Muslim at Columbia - Am I cooked?
****For context, I did NOT participate in the 2024 protests at Columbia**** But I have a very Muslim name and am currently recruiting for 2026 IB Summer Analyst positions. I don’t want people to see my name and then assume I took part in these major protests and then ding me. What do you guys think?
Edit: I really do appreciate you all taking the time to reply to this thread, but I think we’ve swerved from the point a bit and it is my fault for not being specific. I understand that the hayday of race based discrimination in finance are largely behind us, but my question was specific to the Columbia microcosm. Last year’s nationally-controversial and consequential protests at Columbia were deeply dividing, and I was more-so wondering if my Muslim name, when evaluated alongside being at Columbia, would be held against me—even though I didn’t participate in any protests or counter-protests.
Take a deep breath. You’re overthinking. Instead of worrying about what you can’t change, worry about what you can.
Well he can change his name
So could the Jews.
Yet they keep theirs. "Moshe", "Alon", "Barak", "Yitzak" are not exactly good-old American names!
So I'd say it's not an issue.
Let's. Dance.
I remember reading a year or two ago on here that Muslims cannot put debt on another company or advise to put debt. So how can you be a banker?
Regarding IB, Muslims can work in ECM and M&A advisory provided that they don’t work on the financing of the acquisition. Leaves open ECM and M&A at boutiques as possible options.
Also a good number of Muslims don’t abide by the rules around interest since it makes functioning in society in the west extremely difficult.
I thought most Muslim banks just use sukuk when needing debt anyway? Which is essentially just a debt instrument that isn’t technically debt…
How can you be a good M&A banker if leverage isn't being factored into your LBO or strategic leverage acquisition analyses?
You know, don’t you, that the world is full of people who don’t pay attention to what their religion requires or forbids?
Are you applying for an oil and gas position in Houston? If not, you're fine
Why would that matter? If anything O&G is the perfect place for that name....
No southerners in oil and gas hate muslims
This one made me laugh lol
If you're Persian, you're fine.
If not, I don't know. I've only met Persians in New York.
And they're not actually Muslim, even if their name suggests it, in my experience.
No offense or anything.
Lol super interesting - are there many Persians on Wall Street?
Not OP btw - I’m Persian at a BB in London and there are only a few here in the city
I've just worked with a few in LA and now in NY. My VP was Persian, he was insanely smart.
They are all really smart/hard working in my experience, so it left a good impression on me.
Keep in mind a LOT of the Persians here have "Muslim-sounding" names but are Jewish. Some of course, are not Jewish.
Muslim who successfully recruited in Texas of all places. You’ll be fine for recruiting. Despite how the internet makes it seem most people in the professional world are normal people who don’t make generalizations about a group of people. Just be yourself and make sure you can mesh well during networking.
My background has never came up ever in an interview and I’d find it extremely unprofessional for someone to probe about my background or religious beliefs. There a ton of Muslims in the industry, many of which are in leadership roles.
I think I know who your are your name starts with an A
Lmao nope
I've recruited more than 300 people in my career. I grew a startup to >250 employees and was actively engaged in recruiting for IB/finance for a decade before that. Never once in my career has someone's ethnic sounding name (regardless of where they are from) or possible preferred religion ever come up in candidate reviews. The backlash against DEI has put a lens on this, I guess, but if anything that should help the OP. Show up to the interview and be normal, and you will be fine if you're competent and willing to do the work.
Thank you! I appreciate your insight; yeah, honestly in retrospect I was a little foolish for being worried enough to make a WSO post. But, with the Columbia protests, I wanted to be sure that alums or people in the industry wouldn’t write me off because of a perceived attachment of me with the protests (again I was not part of the protests, I wasn’t even on campus at the time).
Publish a super pro-Israel article in the Columbia newspaper - that should do it
im muslim with the most muslim name ever and landed pretty good seats in recruiting. i dont think people in finance care about that lol they all raise their funds from the musim arab gulf countries lmao. at the end of the day, merit trumps all, especially in America. you should focus on being really really good at what you do and building meaningful relationships with great people.
Literally nobody cares, just do interview prep and get on your networking grind.
Lmao nobody cares
Also these days being a Muslim might almost be an advantage if you have some grasp of Arabic considering all the funds are raising money from Gulf Arabs
Troll post
Genuinely not trolling. Please see post edit
Arab Muslim doing IB in NY, but know some doing it in TX, LA, SF, and Chicago. Honestly man, no one gives a shit.
Just focus on yourself and no one will care.
If anything, I remember Persian (Iranian) Jews were beating the living daylights out of Pro-Palestinian protestors at UCLA, USC and Columbia.
Doubt it will be an issue even if you were protesting.
The Jews were attacking the protestors? What fantasyland are you living in?
Persian Jews, who are very successful and intelligent (like most Persians I meet), were unfortunately attacking Pro-Palestinian protestors at UCLA, USC and Columbia. Especially at UCLA.
Wish the zoomers would quit asking if they're "cooked"
I don't even know what that means but you're absolutely "cooked" for saying it
Yes
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