I’ve received all the answers I needed and have removed the information from this post accordingly.
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Let's not do this for the thousandth time. Use the search function.
Sorry I’m new to WSO. Thank you though.
Legit haha
Did you go to brophy? If so look up other brophy/harvard folks that have done it.
No. I go to a large, uncompetitive public high school.
Well you must have done something great to get into Harvard. Congrats. You’re off to a great start
My advice would be to focus on getting the highest quality freshman internship possible
Since most firms only hire juniors, reach out to geographic connections (havard folks from Phoenix ) or hustle to find folks that will create opportunities for you.
I’d spend time in Boston trying to meet anyone you can from the funds there
Apply to the big hedge fund internships and grad schemes, and think critically about businesses you walk by and what makes them good/great/bad/shit, use WSO and fintwit to learn more about the industry broadly and learn how to properly pitch a stock.
Modelling + accounting is important too, but showing raw "insight" is more important. Get any internship that's either finance-related or really pushes how you think (academic positions, think-tanks etc, given you're econ).
Consider a STEM minor, not because the skills are important, but because it'll push you out of your comfort zone. I didn't think I'd actually get smarter during school, but studying a degree I was rather ill-suited for definitely built up a sort of grit and improved my problem-solving a lot.
Also something that's not really mentioned much around HF but implicitly I find to be true in my experience is that having an appreciation for the scientific method and the empiricism of data vs just theory/logic can help you frame arguments/pitches and your own research into stocks/industries in a more compelling and insightful manner.
There isn't a one-size fits all approach to HF out of school, even on the same grad scheme you'll have very divergent experiences and ways of thinking - the above is what helped me but it may not help you.
I think you should really spend some time on “why” you are not open to doing banking… The IB->PE pipeline is tried and true for a reason (good training ground, more time to figure out what you want to do, larger class size with peers to help ease transition from school). There are maybe a handful of PE shops that have decent training but overall, many top places do not hire Analysts for a reason. Personally, as someone who works in MFPE, would highly recommend banking first unless maybe you get a generalist MFPE role. Would make sure you don’t focus too much on getting PE straight out of college and then miss out on a good banking gig that would’ve gotten you better placement in the long-run.
Thanks. I’ll also consider IB.
Congrats on the acceptance. I was in your shoes four years ago. Just relax a bit. If you got into Harvard from a public school in 2025 you're probably a smart and high-achieving student. Enjoy your senior year, enjoy your first year, take challenging classes but get good grades in all of them. Join the right organizations and rush a frat. Just don't come off as a hardo in networking chats because that is probably the only possible reason in the chance you don't break into PE: not because you weren't smart or prepared enough given that you're at Harvard and probably practiced for the interviews. Other than that, PE SA recruiting happens aroudn the same time as IB SA, maybe a bit earlier. Good luck.
My brother in Christ, I remember from the other thread just a few days ago that you were interested in PE, HF, IBD but were open to other things and now you're all in on PE ("or even HF"). Pump the breaks a little lol.
Use the search function as the other commenter mentioned, and read a bit through the discussions in the PE, HF & IBD forums to learn more about the work and ultimately which you'd actually be interested in, because right now you're 100% coming off as someone who is interested in PE because it's prestigious and pays a lot.
On the networking front though, here's an idea - start reaching out to some Harvard alums in those spaces on Linkedin for some informal phone calls.
I'd like to think someone at Harvard could land a PE internship their rising sophomore summer which would set you up well going forward.
And as a sidebar/call out - I'm 99% sure when you talk about "PE" you only really mean the hyper prestigious MFs (Blackstone, TPG, Apollo, etc). The ONLY person I know personally who landed at a MF of that caliber right out of undergrad was valedictorian of their target Ivy graduating class. So temper your expectations a bit.
Thank you for the advice!
I would think about studying something worthwhile like engineering or math...and maybe trying to invent something to solve some of the world's problems vs. preparing for a job that had its heyday five years ago.
Insane to me that anyone would want to work at an HF today. If you want to learn business, go work at a growing start-up (series B or series C).
Get good grades and just relentlessly pursue on-campus recruiting. You'll have more than enough opportunities.
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