Graduating semester LATE

Hi, guys!

I am currently a sophomore going into my junior year, and I am wondering how it would look if I graduate in December instead of May. Here is the situation: I received an internship offer at a VERY WELL KNOWN (government) place. However, this internship is in the fall, not summer. Since the internship is in another state/district (D.C.), I won't be able to attend school in the fall semester. Since I would be graduating in December 2016 instead of May 2016, in terms of IBD recruiting, it classifies me as a sophomore, even though I will be a junior.

I really want to take the internship, but if it hurts me in terms of recruiting, I won't do it. What are your thoughts? Should I do it? Any repercussions? Any other insight you may have, I greatly appreciate it.

 

This should be pretty easy. I assume you will put this on your resume. I would make sure to highlight that when talking to recruiters. It also wouldn't hurt to talk this over with one of the career counselors or recruiting counselors at your school.

"Everybody needs money. That's why they call it money." - Mickey Bergman - Heist (2001)
 

I may be off base on this, but if it's a full-time internship there might be a way to get academic credit for it, especially if it's unpaid. Either way, I just can't possibly imagine taking a semester off to get real-world experience would really HURT you in terms of attractiveness as a candidate.

The only major issue I could foresee is a timeline issue with regards to on-campus recruiting (if it's in the Spring, I'm not actually sure when they do IBD OCR). To that end, I'd talk to your career services counselor about whether or not you can participate in Spring OCR your "super-senior" year even though you will have technically graduated already. If IBD recruiting is in the Fall anyway, then it's a total non-issue and you'd just get the benefit of a very long break between graduation and working.

 
Best Response

Keep in mind this is only one perspective, but I would probably not take the internship. If you are keen on IBD recruiting, I'm not sure how relevent this internship would be. Time is one of the most important (and expensive) elements of shaping one's career and I find it difficult to sacrifice a year in this particular case. As an interviewer, I would have a hard time wrapping my head around the choice of delaying your graduation to pursue a government internship. If others share the same point of view then it's possible that taking this internship could actually hurt you in an interview.

However, it's all about how you spin your story. If you are able to make your point in a way that makes sense and doesn't raise questions, then you can choose as you see fit and hopefully still end up in the same position.

Some other thoughts: What is the next best option to this internship? Is there something else you can do to increase your candidacy that is not so expensive (i.e. time)? Where do you currently stand in recruiting (networking, grades, etc.) and what is the biggest gap that you need to improve upon ahead of recruiting?

 

Thanks for your responses, overandout, notthehospitalER, and MD8. Just to clarify: this would be an internship during the fall semester of 2014, it would be unpaid, and yes, overandout, you're right; I could try and get academic credit for the internship. I would only be classified as a sophomore by investment banks is because I would have two summers before I would graduate in December of 2016.

notthehospitalER: thank you for your input.

MD8:This internship is relevant to finance. Actually, a current GS IBD analyst did this exact internship, so they have been a great resource. Currently, in my opinion, the only "gap" or issue with my resume is my school. I go to a non-target, state school, so there is no OCR. I do have a great network. I've had Super Days at 3 BB's (GS/MS/CS), but, unfortunately, I have not received an offer. Not sure what else I could do, but in terms of name brand recognition, this place can't be beat. I might sound like a douchebag here, but everybody in the WORLD knows what this place is.

 

Good stuff. I think you can take it as long as you have a story that makes sense from the perspective of the banker sitting across from you. Right now, I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around losing a year for a non-IBD internship. But as long as you feel comfortable getting this message across then go for it :)

On another note, I wouldn't worry about not having received an offer at those 3 banks if you were a sophomore (no one gets those offers until junior year unless they are a client or MD referral).

 

From experience, summer internships usually require for you to be a part-time student which depends on your school in units.

If you finish in say Winter 2017, it will be more difficult to find summer internships for Summer 2018 if they require you to be a part-time student to intern there.

There are A LOT of internships that do not require you to be a currently enrolled student, as long as you barely graduated, so it's not like you don't have a chance at any summer internships.

 

Lets say i end up graduating with the degree in 'liberal arts' instead of economics.. you think hr would get all pissy that my internship --> ft offer were both conditional on me attaining an economics degree? i obviously have a valid explanation, but a degree in econ is vastly different than one in LA.. also i doubt I will be with this company forever, so settling on the latter degree may come back to bite me down the road

 

From everything I read it seems almost impossible to lateral into banking from the aforementioned fields without going to business school first. The only reason I'm even considering an extra semester is because one of the directors at a BB whose superday I made it to (without an offer in the end) suggested this course of action.

 

Is it possible to do internships in the interim before another round of interviews? I guess it could work if you filled up that semester with a ton of relevant experience / networking....

I have to admit I didn't start out in those positions, but I have seen people do it but it's extremely difficult and probably even more so in these markets.

If you go to a target school and there are some decent finance shops around to give internships (even non-paid)...then I don't see it couldn't work...

