<p>Hey, so I'm sure you noticed the economy isn't doing well, particularly for recent graduates. </p>
<p>A buddy and I couldn't help but notice that we had a ton of friends who were unemployed and we looked deeper into the issue and found some staggering stats.</p>
<p>82% of those graduating college between 2006 and 2010 are working in some fashion, but only 53% hold fulltime jobs.</p>
<p>Six in 10 (58%) recent college graduates said their career planning offices did not do well in preparing them for job hunting</p>
<p>I think the problem isn't whether students are qualified to do the jobs, I think it's the fact that they don't know how to navigate the job search process. </p>
<p>Knowing how to network, interview, and approach recruiters is a skill that schools just don't teach and I think knowing even the basics would really help a lot.</p>
<p>My friend and I are both learned these skills and are currently working in Investment Banking jobs. We're wondering whether students/parents would be interested in a career coaching service. We're not turning it into a business anytime soon, but we're trying to figure out how it would work, whether people would even be interested, and maybe even take on a few kids to help for free (to make sure our advice would even be good).</p>
<p>I work at a lower tier BB firm. Our group helps Private Equity firms finance LBOs. IB Deal activity plummeted in the 2nd half of 2011, especially PE deals. As a result, work flow was not terribly high, though it has picked up lately.</p>
<p>I agree that I’m not a good writer and it’s something I’m working on.</p>
<p>Yes, most colleges have career centers, but from talking to people, it seems that they do a poor job. Obviously, this differs by schools (I went to a large public). I wouldn’t be aiming to target kids from NYU Stern or Wharton. </p>
<p>At the end of the day, this wouldn’t be for students who have mentors who show them the ropes or tenacious students who will learn all of this on their own. It’s for the kids who don’t know where to start (many of which never do). </p>
<p>We also obviously need a proven track record, because if our advice doesn’t actually help people, then the business won’t work.</p>
<p>So are you actually in lev fin, or just sponsors?
Your description sounds ambiguous enough that it seems like it could be either one. </p>
<p>To me at least, your description and explanation of your career coaching plan sounds more like something someone in an intro to entrepreneurship course would come up with rather than a serious business plan. </p>
<p>If you actually plan to make something out of this, it’s a hard sell.
Students may not see their career services as particularly effective, but in terms of raw experience, any career center will have a huge leg up on you. </p>
<p>I don’t know anything about your background, but if you are anything like the typical investment banker, your experience outside finance is limited to non-existent.
Even then, sites like M&I and WSO have a huge leg up on you.</p>
<p>Bottom line is that you just don’t have a competitive advantage anywhere.</p>
<p>You know, someone taking an intro to entrepreneurship class probably has a leg up on me. </p>
<p>I could spend a ton of time trying to come up with a serious business plan, but I don’t think that makes much sense unless you’ve actually talked to some potential future customers and figured out what kind of things would appeal to them. I have gotten some feedback, but I wanted to get some outside opinions.</p>
<p>I don’t know about having no competitive advantage. I’ve actually been through the recent recruiting cycle. As someone who sucked at professionalism and networking, I think I can help students reframe their thought process on how to approach the job search process. Unlike career centers, I would be incentivized for each student to land a good job. </p>
<p>It’s definitely a hard sell and I appreciate your posts, because it’s important to know all the reasons why this wouldn’t work. If I can’t convince a student the value of what I’m offering and then actually deliver, then this won’t work.</p>
<p>A lot of my friends were unemployed when they graduated and when they ask me how I got a job, I felt like I was repeating a lot of the same things. I quickly came to realize a lot of them lacked knowledge on basic stuff (and maybe this is just a reflection on the type of people I know). </p>
<p>I can’t help but think this is similar to an SAT course. What’s the point of paying $1k-$2k for a two month program, when you could buy a book that has answers and explanations for $30? The knowledge is all out there, it’s making the kids actually do it.</p>
<p>You are correct in that many students do not get jobs because of bad cover letters, resumes, interview skills,…etc. BUT, that is because students usually dont utilize their career center’s resources as much as they should, if at all. Career centers, generally, are a fantastic resource for students. And offer all the services you are talking about (and it’s free and you can have as many “consultations” as you’d like).</p>
<p>If kids don’t have the initiative to utilize a free resource, do you think they’d really go find and pay for an outside one? </p>
<p>Idk, if schools really want to do some hand holding maybe the solution is for schools to make a “career preparation” course mandatory for graduation.</p>
<p>You never answered this.
Personally, I’d be hard pressed to accept the career advice of someone in a coverage group. If you are indeed in a product group, you’ll have a much easier time.
Additionally, I’m sure your colleagues would be thrilled to hear you refer to your bank as a “lower tiered BB”. Do you really see your bank as inferior to MS/GS?</p>