Play minor pro sports before going FT

Was looking to see what the general opinion is here. I am graduating in May and since I am late with recruiting, I will most likely look for FT roles starting in 2021 (have some interviews lined up through networking). Now, I have the chance to play minor-pro sports after graduation and was thinking since I cannot go FT right now, this might be an option. Do you guys think this would have any impact negatively for FT recruiting vs. getting some financial services job instead for a year?

 

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Do you love the sport? Did you ever dream you wanted to be a pro and make the big leagues? Do you want to take a potentially different (and far more interesting) path?

If you answered "yes" to any or all of the above or hesitated before saying "no" (and wanting to be a "grown up"), I would strongly think about playing the sport.

You get PAID to do something you love. PAID to get a chance to make the big leagues. PAID to have an adventure and a chapter of your life that you will never forget and probably relish. Meet all kinds of interesting people and do lord knows what else... All of this versus...

Sitting in some cube as a peon in a dark office doing some PPT/Excel/Emails on behalf of some random dude pitching/trading some product that he really doesn't care about. Look around financial services and read some of the posts here. These (myself included) are not posts of people chasing their dreams or doing what they have always wanted to do. This is not to say that that is a bad thing or that people are distinctly unhappy. But very few to no people said as a 5 year old "I wanna work in finance!" Many (and maybe you) have said "I wanna be a pro athlete!"

You have the chance to chase a dream, something that so many kids dream about.

I do not know you and so can't tell you what to do. I don't know your personal situation. Or your financial situation. Or whatever else. But man oh man, do I wish I had had that talent/ability and dedication to give it a go. I am sure that I am not alone.

If you try it, you probably won't regret it. And it will be a great story to tell when interviewing. You will also be able to build a network that way. FT jobs don't work out? You can get something else, go to Bschool and reset and give it another go in finance.

Edited to actually answer your question: Yes it will probably impact your ability to recruit for FT 2021, but who cares? You will have an FT job. Playing sports.

Good Luck

I used to do Asia-Pacific PE (kind of like FoF). Now I do something else but happy to try and answer questions on that stuff.
 

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