Will I even be able to break in or is it too late?

I am a graduate from a non target in London and I have been trying to break in for 11 months. I do not have any experience because Covid-19 made it impossible to get any internships. I am literally on the brink right now of changing my mind and I am asking anyone if there is any way of breaking in for me. I even googled small cap investment banks in London but I can't find a lot. I am lost.I have done several courses. I am a CFA Level 1 candidate. I have done the Investment Banker course at Financial Edge. I have done FMVA and CMSA at CFI. I did all of this with my own money. If these don't help, I really don't know why I am doing it and am very concerned.Any kind of insight helps. I really appreciate the replies. I wake up everyday and study for 9+ hours and apply to jobs and I feel very disappointed because it shouldn’t be this hard for an entry level role. Note that I am currently in my home country and I would like to work in London cause I know that WSO shares the country that you shared your post from so I just wanted to clear that out.

 
I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.
 

Don't give up. 

I did a four years degree, and upon my graduation I worked in consulting for one year. After doing a masters programme, I spent 10 months unemployed trying to get an internship in IB, and after doing 2 off-cycle internships at small boutiques that non one has ever heard of, I finally secured a full time analyst position at a reputable bank.

FYI, I am about to turn 27 in a month, I have had plenty of interviews in which the associates who interviewed me were younger than me, so no, it´s not too late if you really want it. 

 

Pm me if you want. Also went to uni in the UK (even tho I’m from here), I went to a semi target, graduated in 2018 (midst of Brexit) then covid 2 years later, been pretty tough for a lot of people I went to uni with to break in. Some of them are only getting jobs now - almost 4 years after graduating.No work exp will be your hindrance so I'd think about voluntary work or maybe a masters

 
Most Helpful

Not sure what you have been applying to but I would consider branching out. This is a super competitive industry and people with multiple MSc, CFA L1/2 and work experience are struggling to break into IB (I'm guessing that's your goal).

Some suggestions:

Big4 accounting (or one of the 2nd tier firms like Mazar, Grant Thornton etc.). There are many accountants who gain their ACA before breaking in. The good thing with this route is you keep doors open to other industries (AM, PE,, consulting, mgmt). 

Mid/back office roles at large BBs. Use this as a way in, do some more CFA and network hard to try and internally move into IBD, hard but doable.

Internships in your home country and MSc. When I did my MSc there were many non-UK peers who had 1-3 years experience (either in FT work or in internships) and used the MSc as a way to break into UK IBD. While expensive I think all got top offers in IBD.

As for small IBs in London, I recommend combing the FTSE advisor list (quick google finds it) or scrolling LinkedIn for small firms and cold emailing.

Good luck!

FYI

CFA is only really useful for AM/ER but I would say if you are in a non-front office role, it is the best way to show your interest and knowledge, but it's worth considering other options.

An MBA is super expensive and not that useful in the UK without prev exp

 

I’m just curious as i’ve seen this mentioned before but are you sure Big 4 Accounting can lead to AM? I work in AM myself and never seen someone in a FO Investing seat come from Accounting so I always question when I see people say that.

 

I would say you're firm is an outlier then. However I would say that it's more common in boutiques than the massive AMs, but I am very sure. I worked in FoF for a period so saw the profile of many PMs and analysts. It's not like its the majority but I would say about 1/4 - 1/3 have spent time at Big4. 

I would say quite a common route for those who do make that move is to move into SS ER (who like hiring recently qualified ACAs) first and then moving into BS after a period.

If you look at job adverts quite a few will reference ACA as well as CFA as desired professional qualification

 

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