 

the problem is..assuming you are in LA. The offices is small small that they will recognize the person when they see your resume again in the pile.

Given the limited offices, if you got dinged the first round, most likely they won't invite you up again when it comes to SA / FT

If you got dinged the 2nd round, you might want to hope you were the runner-up choice in that superday, or else you are not getting another shot

 

Why couldnt you try and get another summer internship if you stayed.another semester? Value is subjected upon that in the actor. Is time lost, plus the 25k, worth a summer internship and, IMHO, an easier chance of getting an offer? I dont know how easy you can get a intern interview from your school, that would make a difference if you have to network anyways.

 

Lateraling into the bulge bracket or elite boutique out of those industries you have offers in will be undeniably hard, but it's pretty realistic to lateral into a MM shop like Jefferies, Piper, Oppenheimer, Baird, etc. You just absolutely need to expand your geography a bit. If you're in LA, you need to consider SF and Silicon Valley and their usually tech- and healthcare-oriented practices.

As far as taking a summer analyst position after your senior year - if you actually do get one, it shouldn't be an issue afterwards. I know plenty of people who had to do that in '09 given that the full-time recruiting season was so anemic in the Fall of '08, and many of them found jobs immediately after finishing up those internships in August / September banks started to hire more. Of course it's not the same as locking down a full-time offer 8 months in advance, but in the end I would argue these guys benefited more b/c of the added experience they received that summer. To think of it, you don't even need to do another semester if you can graduate now. Just continue to recruit next year like the rest of the next year's class; one of your selling points will be that you can start ASAP.

 

Regarding location, I'm by no means confining myself to LA. As long as I end up in LA/SF/Chicago/NY I'd be happy.

Regarding just going through recruitment with everyone else and not enrolling, you need to be an enrolled student to participate in OCR

 

At my school - since not every graduated student got a job by graduation - you were allowed to use the OCR website (and apply for jobs) even after graduating, for a fee. So I'd inquire about that at your school, as it doesn't make sense to restrict the alumni who are looking for a job AFTER graduation, like most normal people.

Not to mention that many people showed up to on-campus info-sessions from other schools and tried to make connections that way.

 

Consequatur sint delectus iste earum suscipit aperiam mollitia. Mollitia et ducimus hic repellendus. Distinctio facere tempore qui vel illum nostrum. Quia non velit nesciunt nisi esse.

Praesentium et et optio consequatur facere facere laborum qui. Laboriosam repudiandae rerum voluptate ea ut ullam fuga. Similique earum quod molestiae sint itaque assumenda dolorum. Dolores officia sint pariatur id. Ut tenetur cumque enim.

Quis eligendi ut explicabo culpa magni reprehenderit. Voluptatem quia reiciendis soluta soluta velit odit ab. Sunt ea consequatur molestiae consequatur fugiat. Omnis accusamus neque ullam sapiente.

Quos cum consequuntur ratione sapiente unde ipsa velit. Facere quos vero esse totam reiciendis ut. Hic voluptas expedita tenetur itaque nemo facere. Reprehenderit ut ea et quis amet. Officia excepturi voluptas amet ea vitae nihil soluta pariatur. Eos quis consequatur voluptatum atque cumque et accusantium.

 

Perspiciatis repudiandae provident iste ea eum aut voluptatem. Quo minima laudantium qui aut qui. Quas voluptate iste veritatis a dolor dolorem.

Quae quidem aut excepturi sed repudiandae quis. Fugit dolorem dicta eaque vero. Porro eaque earum quae et voluptas ut. Sed voluptas quis aut cumque nam et aut et.

Excepturi minus laboriosam corrupti. Eligendi corrupti doloremque qui perspiciatis hic molestiae ipsum est. Nihil id qui laborum nulla officiis accusantium quo. Quis eaque enim voluptatem inventore nihil praesentium quia quia. Animi ducimus atque culpa iusto illum placeat.

Voluptas eligendi in autem qui. Doloribus sed accusamus molestiae dolorum aut ut suscipit. Qui earum excepturi aspernatur porro eum consequatur. Quasi quia quisquam et iusto aut assumenda.

 

Voluptatem velit eaque incidunt velit nisi. Quis maiores molestiae sunt. Non culpa saepe exercitationem in fugiat soluta aut. Voluptas at accusamus itaque est.

Qui necessitatibus similique nostrum et. Porro libero eum placeat accusantium magni tempore dicta. Et suscipit sit minima et qui recusandae.

Omnis voluptatum ut neque nulla voluptatem accusamus quos. Omnis hic porro id est placeat. Accusamus et ea labore quia maiores cupiditate voluptatem. Voluptatibus distinctio aspernatur qui est voluptatem.

Sed eos eos accusamus nihil. Et nostrum delectus quibusdam. Quis ut expedita aspernatur eos provident. Facilis exercitationem sit nam nulla. Non delectus aut modi culpa qui. Nesciunt architecto est eius facere itaque.

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. (++) 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (13) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (202) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (144) $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

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...”