Incoming freshman, need advice for approaching medium sized PE firm for summer experience
Hi everyone, I've been looking at PE firms in my area (there are very few, I'm in a rural area) because I am trying to secure some kind of finance related experience before I go to college. I found one that has bought and operated some pretty big insurance companies, and I was wondering how I should approach them to see about getting an unpaid internship. A cold email? A phone conversation with a board member? I have seen lots of ways to go about approaching firms, but I feel like most of these methods apply to those in cities and those with previous financial experience on their resume.
My advice as someone who I had a bs finance internship before freshman year -
I had done a finance case competition senior year of high school, so I emphasized this, I was also doing Wall Street prep and reading finance textbooks. Do what you can to show genuine interest and stress this. Maybe write a small stock pitch. For the pe firm you should cold email and stress your interest and say you are wondering if they need help with anything at all. When one person doesn’t respond move onto the next and the next, then start calling them and leaving messages. Go until you get into their office and speak with them in person.
Here’s what I would say the key is: don’t take no for an answer. The way you do this when they say “look we just don’t have the time to train you blah blah blah” is you keep making other suggestions. For example, start by asking for an internship, when they deny this, say how bout an administrative assistant who also gets to listen in on conference calls and learn about strategy, if not this then how bout a shadow program, if not this then a one week project, no? how bout a 30 minute sit down with you once a month to discuss the challenges your firm is facing, if not this then how bout a sit down to talk about your career (and eventually do this with every other person at the firm). Just don’t take no for an answer, and no matter what, you will be in a good position to ask them for a fall internship, which you can leverage for a freshman summer.
extra tip: make sure to mention something about the firm in your cold email and why you want to be with them, what interest you about their firm, how is it relevant to your life?
I know this is all standard advice but I don’t see how you can fail doing this.
This is just the reply I was looking for, thank you. I absolutely will not take no for an answer. I need this internship or whatever else they can give me, and fast.
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