<p>Has anyone interviewed or gotten an internship in New York by a bulge bracket firm? I have a powerful contact at a certain investment banking firm, but I still have to put my sales hat on and be aggressive in order to obtain the job. Especially since I don't exactly go to the most prestigious of all schools, but anyways I was curious as to what type of questions they ask during the interview etc...take note its an undergrad internship specifically in investment banking. Thanks.</p>
<p>did you already get an interview or are you applying? if you already go tthe interview 80% of the work is already done...</p>
<p>and is this for an internship posiition or a summer analyst position?</p>
<p>K> Please you need no help. Go party while you still can.</p>
<p>Mahras, I just put a long butterfly spread on a certain stock option today, we need to speak. Also where the hell is the volatility? ? I'd like to find some good plays to straddle. I've definitely settled down with some long term equity picks, so now i'm just getting into the option market and I know you've been doing quite a bit of research. How's the ARB trading been going?</p>
<p>Very well. I am doing good volume and have been able to get together a sizable base (going to expand some more in two weeks). </p>
<p>Vol has died again. There were a few spurts over the summer but nothing is left. You can still play and create a good book though. Send me an IM and I will give you some good strategies that you might like to use (will reduce exposure to most greeks signficantly).</p>
<p>I would personally look at brain teasers. Considering it is recruiting season, I would apply off cycle when they have a specific need aka someone quit. Right now, for example I know Citi for one thing got 160 resumes for UCB, interviewing 12 for one spot at a certain west coast office. But, at the same time they will be interviewing more candidates from other schools who have an interest at that office as well. If the firm you are applying to has other offices like Dallas, SF, LA, etc put them on the application that you are open to those locations where it maybe less competitive to get an offer (not that it will vary much). Personally, since you are going for a NY office which will have tons of Penn grads and since MD, VP, associates, and other analyst will have a vote on you being hired, coming from SDSU your wow factor must be great enough to compensate for your lack of pedigree. Their ideal candidate you must remember has a high gpa 3.7-3.8 (3.9 and higher sometimes makes you look too academic) from a TARGETED school, has previous banking experience (most likely already has an offer from that firm but is fishing the market aka looking for a better offer ) and has plenty of extraciricular activities.</p>
<p>I'm currently communicating via the head of HR and was told the Human Resource department does the hiring?
I doubt penn "grads" would be looking for internships as they've already aquired them and should have an analyst position by now (this is only an assumption) Merrill Lynch for instance gears the internships towards undergrads or so I was told. You don't exactly put other locations on the application either (maybe on the website version, but that does not apply to me). Trust me, I have a few backups (San Francisco and a one in San Diego), but New York is the place I want to work. I want nothing but the best of the best in the finance world.</p>
<p>For I-banking there is no way HR will be the one doing the actual hiring, although, they may have to sign off on it meaning you passing the background check. Typically, the Managing Directors, VP, associates will be main people with the most input on whether you get a position. If this is an internship, yes you will be going against Penn undergrads, NYU undergrads, Columbia undergrads, all other Ivy and top public schools like UVA, and Michagan and don't forget HIGHLY prestigious east coast liberal arts colleges like Williams College, Weselley, Amherst, etc. If it is for a full time position, then you would disadvantage by not having Ibanking experience . That's why I said if this is Ibanking, and particular in NY I would says you should go after smaller offices and do well their to get your foot into the door than go up against "the cream of the crop" in NY and not get a position at all. If you do well at these smaller offices and are a top performers aka (top bucket of the bonuses), you will likely get to do your 3rd year in NY and by your foruth year doing well there make the associate level. </p>
<p>My advice since you've had your fun at SDSU is to try and transfer to Berkeley where you can finish off in Haas (doing well there) to get a more realistic chance at Ibanking. Otherwise, you have to do a few years at smaller less pedigree driven firms or go to a top business school to make it to the best of the NY firms. Plus, Berkeley's football team is better anyways.</p>
<p>All I would focus on is the interview. Getting the interview should be 0 issue to you. Yes you are not from a good school. But connections trump anything anyday. Especially the connection you have.
