Graduating in a couple of weeks with no experience
I'm struggling quite a bit to create a job search strategy and would seriously appreciate any guidance that I can get. I'm a student graduating this month from an absolutely non-target state university in California, with a grade point average in the 3 to 3.5 range. I've never held a job, nor have had any internships, and have mostly lived off of a decent amount of financial aid. I'm a first generation student from an impoverished family for what it's worth, and family issues stemming from this fact have really been draining me overall. This is the reason why I haven't been on my A game, but of course I realize that nonetheless this is an excuse. What's bothering me in particular on top of these drawbacks is the fact that my excel skills are beginner level. I have been a part of my school's investment fund for a few semesters, and this is really the only finance experience that I have; however in all honesty I didn't learn much. I haven't networked in school whatsoever as well. What can I do as of right now? My close peers have recommended for me to apply for bank teller positions and eventually get promoted to a personal banker. Are my dreams of working in asset management unrealistic at this point? I'm just unsure of how to leverage my degree from this point onward; thanks for taking the time to read this and for any guidance offered.
Don't be a bank teller.
Right, however what alternatives are there within finance?
Definitely do not become a bank teller.
Your odds at front office asset management are pretty slim at the moment. Would you be opposed to a middle office/ back office role (risk, operations, compliance)? I wouldn't worry about your Excel skills; if you explain your situation in interviews most employers will shrug it off - that's what training programmes are for, anyways.
So you genuinely had ZERO summer jobs? Really?
Prep for that GMAT bud.
Learn to code (learn Python, SQL, Javascript...all can be learned for free from youtube) then try to get an entry level tech job as a programmer. This will get you a decent salary (~80k) with potential to move up to 150k within a couple years.
I’d be happy to get a back office role as well. I’m sure that with time and dedication there would be ways to transition into more front office roles. What I got from your comments is that the road to finance is still open for someone in my position. I’m in a city without many financial institutions as far as I know, however I’ll look for positions within the entire state of California. Could I get some advice on how to find financial firms with back office roles in particular? Which keywords should I use online when searching? Thanks again to all of you; every single remark and piece of informarion is helping me more understand how to go about creating a career.
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You need to start sending out some emails. Find alumni on linkedin (once you run out of alumni, start going for other non-target alumni nearby) who work in any type of finance job, and email them a polite networking email. You can find examples on here, but make one customized to your story
I'm assuming your resume is pretty blank, and a 3-3.5 is not awesome, but you can get in the door at a lot of places with emails. A few things to consider: first, you need to have your story down COLD. Why no summer internships (what did you do instead? this will be your most asked question), why finance, be able to explain your low GPA, why they should hire you, etc. You need to show a passion and some skill for finance, so if you didn't learn anything in your investments club and it's on your resume, you need to brush up on being able to explain that.
You might be able to start somewhere in an internship-type capacity where there's not a full-time commitment from the company, and you get either a full-time offer from them or you get the needed experience for your resume.
I would not be a bank teller, a 4-6 month gap right now is preferable to taking a really random job like that. Also beginner excel skills are really not a make or break for being hired, you can learn how to use it on the job - just don't put Excel on your resume.
I have no story to be completely honest. I assumed for the longest that a bachelors degree would gaurentee me a job and now I realize that this isn’t true. I genuinely have done nothing for the past however many years, including summers, but attend college. Am I likely to get a job anywhere by simply applying instead of “networking”?
You might get a bank teller type job or similar just from applying around, but it will be infinitely difficult to move out of that into a different finance role unless you get an MBA
I understand the belief that a degree is enough, but you're right in that it's not true. You now need to work with what you have and convince someone you're worth hiring, ie demonstrate passion and a willingness to work hard. Your resume does not show that for itself, so you need to work that much harder to prove it to people - via email, phone, your interview answers, whatever it takes.
I dont understand how coming from an impoverished family is reason not to work. You would think it would be the other way around.. I wouldn't lead with that.
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