Career Alterntives to Investment Banking?
Okay guys, here's my dilemma. I'm currently attending a state school that's kind of like the Wal-Mart of colleges where I live. Therefore, to ensure that I can get a more elite job in finance and better networking opportunities, I've switched to a double major in math and international relations in order to stand out and get into a masters in finance program at an ivy league school after i graduate. But the problem is that I have no idea what the hell I'm going to do in finance. I've been looking into investment banking and they make the perfect amount of money plus I know I would like the kind of work that they do but I'm afraid that I won't be able to last a month if I actually got there because of the crazy working hours they have. I want to make money and gain business skills but I don't want to be forced to worship my job and put my life on hold. I've read too many stories of investment bankers who are rich and retired by the time they're 40 or 50, but also bald and lonely and I don't want that to be me- (like the guy in the image). I want to make money but also have a wife and kids and be able to dedicate time to family and be active in the community, ect. So can anyone give me some career alternatives in finance that will get me into the top 1%(for lack of a better way to put it) but that will also enable me to live? Thanks.
I'm pretty sure this is the same dilemma most of us have.
Asset Management isn't a bad gig if you can get it. It doesn't start where IB does, but the hours are better, and long term potential is good.
You sound pretty fucking lazy to me. I'm pretty sure just about everybody wishes they were in the top 1%, but most people are like you and aren't willing to work for it
LOL, you aren't getting into a top Ivy MSF.
@Peinvestor2012 Why not?
I'll let you figure this one out for yourself.
Top 1%ers are people who work 60-100 hours a week, depending on the stage of their career. They come from finance, law, medicine, and entrepreneurialism - and they don't bitch and moan about work. Many of them have successful family lives, and trust me when your great grandpa was plowing fields by hand or settling the western frontier at the turn of the century he was working 100+ hour weeks, but somehow you still got here...obviously he was making time for great grandma at some point. The main differences between the work of an IB analyst and your great grandfather are: you work in an air conditioned building while he worked in blazing heat and ice storms, you get a food stipend from your employer to eat above average food every day while he had to shoot, scalp, and cook deer and buffalo (by himself) to eat, you get paid well enough to buy $500 suits, $80 shirts, $250 shoes while he wore the same boots for decades, you live in a walk up on the west side (my commute sucks, wa wa wa) while he had to erect a teepee and hope indians wouldn't invade in the middle of the night... The point is, you work hard as shit, no question about it, but it is for 2 years. After two years of IB you try out your exit opps (if you work in a decent bank/group you should land something - even if it's not KKR/BX etc...) you'll likely end up at a decent tier 2 group where you will start making better money, and your work (depending on deal flow) will subside noticeably. A 65-70 hour week is not going to eliminate your ability to have a good home life, but you do have to get comfortable with the fact that your not going to coach Timmy's tee ball team... Keep in mind though that pursuing the 1% level and coaching tee ball are mutual exclusive...
Well said dude.
@MRR HAHA! Thanks for putting it in that perspective man! That's exactly what I needed to hear, I really do need to stop being afraid of hard work and get off of my ass. I have another question though, will my exit opportunities be better if I get an MBA after working for two or three years as as analyst?
This is beautiful. +SB
Stop chasing after prestige. You said it yourself that you don't want to be working the crazy hours, not see your family, etc. so find another career you might enjoy. The majority of people in the "1%" aren't investment bankers. Lawyers, doctors, entrepreneurs, consultants, etc. all make up the "1%" too. Some of these professions have a better work/life balance too. Ideally though, you shouldn't go after the money. First, find something you enjoy and then look to see how you can make a career out of it. And if not, life is about more than just money and prestige.
@wishuponastarr Well I understand that but I'm one of those people that hasn't yet discovered what I'm really passionate about so I don't have anything that I enjoy that I can flip into something lucrative. Law was my first choice- but the market for that is CRAPPY. Also, sense I came from a housing project and watched my single mother work like hell during my early childhood in order to move us from poor to lower middle class, its important that I bring my family up to the next level socially and be able to support them. Therefore, I'm not chasing money just for the hoes and the fancy clothes even though that will be a nice part of it.
Generally speaking a MBA will give you the opportunity to continue down the well-trodden path in finance. So to say, you could return to IB as an associate or you could return to the sell side (assuming you did at least 2 years there pre-MBA) where you will start as a VP. You have to realize that the field gets more and more competitive at every stage in the process though. A large group of kids get SA positions > only a percentage of SAs get full time offers > Only a percentage of FT get buy side offers > only a percentage of buy side associates get into top 25 B-schools > only a percentage of top 25 B-school grads get to VP on the buy side...generally speaking returning to the sell side, after an associate stint on the buy side would not be preferable, but it is a hell of a lot better than a lot of other occupations (see my description of settling the Western Frontier above). Hopefully, though, after your two years on the sell side and two years on the buy side you have a better idea of what you actually want to do...be it real estate, asset management, or something completely unrelated. You will have done yourself a tremendous favor by grinding in the sweatshops for four years and your opportunities will be immense, not to mention the superior experience and education you will have... At this stage in the game, you really should just be concerned with what your next two years look like. Make the most of them, get into the best bank/group you can, don't bitch about the hours, learn as much as you can, network as much as you can, and start evaluating your next step 12-18 months in. By the way, an MBA from anywhere outside of the top 25 is pretty steeply discounted. This is not to say they aren't worth pursuing, and in some cases a place like UW Madison is great if you want to specialize in RE, but just keep that in mind...
There isn't an Ivy League offering a Master in Finance. Best you can hope for is Princeton's MFin. I suppose the math major will help you, but you better make sure the rest of your package stands out.
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