Told them they were my first choice

I'm going to be working at a top BB this summer in IB (think GS/MS/JPM). My eventual goal as of now is to work for a megafund after two years in banking. I also have a specific interest in a particular industry. So, when I was looking into groups it came down to whether i wanted to work for an industry group that claimed they did all their own modeling or the M&A/FSG group at my bank (ya...I'm not working for GS, unfortunately). I met with people at FSG, M&A, and the industry group and liked the guys in FSG and the industry group a lot. M&A seemed a little too stuffy and intense for my taste, so I inquired a little more and eventually told the industry group that they would be my first choice in group selection. However, now I'm getting cold feet. I've been talking to more people in sponsors and more and more people are telling me that while the industry group I'm looking at is at the top of the bank, if a megafund is what I want, I should do M&A or FSG. So, I guess my question is did I make a mistake locking myself into the industry group (they told me I'd get it if I wanted it) and if I did make a mistake, is there any clean way out of it?

 
Best Response
CountryBanker:
I'm going to be working at a top BB this summer in IB (think GS/MS/JPM). My eventual goal as of now is to work for a megafund after two years in banking. I also have a specific interest in a particular industry. So, when I was looking into groups it came down to whether i wanted to work for an industry group that claimed they did all their own modeling or the M&A/FSG group at my bank (ya...I'm not working for GS, unfortunately). I met with people at FSG, M&A, and the industry group and liked the guys in FSG and the industry group a lot. M&A seemed a little too stuffy and intense for my taste, so I inquired a little more and eventually told the industry group that they would be my first choice in group selection. However, now I'm getting cold feet. I've been talking to more people in sponsors and more and more people are telling me that while the industry group I'm looking at is at the top of the bank, if a megafund is what I want, I should do M&A or FSG. So, I guess my question is did I make a mistake locking myself into the industry group (they told me I'd get it if I wanted it) and if I did make a mistake, is there any clean way out of it?

jpm m&a places the best to MFs. just sayin

 

I'm not sure what you're asking. None of these groups have promised you anything. Just because you told TMT or whoever that they're your number one choice doesn't mean they've done the same. It's like dating. You asked this chick out, but she hasn't said yes yet. You're not "locked into" anything, on the plus side, but have no guarantee of getting this group, on the minus. And even if they say you're a top candidate, that's not guarantee either. When I was networking for group selection, an MD from a product group I liked called me about 7 hours before submitting papers to let me know that I was "a sure thing." Awesome. I put them as my first, thinking I'd just nailed it. Analyst calls me RIGHT before submission to warn me that this guy fucked me. He'd been telling all the analysts with good technical backgrounds that they were "sure things," so we'd all list his team #1 and then they could get whoever they wanted. Dude was a douche, and I haven't heard of this happening any where else, but definitely don't believe everything coming from the other side. Their goal is to get as many summers as possible to rank them highly so that they can get whoever they want.

My advice: keep talking to every group you're interested in. Sponsors, this coverage group, M&A, LevFin, whatever. Stay in front of them until Sell Day. Also, bear this in mind: like 50+% of the JPM/MS SAs are gonna list Sponsors/M&A/LevFin as their top choices in some order. Everyone knows that product places better than coverage, generally speaking. You're like summer analyst #55 who's thinking: "I'm gonna get into M&A, kill it, and then go to KKR and Harvard Business School!!!" Not hating, just giving you a reality check. I'd scope out more than one "backup" group.

 
triplectz:
I'm not sure what you're asking. None of these groups have promised you anything. Just because you told TMT or whoever that they're your number one choice doesn't mean they've done the same. It's like dating. You asked this chick out, but she hasn't said yes yet. You're not "locked into" anything, on the plus side, but have no guarantee of getting this group, on the minus. And even if they say you're a top candidate, that's not guarantee either. When I was networking for group selection, an MD from a product group I liked called me about 7 hours before submitting papers to let me know that I was "a sure thing." Awesome. I put them as my first, thinking I'd just nailed it. Analyst calls me RIGHT before submission to warn me that this guy fucked me. He'd been telling all the analysts with good technical backgrounds that they were "sure things," so we'd all list his team #1 and then they could get whoever they wanted. Dude was a douche, and I haven't heard of this happening any where else, but definitely don't believe everything coming from the other side. Their goal is to get as many summers as possible to rank them highly so that they can get whoever they want.

My advice: keep talking to every group you're interested in. Sponsors, this coverage group, M&A, LevFin, whatever. Stay in front of them until Sell Day. Also, bear this in mind: like 50+% of the JPM/MS SAs are gonna list Sponsors/M&A/LevFin as their top choices in some order. Everyone knows that product places better than coverage, generally speaking. You're like summer analyst #55 who's thinking: "I'm gonna get into M&A, kill it, and then go to KKR and Harvard Business School!!!" Not hating, just giving you a reality check. I'd scope out more than one "backup" group.

You know that sponsors is a coverage group, right? You sound pretty clueless to be honest.

 

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