Athletes in M&A?

Non-target former athlete here.

-Keep on networking. Try second-degree connections (aka ask the connections you've made if there's anyone else they think would be useful for you meeting - this likely depends on how close to those connections you are). If you find other D1 football players from your conference in banking that is another way to make connections outside your schools alumni base - if you shoot them a cold email I'd say they're probably pretty likely to respond.

-Treat every phone-call, coffee, etc as an interview. You need to come across as polished/ready for the job anytime you interact with someone.

Remember, all it takes is landing one interview. You have the grades and the EC's that you should be able to land some first rounds if you can network enough.

Question on behalf of someone who is basically my younger brother - he will be walking on to a top D1 Basketball program. What is the ability to get internships like? Have you found yourself completely unavailable during summers? What do your coaches think of getting internship experience? Or is it all about the football?

This may come across as a blanket statement, but whatever. We love athletes. They historically have been competitive, are mentally tough, have implied social skills and understand how to work on a team towards a goal.

Coming from someone who sees over 1,000 resumes a year, a D-1 athlete with a strong GPA is a major standout from the 975 others with a 3.9-4.0 and a hobbies section with the B.S. "enjoys the outdoors" statement (I love calling people out on this, btw).

Do we only hire athletes? Definitely not. We hire people from all backgrounds, but we will definitely take a look if we see the collegiate athletics on the resume.

Here you go playa:

http://prkln.com/home-frame-2/

Current D-I student athlete here, at a medium sized non-target private university. I was recently offered a summer analyst position at a MM firm for the summer, and getting there was a grind. As a sophomore, you should definitely be networking with all the investment bankers you can find that attended your university, and are willing to speak with you. Prior to this offer, I had some great conversations with some alumni from my school that managed to break into the industry, which helped incredibly when it came to real interviews.

Further, during the interviews, it was mentioned more than a few times on how impressed they were that I played a division one sport, while managing to maintain a great GPA (3.98), and participating in different activities at school (a few clubs, and some volunteer work). So, as long as you keep up doing well in school, keep networking, manage to get some interviews, and of course prepare well for them, you should be alright as the D-I athlete portion really sets you apart from other candidates. Best of luck man!

There was a kicker on this website once... my only advice: don't be like that guy. I'm sure someone can find the post.

You play football for a D-I State School. Your school has an alumni network. Reach out to the alumni network and start networking with them, other D-I football players across all conferences who are in finance (because they know what you went through), and talk to your coaches. The last one seems out of place, but tell them that you want to get into finance and ask if they either know people or can put you in contact with students they coached who have gone on to work in M&A. I can't stress that one enough - as long as your coach has a good relationship with his previous players and coaching staff, use that to your advantage. You never know where you will find connections to help you. The D-I Football player aspect sells itself (Work Ethic, Managing Stress, Etc.), so it's more important to get yourself in front of people.

Without knowing what D-I school you're attending and whether its D-I FBS or D-I FCS, I can't say anything about the reputation, but if it doesn't have a recruiting presence on campus, start reaching out to the regional banks. If you play for a school in the MAC, for example, look at the banks in Minnesota and Chicago. If you're at a school in the PAC-12 (ex. Washington State, U. Washington, UC-Boulder) reach out to the banks in California. Or look at who your school has a history of Non-Conference rivalries with and look at banks in those areas.

Just as a word of advice and concern for any organized program and internship that runs the length of the summer, I would be forward about the summer practice. I don't know what others here would suggest you do, but that is a huge commitment, and depending on your school, can start anywhere from late July to early August. That may be an issue but I don't know for certain.

It's extremely easy. There's a guy I'm friends with in my class who was an NFL player prior to attending my program. He landed a gig at a top IB, out of a non M7 program, with relatively little effort.

Here's one thing you need to keep in mind if you're a D1 athlete: most of the people you will talk to in banking fit the preppy white person mold, which means most of them LOVE talking about and watching sports. If you are a D1 athlete they will already think you're cool because of that which is half the battle.