and attend every job fair that you can and meet the recruiters. You can also make day trips to NYC on the weekend, and if that's something you aren't doing you need to start. People from all around the country are flying into NYC every day for networking and information interviews, and just to be on par with them you need to do the same.

Coming from a non-target myself, I know the challenges that you're facing, and your options are to give up or bust your ass twice as hard as everyone else. Good luck

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I tend to think of myself as a one-man wolfpack Buyside strongside
 

Thank you for the responses. I am a junior at Lehigh. My school does have a few banks come for on campus interviews for example: BOFAML, GS, MS, DB, Blackrock, Barclays.

However, I am getting beat out by kids for interviews who do not have higher GPAs than me. The only thing I think they have over me is experience from last summer.

Does a double major question your focus or make you more marketable? Also, (I know this might sound stupid) does having an asian ethnic name hurt me too? I am considering changing my first name.

Where can I find information about boutique firms in the new york area?

Thanks for your help!

 
hdn211:
Also, (I know this might sound stupid) does having an asian ethnic name hurt me too? I am considering changing my first name. !

are you serious...wow

 
rok2:

Also, (I know this might sound stupid) does having an asian ethnic name hurt me too? I am considering changing my first name.

Thanks for your help!

WOW! I can't believe you actually wrote that. Your name? You're willing to give up your name?

I suggest you think very hard about what you want to do professionally and why. The issue that might have played against you during selection is lack of confidence in yourself. I mean this in the most positive way, but you need to be proud of who you are and where you come from. Even if you have a weird and uncommon name, own it, be proud of it. You might not think so, but it might help you stand out.

Keep your head up and don't give up or take the easy route.

 

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