PE Recruitment Discussion
Currently an MBA IB associate (1.5 years of exp) in a leading middle market investment bank and would like explore exiting out to PE firms. Have a few questions and would appreciate some thoughtful responses and guidance -
- How difficult is it for an IB associate to move to PE firm?
- Recruitment process - Any general direction on the recruitment process and materials to use for prep for PE interviews?
- Any specific tier of PE firms should I be focusing on given I will be exiting out of a middle market bank?
There are several threads on the topic. Without being horribly negative, difficulty is high, especially if you're skewing older (28+) and depending on relevance of prior work experience. What'd you do before MBA?
Went to Kellogg/Wharton/Harvard/Booth for MBA and spent 10+ years in aerospace & defense industry in project / program management role. Have a lot of interest in space industry and currently exploring exit opportunities either in PE firms or corporate strategy for industrial companies (ideally within space industry)
Got it. If I'm being honest, I think the latter will be a better fit, unless your background magically resonates with a heavily specialized PE firm.
Your age (sorry) will be challenging as you have great work experience, but PE associate roles will be the best fit (still tough since you lack analyst IB training) and your experience/age is far beyond the standard 24-26 year old associate. Over-qualification is great, except there's implicit bias against older candidates based on life stage, energy levels, etc. and ability to work associate hours at 30+.
You’d likely have to network with smaller funds in target areas. Seen people do it with first time funds but you’re going to take a huge paycut
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