How to Network from Non-Target

Hey everyone,
Aspiring monkey from a super non target with a 3.6 GPA completely lost on how to network. I applied to lots of internships for this summer and completely struck out. Obviously the fact that I am from a school that people have probably never heard of doesn't help, but I see all these success stories from non targets on here so I'm not sure how I couldn't even get a first round interview. I made some feeble attempts at networking last year but didn't have much luck. There are zero alums from my school in finance, Linkedin won't let you message people you aren't connected with, I tried calling HR at some firms to get email addresses but HR told me they are not allowed to do that. If anyone could give me some pointers, I would really appreciate it.

 
Best Response

I'm from a non-target as well, but ran out of alumni to contact after talking to about 20 or so people. So I asked them to connect me with anyone as well as randomly connected with people on Linkedin.

You don't need to message them on Linkedin, but include your note in the message that they see when you invite them to connect.

There's also a lot of different ways to network as well. Think of every chance as a networking opportunity. I was once flying on a plan back to my city from New York when I started to speak to the person sitting next to me. Turns out, he was an SVP of corporate strategy at IBM who happened to have friends at various Wall Street firms. Anything can happen, you just have to keep hustling.

I'm still trying to break into a BB/EB/MM SA position for next year, but I think I've done well thus far with what I had.

 

I'm in the same boat here, just about out of LinkedIn invitations to send. However, I have 2 contacts I am very close with who I am going to see if they can connect me to anyone else.

If they work at regional firms look at the website and see if another MD or employee has an email listed and follow the same format for your contacts name,

 

Reach out to alumni from (target/semi-target) schools in your region.

>Incoming Ash Ketchum, Pokemon Master >Literally a problem, solve for both X and Y, please and thank you. >Hugh Myron: "Are there any guides on here for getting a top girlfriend? Think banker/lawyer/doctor. I really don't want to go mid-tier"
 

If you initiate contact by stating that both of you are from the same town or state, but different schools, that already creates a few commonalities. Same weather, sports teams, recreational activities, etc.

Then ask how they moved from State X to finance in State Y.

>Incoming Ash Ketchum, Pokemon Master >Literally a problem, solve for both X and Y, please and thank you. >Hugh Myron: "Are there any guides on here for getting a top girlfriend? Think banker/lawyer/doctor. I really don't want to go mid-tier"
 

THis is what I did:

Linkedin mobile app on iphone = search [school name] [company name] or [school name] [position] or [nearby city] [position], etc. etc.

On the mobile app, you are able to invite people to connect with you without having any sort of relation at all. All you gotta do it tap on the little plus (+) sign next to people's names.

I did this while in class, riding the bus, waiting for my food at a restaurant, while eating lunch, etc. etc... pretty much whenever I felt like it.

Each morning I get like 15-30 notifications of people accepting my connection request. This is when I hop onto my laptop and message them with a brief intro and ask them to have a quick chat/meet up to learn more about their position and get advice. About 25% of them would respond, half would set up a time to chat.

I NEVER directly asked for help or a referral, only advice on what I can do to improve my chances and what their background was. 90% of the people I met with/talked with OFFERED to pass on my resume. About 1/4 of them translated to interview invites which is pretty dang good if you go to a non-target.

good luck!

 

I am struggling with this as well currently. I go to a non target (Penn State/Pitt/Rutgers) entering my sophomore year. What I've found that works the best is to start with alumni that work in IB through linkedin. Connect with them, and get their email from their page. Shoot them a very short email saying Who you are, where you found their info, and ask them if they would be willing to speak for 10-15 minutes on the phone with you. High success rate with alumni, haven't moved onto random people yet.

 

I'm a non-core at a BB: The single biggest thing I did to improve my network (in addition to the linkedin / email / phone BS) was actually taking trips to NYC to try to meet people. It took me a year of trying to break in before I figured this out, but I CANNOT overstate the importance of actually getting in front of people.

 

@_KrK , the key to success is persistence. There are a ton of smart people out there vying for Wall Street's attention. However, few people have heard of them, even fewer know of their abilities. These applicants have the smarts, but not the drive or tenacity to place themselves in front of recruiters/full timers and demand an opportunity to prove themselves.

Work hard, get outside your comfort zone in terms of being proactive, and your opportunities will improve. See FinesseHunter Best of luck.

>Incoming Ash Ketchum, Pokemon Master >Literally a problem, solve for both X and Y, please and thank you. >Hugh Myron: "Are there any guides on here for getting a top girlfriend? Think banker/lawyer/doctor. I really don't want to go mid-tier"
 

I went to a non-target that (at the time) had no alumni in banking other than two at "no-name" boutiques. I would find people on LinkedIn. Analysts and associates were usually the best to connect with as they are still young enough to remember how tough breaking into banking is, but that does not mean that you should completely ignore senior bankers (after all, only a senior banker could walk into HR and guarantee you an interview). After you identify a few people at a bank, find the bank's email format (search Google or WSO). Email a few people (Tuesdays at 10:00 AM was my time, but I doubt it matters). 80-90% will probably not reply, so follow up after a week and then leave it at that. After two to three months pass, try to meet them for coffee. Follow up one last time a month before recruiting starts.

WSO and M&I have networking guides too. I have only used WSO's (several years ago) and would buy it again. Feel free to PM me if you need any more help. Breaking in from a non-target is definitely tough, but doable.

 

You're going through what most all non targets have to go through. Best place to learn how to improve your situation is by reading relevant articles, lots of good networking stuff, including answers to your specific questions.

