The first day of my official job hunting "campaign" - Don't get scared now

Ladies & Gents - This is my first time posting. Just want to thank all the WSO members who have made this website a truly amazing resource for prospective monkeys like myself.

Nick Papagiorio's Background:

Non-Target, May '10 Grad
Finance & Economics Major
3.5 GPA
Two PWM internships
Currently working at BB PWM

Too much waffling and indecision, so I have finally pulled the trigger. After a few months of researching IBD, firms, regions, groups, contacts, networking strategies, etc. I now see that I want to be a true monkey. Today is the beginning of my official IBD campaign and I won't look back until I get there.

The biggest compnents of my campaign include:
1) Reaching out to existing contacts
2) Cold calling/making new contacts
3) Studying interview prep guides
4) Studying the technical guides
5) Anything else that I am missing (suggestions?)

Let's say I plan to allocate all of my time in the spring to networking in hopes to land interviews during fall recruiting. During the summer months I will shift most of my time and effort to studying and preping for the interviews. However, one of my contacts asks me to interview for an SA spot that randomly opens up (Highly unlikely but I will be looking at some small regional boutiques so who knows). Now, I am caught with my pantelones down because I only know basic corporate finance/accounting and will only have X number of days to prep. Obviously I can't turn down an IBD interview.

So the question is: Does anyone have a proven strategy on how to get from point A to point B efficiently and effectively? (Similar to a full body workout routine where certain days focus on a specific excercise or muscle set).

I appreciate the help!

 

i'd caution you not to 'target' fall recruiting - from my (very similar) experience, it's quite difficult to get considered in the recruiting pool of college seniors; most banks won't even entertain it. you're better off searching for one-off/lateral opportunities, and as recommended above, reaching out to alumni, friends, parents' friends, friends' parents, etc - basically, your opportunity will probably come from someone who knows you're looking and happens to hear of a spot, so your goal should be to get as many people as possible to know you're looking (and to make sure they like you)

 
dublin:
i'd caution you not to 'target' fall recruiting - from my (very similar) experience, it's quite difficult to get considered in the recruiting pool of college seniors; most banks won't even entertain it. you're better off searching for one-off/lateral opportunities, and as recommended above, reaching out to alumni, friends, parents' friends, friends' parents, etc - basically, your opportunity will probably come from someone who knows you're looking and happens to hear of a spot, so your goal should be to get as many people as possible to know you're looking (and to make sure they like you)

Good to know, thanks man... Is it cool if I PM you for some details about your experiences?

 

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