Just know the basic finance topics to discuss and the generic format of a banking interview (check out the vault guides...IM me if you need one, I have a bunch of them someplace).</p>
<p>I think i'm going to be interviewing via the phone, which should be rather interesting. </p>
<p>Nextmikesays, you're kind of getting on my nerves, never use the word pedigree with me again. I don't know who you are, furthermore who you think you are. If you are younger, when you have your penn degree, and zero references, you can come talk to me. Guess what, all those undergrads (not "grads") are working from the bottom up, not the top down. I prefer it that way. Next time I want "life" advice i'll ask for it.</p>
<p>First off,</p>
<p>I'm not trying to discourage you at all but be realistic towards your chances knowing what the competition and adversity you faced actually is. Sorry if this I am not the type of person who sits here and tells you what you want to hear. Either, way you will find out the reality sooner or later. Yes, having a reference can get you an interview but realize that is all it will get you. Getting to the interview increases your odds dramatically but it's still at that point from after a phone interview a 1/15 shot at best if you are invited for an onsite one. I know having a reference gives you one good solid vote on the hiring decision maybe 3/10 at best if its someone that is pretty high up but that still leaves 7/10 other interviewers who don't know and only have a resume to look at that you are good enough to work at their firm. They have an establish history with certain schools being sucessful for recruiting and since many of these firms recruit actively from there, many of the same people you will be competing against will have some solid reference in that firm as well. As much as you don't like "pedigree" and as snobbish as I may appear to you, it does matter. In medicine, going to a top medical school gets you into the best residency programs. Top ph.d candidates from elite schools get the best post docs (you wouldn't believe the amount of joy academic institutions get when they can say we hire Dr.X from Stanford, Harvard, Yales,etc). Yes, call grads are working from the bottom up as well. But, since there are few spots and tons of applicants for Ibanking positions they tend to take the cream of the crop. Congrats on being the head of trson they intehe SDSU finance club, most applicants you will be competiting will have that as well, plenty of finance experience and coming from a name brand institution. If you don't like my advice, don't take it. If you want to be that fat chick that believes she deserves Brad Pitt, go ahead but sooner or later you are going to find out how competitive it is and that your application no matter enthusiastic you sound will be just like every other person they interview. You haven't shown me one bit of evidence that makes you a great applicant coming from a non targeted school.</p>
<p>Hey Mike, good sermons – I like it.
You have brought the recruitment issue down to ground earth of the reality for young off-springs attempting to hit the road with a wayward disposition.</p>
<p>Talk about a snob rant. Buddy, when you have connections reaching the very pinnacles of a firm (think significantly higher than a Managing director), then you would understand why I noted that in his case he simply doesn't even have to worry. I don't have such connections, you don't have such connections and neither do 90% of the pedigreed graduates that you speak of. </p>
<p>Why don't you answer the OP's question which was about how to prepare for an interview instead of giving him sermons as if you were a high priest of finance.</p>
<p>"You haven't shown me one bit of evidence that makes you a great applicant coming from a non targeted school." Well, didn't know I was creating this post, to be INTERVIEWED. I think you are done. They say confidence is a good thing, but arrogance is a cancer in the workplace.</p>
<p>Hey savedbythebell7,</p>
<p>I am by no means an expert, but I do have a lot of material and saved documents for interviewing if would like to have some copies. Also, I have some websites and recommended readings. This is a huge folder, so I hope you have g-mail.</p>
<p>I'm also trying to attain the same information as you, as I plan to (I hope) interview w/ BB's someday. A co-worker at my Hedge Fund came from CSFB and has an MBA from Harvard, so he's currently my target :D</p>
<p>twisty, could you give me some of your notes?? i have an interview friday and i dont know anything.</p>
<p>also, i know a couple guys that got offers from bulge bracket banks in nyc that graduated from UCR so it definitely is posible to get into ibanking from a non-recruited/crappy school, just very difficult.</p>
<p>Hey hobofromdowntown,</p>
<p>Sure. PM me your e-mail addy, and I'll send what I can find!</p>
<p>If you would actually read ALL of what I wrote,I did give some advice. </p>
<p>Confidence is great, but being ignorant about how strong your competition is, is setting yourself up for a letdown. They aren't just picking a Penn student just because he went there but one with high GPA, previous Ibanking experience and strong extracirculars. </p>
<p>If you want better advice, you should pay and join <a href="http://www.vault.com%5B/url%5D">www.vault.com</a>, this way you can interact with other members who did interview at a particular firm to get a better idea of what they will actually ask you and the format they do their interviews.</p>
<p>In fact, many employees of certain firms go on there as well and you can ask if you have a realistic chance of getting a job offer there and how strong their candidate pool is.</p>
<p>Connections will get you the interview, and in the case of 2 close candidates that can only be differentiated by a personal connection then you would have the edge but it will not make up for you not being as strong of a candidate compared to others they have interviewed.</p>
<p>Now there comes Twisty, with better organized advanced planning style of person of a person. Giving guidance and sharing ideas to improve is the key to us here. Sermons caused heart-ache and ill-constructive, albeit well-intentioned in different style. Lets accept fact of life that strings usually work in places where fit. Is it correct to say attending top elite schools IB feeders is a way of climbing along the strings of job recruits?</p>
<p>Speaking from personal experience, attending an IB feeder school is absolutely a way of "climbing along the strings of job recruits" I did my first three years at a small west coast school, submitted my resume to all of the ibanks, and got no interviews. I just transfered to an IB feeder school, and I have interviews with all of the big boys, and my resume hasn't changed one bit.</p>
<p>The way they determine who gets the interviews is as follows: After the recruiters go to their target schools they create resume books, usually comprised of 150-200 resumes. All of the alumni from your school will sit in a room for about 30-60 mins (max 20 seconds per resume) to determine who will get interviews. These are generally first and second year guys, so the people that they grant interviews to are either a)personal contacts that they can vouch for or b)people who have resume's that stick out a great deal/previous ibanking experience. </p>
<p>If you want to land a summer analyst position in either IBD or Sales/Trading at a bludge bracket firm coming from a non-feeder school your chances are slim to none so work on your networking skills.</p>