Breaking into BB from engineering

Hey guys, I am going into my final year in Electrical Engineering at McGill University with a GPA of 3.57. I am also doing minors in Finance and Economics. I will be interning as an SA in Credit Suisse this summer which I got hooked up though. By the time of graduation I would have finished courses in Basic Corporate Finance, Investments, Derivatives, Applied Corporate finance etc.

I will be targeting some BB and PE firms upon graduation. I am also considering doing masters in MFin in one of the top schools if I don't secure a job. So what are my chances of getting 1st round interviews with these firms. And are my credentials good enough to get into say the Financial Engineering program in Stanford/Princeton/Columbia. I have decent extra curriculars. I am an active member of the McGill Investment Club and I play a lot of intramural sports. I have another year to build up on these though. It would be great to help me out.

 
Best Response

You've got a major in EE, a minor in finance, and a minor in economics. Not to mention a BB SA internship (we'll consider CS a BB just for argument sake and for the idiot who's going to smart off 'CS isn't a BB'). What are you trying to go back to school for?

I'm all for getting another degree if it's going to open doors for you, but if you've got the job you want (esp in this market) fuck more school. Seriously, see how the summer goes, work your ass off, decide if IB or S&T is more to your liking, and get the hell out of school.

Maybe I'm just not understanding your question though.

 

Thanks, the only reason I am considering Masters if I don't secure a full time job. The thing is with me being Canadian, I was guessing it would be harder to land a job in NYC under the current markets. If I were doing a Masters in say, NYU I would have a higher chance of getting employed there. My current CS internship is in India and I am not intending on working there in the future.

I have an another question regarding S&T. Is it better to do an MFE or MBA to become a succesful trader. I am not really interested in being a salesmen so I guess a more mathematically oriented program would be better ?

 
kaush949:
I will be interning as an SA in Credit Suisse this summer which I got hooked up though.

I will be targeting some BB and PE firms upon graduation. I am also considering doing masters in MFin in one of the top schools if I don't secure a job. So what are my chances of getting 1st round interviews with these firms.

Your chances are golden. You've already done 90% of the work in getting a SA offer. These days, that's just as hard as getting the full-time position. Who gives a fuck if you got hooked up though. Chances are so did 75% of the other clowns working alongside you this summer. Keep it to yourself and work your ass off.

At this point, the FT offer really is yours to lose. Just be dependable, work as late as you need to, and don't fall asleep in the middle of meetings and you'll be fine. The offer will come.

 

India?? kay well that changes things. You're definitely going to have to interview with US firms this fall. If you can't land a FT gig then another year or 2 of school is your only option. It'd be much more difficult if you were going to school in India, but since you're in Canada working in NY shouldn't be that big of a hurdle. You'll need to do some networking, although I'm sure you can find some CS ppl in NY (HR might be able to help after your SA is done).

I'd advise against getting the MBA at this point in your career, as it won't add any value. You're most likely still going to have to enter as an analyst (MBA really won't mean much w/o the relevant prior work experience).

The MFE is really your best option. From what you've posted as far as stats go, nothing should keep you from being competitive for the MFE programs. The programs you listed are all top programs and will be very competitve though.

 

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