i-banking recruitment

College Majors Business Major
1

<p>hi, a few questions about i-banking recruitment.</p>

<p>what, exactly, do i-banker recruiters look for in undergrads? i go to Wharton and it seems that everyone here has the high GPA / extracurriculars / work experience combination down to a science. it's amazing, really. </p>

<p>i'm studying chinese and spanish, although I'm Caucasian. will this help much? What else might you suggest to set me apart? also, i'm a female with a 3.8 gpa. do recruiters pay special attention to women since we're under represented on Wall Street?</p>

<p>this part is probably going to seem very stupid to those of you who are more informed than i, but forgive me, i've found it difficult to find much counseling to answer these questions. i'm concentrating in finance. original, i know, but should I add on a concentration in accounting? i hated acct 101, HATED it. that seems to be the consensus, but it's supposed to get better. there's an M&A accounting class, and I'm thinking a little bit about M&As for the future. do most people who work on these kinds of assignments get their MBAs in accounting, or do graduates of undergrad programs ever get to work in these areas? I'm just reasoning that it would be extremely difficult to train a worker to know all of the intricacies of the subject. </p>

<p>also, if anyone can answer this- i find it very hard to find a summer internship as a rising JUNIOR. everyone wants rising seniors, understandably, so they can be given job offers following the summer. what should i try to do with this time? i'm thinking of summer classes and research with a wharton prof. good? bad? </p>

<p>i just want to make myself as marketable to recruiters as possible. my dream is to work for goldman sachs in nyc.</p>

<p>thanks a lot!</p>

<p>ps- i just previewed this post and read it through, and i sound like as big of a wharton tool as the ones that my non-whartonite friends at penn and i hate! i'm not like that and i still have a soul! just for the record, haha</p>

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<p>i hate you</p>

3

<p>I agree with eternity_hope2005.</p>

4

<p>Wow, rough crowd. I'll try and offer some advice though. Just note that what I'm going to say is based mostly on what I've read and heard as opposed to actual experience. </p>

<p>Here's a general list of attributes that ibanks look for during interviews:</p>

<ol>
<li>Fit with firm's culture (need to be sociable/personable) </li>
<li>Hard working (100 hour weeks)</li>
<li>Reliable/Competent (you might be handling millions of dollars)</li>
<li>Analytical/Technical ability (must be able to break problems down)</li>
<li>Ability to be a Team Player</li>
<li>Composure under Pressure (the interview process will be grueling and at times intimidating)</li>
</ol>

<p>So any activities or experiences that help to demonstrate you posses those attributes will be helpful. </p>

<p>As far as Chinese and Spanish go, they'll be useful if they are evidence of how you're truly interested in the global nature of business. Plus, learning a foreign language is a great opportunity to broaden you horizons and to just be more attuned to diversity. However, they won't really differentiate you unless you're completely fluent in both. </p>

<p>Recent undergrads do have the opportunity to work in M&A divisions of ibanks, but the top entering analysts are usually the ones who are placed into M&A. I have a feeling that you're allowed to designate preferred divisions that you'd like to work in, but the employer ultimately reserves the right to place you into the various divisions (M&A, Equity Capital, Debt Capital, Sales and Trading, etc.)</p>

<p>Adding on an accounting concentration would definitely be helpful, but not essential. Accounting is extremely useful, especially in M&A, because a lot of what you'll do invovles analyzing balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements of companies. I think that interviews are basically tailored to the specific applicant. So a poli sci major from a school that doesn't offer undergrad business courses won't be asked about accounting principles. But if you add on an accounting concentration, then you'll be expected to have a strong grasp of accounting. And if you nail the questions related to accounting, then that's definitely a plus. </p>

<p>Finding an internship as a rising junior is extremely hard for most rising juniors. I imagine you're trying hard to find an internship in ibanking, but you should try to expand your options. If you can't get anything in ibanking since it's so competitive, landing a finance-related internship at a major corporation (GE, P&G, 3M, etc.) can develop solid experience. There are also non-ibanking opportunities in the major banks as well. I would say that some sort of work experience would be a little more advantageous than classes and research with a Wharton prof, unless the research is somewhat groundbreaking. </p>

<p>Finally, I’m pretty sure your school provides you with a free subscription to Vault Guides. These guides are really quite helpful. If you browse your school’s career services, you should be able to find out how to get access to the Vault Guides. There are guides that go into much more detail about ibanking and finance interviews.</p>

5

<p>Are you sure you go to Wharton? I highly doubt it. Wharton students shouldnt have a problem with ibank recruitment nor finding internship regardless of college level.</p>

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<p>thanks a lot harri, i really appreciate the insight.</p>

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<p>I love Penn,</p>

<p>I feel bad about my prior post. I wasn't serious and didn't intend anything malicious. In any case, I think it's possible for someone w/ your background and qualification to get an internship even as early as this summer. Wharton + 3.8 GPA + Double major in two languages = a very impressive background for recruiters. </p>

<p>Good Luck,
eternity</p>

8

<p>hi eternity, i knew you were kidding. no worries :)
i'm not double majoring in languages, just taking them for fun (or not so much fun)... haha
im gonna try on campus recruiting this month. can't hurt, right?</p>

9

<p>hey i love penn, im got into wharton, and am freaking out a little bit. i dont have any kind of business experience and am only very slightly evil. would it be advantageous for me to try out ibanking? ultimately i want to work in the entertainment industry (not as a porn star, haha), and thought a backround in finance would be good (think jeff bewkes). but if finance will kick my ass then i may not want too... awwww too risk managementy... whatever. any suggestions????</p>

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<p>Pinkmuscat, would you be willing to post your highschool gpa,sat/act scores, class rank, ecs?</p>