Is this career path overkill?
Hi WSO, occasional lurker, first time poster here. Though I'm really only posting this for the advice of a select few on this site, I welcome the feedback from all.
I just finished my first year at a respected mid-market PE shop (think: Hellman & Friedman, Golden Gate, Francisco Partners, etc.) and am in the process of deciding my next-step. Long-term, my goal is to work at a prominent Activist Hedge Fund, however, I am not entirely sure if this is possible given my background and projected career path. I realize my background would be considered "strong" for this site, but recruiters have really been shitting all over me given my school and several have flat out told me that top-tier activist funds will not be an option for me. I'm going to try to make some moves that both allow me to increase my odds and allow me to accomplish some things I'd like to do while I'm still young. Here's what I have in mind:
What I've already done (in order):
-Undergrad at second tier public school (UCLA/UCSB/UCSD/etc.); 3.6 GPA; Magna Cum Laude; triple major in Business, Applied Math, and German; studied abroad at Saint Gallen for a year.
-2 Years at Elite Boutique (Evercore/Lazard/Moelis/Greenhill/etc.) in top group; top-bucket; several live deals, including three industry-changing, front-of-Journal Mega deals.
-1 of 2 years at a top MM PE shop (H&F/GG/FP/etc.); go-to guy in my space and have been the excel backup on all our major deals this year in that space; haven't sourced anything myself (not expected to); have co-invested twice already
What I'm gonna do next (in order):
-Finish second year of PE.
-2.5 years of doing business consulting for the Peace Corps in the Asia-Pacific region, hopefully in a developing economy that will be actually be a player in my lifetime (Indonesia/Philippines/Thailand)
-1 Year Masters in Financial Engineering at second tier program (UCLA/USC/Baruch); I've always been shy about my quant ability wrt Financial Application and would really like to boost my knowledge base, so care less about branding from University name and more about branding from actual degree.
-2 year MBA in either the Value-Investing program @ Columbia or top school (Harvard/Stanford/Wharton) if possible.
-Will do buyside summer associate programs in between all three years of B-School.
-Activist Hedge Fund.
Thoughts?
Model Assumptions:
-Decent GMAT/GRE scores.
-Money is no object.
-I don't care about time.
-I don't fall in love and have some chick ruin my entire career.
Why both the one year masters and an MBA? I know you said it was for 'quantitative ability' but it seems completely unnecessary to me. If you want it just to get it that's one thing but I don't think you need it.
It's fine in theory but can you really plan it out so far in advance? What if you don't get into a bschool you like post-MFE?
Personally, I think you should pick one or the other (quant MFE vs. value-investing MBA). You're going to probably end up having to specialize in one or the other anyway for your career.
Love your last model assumption.
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