Very confused at what to do as an international student who is in a non target UK
Hello Good people,
So im currently doing my Undergrad in finance at a non target Uni. To be very honest when I first came here i didnt know all about this target and non targets and the culture of the IB or other related fields, now it feels like im drowning.
I have applied for several Insight weeks but only heared about rejections ( My friends from target Uni getting calls for interviews dispite having less weighted CV) and this is a bit demotivating at this moment.
As a non target, and lets think i dont get any Insight week, how should I approach my second year? I would definitely be trying to get a summer internship but i dont know how to. As I already have a year to polish my cv and skills, what would be your suggestion i should focus on?
Don't focus on IB, it will be frankly impossible from a non target without crazy family contacts.
Focus on applying to big 4, middle and back office in banks, corporate banking, wealth management and maybe asset management if you want to be a bit ambitious.
I know this sounds shit, but this will help you break into these institutions, just work hard once you're in and you might be able to move to a front office role (definitely not IB, but maybe markets or AM).
Insight weeks in UK tend to be front office based and that's why youre being rejected. summer internships have way more openings so you should be fine if you manage your expectations
Spring Weeks are front office based, yes, so also covers Transaction Banking, Corporate Banking, S&T, Capital Markets, and IB. So how would this person going to apply for Corporate Banking be any less competitive? Most people I've seen in there all come from top unis too.
yea you get the point tho. even corp banking will be tough for this guy so its ambitious (also, it is technically FO but wouldn't colloquially think of it as FO )
I was actually keen on working in AM after doing the amplify bootcamp in my uni this semester ( IK this isnt really potrays real life situation but i enjoyed it more than IB). And working in the retail sales for couple of years now, I always liked the client facing jobs more.
I would like to ask honestly which divisions should i more focus? I know this in my heart that my chances are very slim into IBD doesn't matter how much i work hard. So if i want to take a different initiative to end up in IBD or AM in future, which roles should i eye on and apply? Operations? PWM? Equity research? Global market? Or even corporate side?
Sorry for a big reply but honestly very much confused, at this moment its no more what i want to do but more of what i need to do to be where i want to be.
Thanks for your time.
IBD Is impossible from your position now unless you get a big 4 on graduation, work in their transaction services or audit teams, qualify with the ACA and then have a very small chance (sub 5%) of switching to a IBD if you are a competitive candidate if those IBDs are open to taking ACA candidates (I can only think of like 3/4 that do).
WM and Corporate banking from your position are possible but again very hard, you're competing against targets again and corp banking and WM pays very well and attracts good talent.
If I were you, I would try to get a back/Middle office role at a bank (treasury, operations, risk), and see if you can leverage good performance over a few years to switch to markets or wealth management. Banks like their own and would be happy to switch you over if you are interested and have a good track record of performance already.
do big4 audit
I'm no expert on UK recruiting but (although they are helpful) didn't like the previous responses' fatalistic angle.
I was in your shoes once and it also seemed impossible to break into IB (let alone a BB as I wanted to) unless I spent +5 years doing things I didn't like.
One path for you, and the one I took when I was in your situation, is (in case you don't get any IB exp here) apply to any type of boutique or IB related in your home country where it will probably be less competitive during the summers on undergrad, build an interesting CV doing ECs and then in your last year make a really good application to top masters on their first round (to maximize chances of making in). Once you are in a top masters, you will be able to apply to summers at good banks from a strong position (you will be at a target + have relevant exp) and you will start only one/two years after than if you were going straight out of undergrad.
As I said, I was in your situation before just that worse (I did my undergrad in my home third world country and there was no IB there) and the situation seemed even more bleak for me, so if I could make it you sure can too. Don't give up!
Cheers on this as Im from a third world country and dont have IB scenes back home so thats not an option. For this the only choice i have now is get good grades and try for a masters in a target.
There will always be tiny IB boutiques or some other things you can do to put on your CV if you're crafty enough. It will depend on how much you want it and how hard you are willing to look/work for it (and yes, good grades are a given, you need that + the other stuff).
It's a tough road but, for me, it was worth it. Best luck!
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6940372
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