College student networking via bloomberg?

Hello, I am a college student in the FT job search for roles in IM/S&T/research in a markets facing role. I have been doing the networking, but feel like it’s not as effective following up on email. I have access to a Bloomberg terminal at my college and got pretty familiar with IB chat this past summer, if you received a cold message from a college student looking to connect what would turn you off from it, and what would actually make you be willing to connect and chat? Obviously having something smart to say, but beyond that.

13 Comments
 

Pulisic69 might hate it, but in my experience, especially if it's not a totally cold reachout, like you went to the same school or something, I have had a MUCH higher conversion rate to actually getting a coffee chat than just email or linkedin

 

nah it comes off hardo, like ok you found me on linkedin and then looked me up on Bloomberg (of all places) in the hopes that you could maximize your chance of a response at the expense of that persons time and attention. 

 

Congratulations braxtonberries, you have learned the one common thing among people: everyone is different. 

Some people will appreciate the bravado whatever, some people like me, dont like it. It's a numbers game. You will get scolded by some, appreciated by others. 

For OP, if you really want to do it, go ahead. 

 

lol definitely don't, especially if the people you're messaging work at an actual bank/financial instituion. Communication through Bloomberg is strictly for work purposes only and is monitored given the amount of sensitive info dealt with. Regardless of that, it won't give people a good impression, they expect outreach/networking messages to go to their linkedin/work email. Imagine they see theyve got an IB on their phone, rush back to their desk to see what it's about, only to realize it's some kid trying to set up a coffee chat lol. Fairly easy way to annoy someone immediately. 

 
Most Helpful

The nice thing about IB is that it acts as a sort of walled garden.  That is you can only be pinged by someone whose employer is paying big dollars to give them access to that terminal. 

One student would be no big deal, and probably have success with it,  but if this got out and became a new recruiting tactic, I would literally tell my Bloomberg sales rep that they need to turn IB off at the college trading lab terminals. 

 

As a graduate seeking first-time role, i can say that everytime i'm being honest and humble to the seniors, they always give me the most respectful and valuable advices, whether here in WSO or any other social media platform or community.

And like @braxtonberrios said above, the best thing is to contact seniors face-to-face while a coffe break, that may sound annoying because he wants to have a BREAK, but just try to have random but interesting conversations not especially related to work, once he appreciates you and your personality, he by himself starts giving you career advices. 

And most important thing, never force yourself to one, no ones likes that.

 

Do you even like trading? There are plenty of other places - both irl and digital - you can go to just have fun and chat about markets. It's a very nerdy discipline if you can see through the façade,

When in doubt, use more peanut butter
 

Sapiente voluptatibus sit placeat reprehenderit et nihil nesciunt. Qui voluptas est sit enim facilis aperiam est. Doloribus architecto quia soluta et accusantium veniam et. Voluptatibus qui eum laudantium impedit eos.

Facere incidunt accusantium aliquid ut. Nobis autem delectus non voluptatibus eveniet numquam. Ipsum sed ut eius et voluptatem eaque.

Laboriosam praesentium omnis ex consequatur repellat quasi est aspernatur. Id eos aut quia dolor. Labore sint qui natus iusto eius.

Nostrum nihil quasi dolor quia in fugit odio. Voluptatum nostrum minus sunt est quia atque assumenda.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (65) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”