Tell Me About Yourself Critique
Any feedback very appreciated
I’m originally from _____ and growing up developed an interest in finance because my dad loved watching Mad Money with Jim Cramer and I found his show pretty entertaining so I started paper trading. I also became interested in computer science through high school. So I wanted to pursue a career in algo trading and went to college at_____ to study cs and finance. But I quickly realized I was a lot more interested in corporate finance than higher-level cs classes. I first got interested in investment banking when I interned at ___ in the ______. Although I found the work to be a bit slow, I was there during the ________ merger and became really interested in M&A and IB in general. I became very involved in our Student Managed Investment Fund, a US long equity fund, and learned a lot about valuation methodologies, the basics of modeling, and what’s inside a pitchbook. So then to learn more about modeling, I interned at ____ a crowdsourced financial modeling community and learned the finer details of financial modeling. I then worked at ___. During my time in client acquisition, I was creating pitch decks for potential clients. The head of client acquisition was a former banker and he told me all about his time doing banking, I quickly realized this is what I really wanted to do, but needed to find a way to get my foot in the door. Since my school had ___ alumni in banking, I then cold emailed about 1000 bankers and became obsessed with getting a summer analyst position. Even though my response rate was low, many bankers replied and I got amazing advice and connected with their colleagues. I also applied for a transfer to_(target think Stern, Cornell, Princeton) and was fortunate enough to be selected but not sure if I will be going due to financial constraints. This summer I will be working at a middle-market PE fund. I’m having a great time this summer, even though I would rather do banking, I’m learning a lot about valuation and modeling. I’m here today because I want to leverage my previous experiences in ER and PE and advise larger scale clients on deals going back to the ____ merger deal that first interested me. Your ___ Group is very strong and has had massive deals lately, which I follow, and joining your group would be the best way for me to work on those types of deals.
bump
bump
Your "spark" story about Cramer is a good opportunity for some humor, I'm not sure if that was your goal or not but that guy is a nut and most people will know who he is so it's a good way to have a funny/memorable "spark" if you spin it right. Maybe, "So I started paper trading and it turns out Cramer's advice isn't so great" or something.
I don't think you need to include the part about cold calling. Since you're already on the phone / being interviewed it isn't really necessary.
I wouldn't mention the "accepted to a target" part unless you're at a legit no-name school and need to legitimize yourself, it sounds kind of try-hard and I don't think the interviewer is interested in your financial constraints.
At the end I would avoid mentioning "massive deals"; most of the deals that bankers encounter aren't mega-mergers so you dont want to sound 1) ignorant to this fact, or 2) like you're only interested in breaking-news-type deals.
Overall this is solid. You clearly explain your transition from CS to finance and how your other experiences led you to IB.
Be as brief as you can be about all the storytelling details of CS, to finance, your prior internships, etc.. you want to get your point across but don't want to bore the interviewer to death. The total answer should be about 2 minutes
thank you sm, really appreciate it
I'd say its a little too long. Cut out the part about cold emailing a 100 bankers and desperately wanting a summer analyst position. Also for your story I'd frame it as student investment club/initial internships got me interested in investing -> led to me pursuing private equity internship -> got interested in sell-side while reading CIMs/working with bankers -> that is why I'm pursuing IB.
Also not sure if how you wrote it is how you would say it in an actyal interview, but it sounds a little too casual
that makes a lot of sense, thanks
Seems kinda long bro. How long does it take you to say all this?
about 3 minutes def trynn cut it down
Always keep in mind that you should read the room when answering this question. If they look engaged, maybe give them the full version. If they're nodding off then make sure to start wrapping it up.
Have a first round phone interview tmmrw, but will keep in mind
Might want to take a look at sentence structure
.
This is nothing you probably haven't heard before, but after having done this a gajillion times personally, it really depends on who the other person is, and how they are feeling. You cannot control this. So if it's in person or a zoom call, try to judge their facial expression.
Have 1 minute, 3 minute, 5 minute and 15 minute versions of the story ready. And tailor it. Sell side job? Focus on enthusiasm, hunting for whatever, and ability to learn fast and be a team player. Buy side? Talk about enthusiasm, hunting, skepticism, investing.
You get the drift. Very rarely does one hear "Oh wow you were on a roll, tell me more" but if you do, that's a great sign.
Hint - the give me a 1 minute summary chats usually go nowhere (and that's ok. Treat it like practice). 3-5 minute ones are standard. The 15 minute ones are awesome because it shows the other person is engaged and they will often let their guard down. This is how one gets interviews and jobs and actual long term connectivity from cold contacting people.
Good Luck
lol it'd be hilarious if someone reading this met you in an interview/networking call
When did Stern / Cornell / Princeton go together lol
Looks like he got into Cornell or stern
Labore culpa corporis impedit debitis numquam. Quia debitis aut accusamus quod cum consequatur quia. Sed aut facilis porro amet dolorem.
Corporis autem dolorum recusandae quia. Laborum provident et iure quia et sint magnam odit. Rerum aut quia quidem consequatur.
Nisi corporis et quia vitae voluptatibus eveniet non. Et veritatis quia culpa dolorum quos similique porro. At aut dolores nobis unde numquam.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...