Advice for an University Student.
Hi all,
I'm currently studying at HSG in Switzerland (Major in Business Administration) and thinking of getting ahead. I have a couple of questions:
1) I'm not sure what I want to pursue in the future but I want to do a couple of internships beforehand. I was thinking of interning at a BB Investment Bank or a PE Firm in a gap year between my Bachelor's and Master's degree. What would you recommend?
2) are there any courses that someone can take to have an easier life as an analyst in the future?
3) Would you recommend for me to pursue a Ph.D. in finance?
Any advice is appreciated!
Some (brief) answers to your questions (based on my views and personal experience, some people may think otherwise):
1) I took a gap-year between BSc and MSc and interned at 2 BBs in continental Europe and it was one of the best decisions I could make, as both internships made my profile much more competitive for London SA recruiting (which nowadays is getting extremely tough)
2) Most things will be learned on the job. That being said, try to take as many corporate finance-related classes as you can, as they'll be the most useful once you start FT
3) P.h.Ds (at least in continental Europe) aren't a good path to the corporate world, so I would suggest avoiding them unless you're 100% you want to get into academia
Thank you for your response!
I'm interested in a possible career in M&A or PE. (Based on recommendations of Family and own research). Where would you intern at if you were in my shoes?
Also, would it be possible to know where you interned at?
I'm not sure if things in Switzerland are different, but for other countries in continental Europe, given the abundance of master graduates, finding an internship as a BSc student is gonna be tough. I managed to secure my first BB internship (not gonna disclose names for the sake of anonymity) because I already had 6 months in a PE shop during undergrad (that I got after hundreds of applications with no response).
To get to the point, everyone has to start somewhere, try to get a "recognized" shop (it's gonna be your first internship, who cares if that's in M&A, PE or wherever) and go from there. Don't start with the "BB or nothing mentality" as you'll probably be very disappointed. Everyone starts somewhere, and you can only go up!
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