What to do? Stuck in my Job
Hey Guys,
I'm in a jam and in need of serious help/mentor-ship
It seems my career in Finance has come to and end. This all began when my offer to Lazard got rescinded in 2009-2010 during the financial crisis. After I lost that gig, I didn't have any internships to take on and no experience so I took an Internship at UBS for wealth management as it would be better than nothing. I graduated at 24 from a NON-Target in NYC. Shortly after I spent the next year interviewing and networking to no avail and always getting "it came down to you and someone else" eventually I got fed up and gave up. I took a back office gig at a BB and here we are 5 years later. I'm pigeon holed and my career is slowing coming to an end. There is no growth or opportunities and the job is for entry -level college kids, think performance and calculation related type of work. One would think you can leverage that into any job, but no one wants someone without relevant experience. A few years back I had a chance to move banks and into FX, but passed on that. I've been applying non-stop but unable to get call-backs or interviews for stuff I really want. The application is literally going into a black-hole. I've had calls with HR that went well, but once the recruiting team saw my resume- they probably threw it in the trash. My current job is easy and I can do it with my eyes closed, but I do not see myself doing it for the next X years. My worst fear is to become a lifer there...
Ideally I would like to do something in credit/fixed income and down to financial analysis and modeling type of work. I know I can do the job, but I can't even get an opportunity to present myself.
At this point what are my options, I've had past coworkers go into Law, Tax or B-School and able to land a front office GiG. I'm 30 now and I might be considered "too old" for this type of work now. My fear stems that if i go to B-school and drop 150k it still wont open doors and that will be for nothing. I know I would need to do full time which would mean I would need to quit my job as that opens the door to recruiting . At this point I'm lost and thinking if I should just move down south and just aim for a corporate gig or is an MBA the answer. I can keep applying for jobs but there is no guarantee on anything..Do I keep networking?
What would you do if you were in my shoes and what are my realistic options, the clock is ticking and I'm getting older, this career is getting stale. I've already been there too long and this looks very bad!
Thank You
Hey WhiteKnightDD, what a lonely thread. I'm here since nobody responded ...so maybe one of these discussions will help:
Hope that helps.
First off, I hope someone in the community comes in with relevant advice for you as I may not be the best person, but I do have some thoughts for you:
You haven't pursued any additional education since you've been on your path. I couldn't advise you on what to pursue, ie: MBA or MS, but you can't gain without taking any risks. So if an MBA is the typical education for people who have the job you want, then you'll need to take a risk eventually. Plus, you'll get to network and maybe do an internship and add something new to your resume.
Find people in the roles you want (check LinkedIn and job postings) and look at their backgrounds and education.
Try to network with those people (maybe lucky enough to find previous alumni) and buy them a coffee or jump on a call. The goal would be to get advice from them and the insider's scoop on what you can do.
I'm a bit in a similar situation and age than you. I spent 7 years with good experience but have no grad degree to boast and worked at small no-name shops.
It's tough but don't give up. We're not old enough just yet!
Thank you for the kind words.
Updates.
I have middle office BB int next week think PL and closer to trading desk.
Also my colleague got some IBD interviews with no MBA
Maybe MBA isn't the path after all!
If you get into a T15 MBA (which I think you would with good stats) you'll probably get banking - up to you to decide if the $150K is worth coming out earning $200K plus
My buddy just took a break from his MBA at NYU- he said he saw no added value and his peers were dull...and I was motivated by him.. :/
28k a semester is pricey!
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