 

Considering you are looking more to expand your network and gain advice, than for a specific internship/job opportunity, I would not recommend going out to HR or random people you email from a boutique web site. Without a connection or a motive other than advice, you will get very little, if any, quality responses - simply put, people are busy, and won't invest a ton of time into someone they have absolutely no connection to.

Instead, after you have exhausted your immediate alumni contacts, I would use LinkedIn or another social networking site to leverage those contacts into other contacts. If your friend, contact, alum, etc, knows a banker who works at bank X, reach out to that person - now you've got a common connection and you aren't completely out of the blue. Additionally, reach out directly to your current contacts and check to see if there is anyone else that they know in another group, another team, another field, etc, that you can get in touch with to answer a few more questions and provide you with a bit more advice. If your contacts know you pretty well, they shouldn't have a problem with that at all. The key here is the connection. If you can point to any connection at all with someone you stand a much better shot of getting some sort of response than if you are completely out of the blue. Look through your current network to expand your network, then comb through the alumni database again - even contacts that you have met at info sessions, etc can be leveraged if you've kept up with them - if not, get back in touch, and build the relationship from there. It's a tough road, but it is definitely possible. Good luck.

 

Thanks for the advice. I have one more question though... would it be appropriate to message people through linkedin, even if the only connection we have to each other is that we are both a part of the "XXX Alumni" group? He/She may not reply, but is it worth a shot?

 

a friend of mine used to do that... the results are 1/50..and sometimes they may get annoyed with you. I agree with BankonBanking... try to find a common connection

 

I found networking in Consulting a lot more difficult than networking with Traders and Bankers.

I was interested in primarily IB and then Mgt Consulting. I ended up landing an IB SA position through my network, but I didnt even land 1 consulting interview at MBB.

 

I've had a couple people send me messages on LinkedIn that led to more discussion over email or the phone. At my MBB there is an established way to recommend candidates and they take recs seriously, sometimes even guaranteeing a first round. However, I have to be convinced that the kid is a rockstar. Im not going to recommend someone who I think might just barely make it, I have to be convinced that you would blow the interviewers away. Keep that in mind when writing your messages.

 

There are no career fairs - Bain and BCG aren't setting up shop at some random event with Rutgers kids. Family friends are far and away your best bet, with alumni of your college a distant second. For alumni, they're most helpful if you knew them in college (though it's a death knell if they didn't like you).

I'm not as keen on LinkedIn as most, unless your LinkedIn connections are people you know in real life or are just one degree removed from (i.e. you have a mutual friend). If you have no real connections, it's a better option than cold-calling (which, at the big firms at least, will only get you to a receptionist and will definitely not help you), but it's a little bit like online dating - for better or worse, a lot of people that you send messages to will assume that something is wrong with you (or your background) if your only way to get introduced to firms is through the internet.

To build on PowerPointJockey's point, consultants are usually pretty reluctant to recommend people unless they're 100% sold on that person as a top candidate. So if someone offers to take you through a practice, prepare thoroughly so you wow them. And if you're getting lukewarm signals from someone, don't waste their time or yours; if they don't really want to recommend you, no amount of persistence is going to change that, and your energy is better spent finding other people to talk to.

One of those lights, slightly brighter than the rest, will be my wingtip passing over.
 

I come from a non target also you best bet is family friends and alumni. I have had a lot of success at alumni networking events through school. I would also use LinkedIn to contact alumni; most are pretty open in helping a current student.

 

Thanks for the response Whiskey.

I'm working pretty standard banking hours.

I have been reaching out to them through my immediate network, alumni network, and LinkedIn.

I haven't really been able to utilize cold-calling or cold-emailing much as I'm not sure how to find the correct contacts. Thus far, I have not received any replies from cold-emailing.

And thanks, that actually didn't occur to me since I'm still working on Friday.

 

Follow up on your original emails. Over half the time, your email goes unanswered not because someone chooses not to help you, but because you caught them when: - they were absolutely jammed and couldn't be bothered with it - they were off the desk, saw it on their Blackberry, decided to answer it when at their computer again, and never did - actually wanted to respond but got distracted - wanted to see if you actually wanted to connect with them in particular and would follow up

That last one is key. A surprising number of people will not respond unless you send more than one email. They know how the game is played, they know what you want from the start, and if you want it badly enough, you ought to be willing to do more than send a blast email that 45 other people are going to get various insignificantly edited versions of.

If you've exhausted your network, your only real options are to try to find inventive ways to get responses from people already within your network or ways to get people not currently in your network to help you anyway.

I am permanently behind on PMs, it's not personal.
 

I wanted to provide an update to this thread, and keep searching for advice/suggestions/people looking to connect.

About two weeks down the line, I have reached out to nearly 150 alumni or referred contacts. I have received varied responses, with some people adamant about helping me or confident that I will stand a good chance in landing an interview/interviews. However, I still don't feel confident that I will have people helping me getting my foot in the door. Does anyone have suggestions on how to ask for this?

 

FailedPrayer, Thank you for the reponse.

I have exhausted my resources, including LinkedIn (some are even pushing the envelope). How should I follow through with the contacts I already spoke with to ensure that my resume is dropped by the end of the summer? I don't think I will be able to find anyone else to speak with.

 

Hey TheD146 I am also from a non target University of Maryland. The school is great for Government Contracting, Engineering work, and Accounting work but not IB. I would like to know how you got your summer analyst position at the middle market bank you are currently working at. I appreciate the help!!! I apologize if this post is not relevant to your original post but I cannot send you a private message since I don't have enough silver bananas. Thanks.

 

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