PE/IB internship in Beijing
Hi guys,
I've got 2 internship offers: an IBD offer from China International Capital Corp(CICC, a chinese IB, pay quite well for FT analysts), and one from Cerberus Capital Management Beijing office, but I'm seriously considering which one i should accept.
Given that my ultimate goal is PE firm and Cerberus's Chinese business is small(although it's a great firm), which one is better? Could any of u offer a help? Thanks!
Is there an opportunity to get a FT offer from Cerberus?
I don't know. I got it from connections. And due to this, I don't dare ask so many questions about it, so i'm trying to find someone familiar with this. What im worrying is whether Cerberus BJ office is bad, although it is Cerberus. I'm afraid the pay will be bad because it is the smallest office of Cerberus, even if I get a full-time position there.
Does anyone know about this?
You mention the ultimate goal is PE... is this PE in China (or Hong Kong), or are you flexible or still undecided on where you want to be in the future in terms of location?
If you want to remain in China, I would go with CICC hands down. If you are undecided, Cerberus might be the better choice.
Also, you should consider the culture of both firms. Even though you will be in their Beijing office, Cerberus is still a Western firm, so everyone who works there will be able to speak fluent English. Also, all major decisions that are made there will still need to be approved in New York first. There might be a few senior guys (Managing Directors, Principals) who are American. I'm pretty sure the head honcho will be a White guy.
I have a friend who works at CICC, and if you go there it is going to be a totally Chinese environment (which is not necessarily a bad thing, you just need to be prepared for it).
Since it's only an internship, you should choose the option that will put you in a good position to be successful. (e.g. If you don't have Chinese language skills and you go to CICC, then you will be limited in the ways you can contribute, etc.)
Are you Chinese or of Chinese descent? Do you speak Mandarin?
If your Mandarin is totally fluent and you would like to work in China (or Hong Kong) in the future, then I think CICC is the better choice. Otherwise, I would go with Cerberus.
Good luck.
-Deo et Patriae
Thank you very much for your long comment! I'm a Chinese, so working at CICC is not a problem. However, my ideal is to work in the US, so i'm wondering if the transition from Cerberus Beijing to Cerberus, say, New York, would be possible. If it's not possible, and if Cerberus Beijing (due to its small business size) pays like shit, then I wont go for it.
Hmmm, I see. I do have one data point for this - I know someone who first started working at Cerberus Japan and later transferred to the New York office. So I think this might be possible. It took my friend about 3 years to transfer to New York office.
I don't know what the pay is for Cerberus Beijing, but my friend told me the pay for Cerberus Japan was pretty good and I think Beijing and Tokyo cost of living should be similar (both are really high!), so the pay should also be similar? However, I cannot say for certain.
Did you receive the official offer letter from Cerberus? Usually, the offer letter will say how much the salary is. If there is no official offer letter (which is possible, since you said you got the offer from connections), you can ask HR or someone in Cerberus Beijing how much you can expect for salary? This is a completely reasonable question, since you need to figure out your living expenses, budget, etc., during the internship.
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