Is it still possible to obtain an unpaid internship at any boutique in Beijing right now?

I'm in Beijing right now, and have decided to find another internship because my current non-finance related internship leaves me with more free time than I initially thought.

So far, I've emailed MDs at as many banks as I could find, but the list is still not very long. I've also resorted to simply emailing human resources about available openings at their firms. If I don't receive any responses in the next few days, I think I'll actually resort to calling their firms.

In the meantime, is anyone familiar with how Beijing firms operate? Are they willing to have someone come in to help in the first place or am I just wasting my time?

Also, is there a list online somewhere of boutiques in Beijing? I've found it extremely difficult to keep on randomly googling them. I think I've only found about 30 right now.

I'm looking for any experience I can get at this point and I know it's late in the game so there's zero guarantee. Thanks a lot.

Edit: By the way, I speak Chinese. So there should be no barrier in that regard.

5 Comments
 

Beijing boutiques run very lean. I'm not so sure there are 30 of them either.

Boutique IB in China is much more focused on deal sourcing than actual execution. BB and the SOE IBs dominate the IPO market. M&A at the boutique level is small, mostly PE/VC fundraising for small companies. There are a few cross-border firms, but it's a tough market and there's not a whole lot an intern (unpaid or not) can do to help when everyone is focused on bringing in clients or finding buyers.

What kind of work are you hoping to do?

 

There are all sorts of legit internship opportunities on City Weekend and thebeijinger usually.

HR in China is sloppy and so classifieds are what pass for internship recruiting in China for foreigners.

I landed a boutique IB internship there back in 07 in May answering a classified ad. It's definitely possible, but not easy. Very very few foreigners do IB in Beijing.

 

Voluptatem et tempora non voluptatem. Delectus nihil illo rerum quae ut. Distinctio voluptas aut sit commodi.

Cum quis quaerat sint pariatur facilis voluptas consequatur assumenda. Facere quas iure dignissimos rerum cumque quos. Facere id dolor id omnis odio perspiciatis. Quos aliquam amet aperiam vitae.

Qui quis id totam enim omnis. Libero porro tempore eum dolores fuga. Fuga fugiat qui maiores quasi omnis nesciunt.

Reiciendis esse deserunt corrupti tempore. Modi asperiores totam assumenda sint ex. Quia nemo aut qui aliquam.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan No 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (50) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $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

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
98.8
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...”