While on vacation with her friend’s family, daughter was invited to a private party. In party daughter was introduced to many people, one lady who works in a top investment bank in the world took a lot of interest in my daughter. Her husband who graduated from the same prep school and manages his own private investement company was involved in conversation. They were discussion politics and the books she have read. Daughter just casually asked about how do one get job in investment company as she knows no one and other information on how do they select companies to invest. Meanwhile daughter’s friend joined back the the conversation. She interjected in the conversation and bragged about daughter to the couple. They asked her lot of perosnal questions and her interests in other subjects.
Next day daughter received a message that she can be offered a paid summer internships in N.Y. City next summer if she chooses to do so.
Daughter thinks it is a wonderful idea. We have no clue what this means even. We have no further details. Therefore I try to Google it and now posting here. Will school look down on her when she apply for college as she is attending prep school on need based aid. This is a curve ball and we have no idea what it means even.
How is it a curveball? She was offered a summer job. Good for her. She can take it if she is interested or do something else if not. Don’t read anything into this. Lots of kids do internships or summer work. Colleges like to see that kids have worked or occupied their time well during breaks.
Investment bank, sperm bank, McDonald’s… Nothing to see here, IMO.
@ChoatieMom well I am happy with internship offer, problem is as daughter is a student who attend prep school on lot of financial aid, the internship comes way more money, this is going to affect the financial aid. That is why I call it a curve ball. How? we have no clue as daughter will not be able to attend college without need based aid and that is making my head dizzy. But we are definitely thankful for this opportunity.
I thought she was going in computer science and not math, but it seems to now question mark what she will choose to pursue as a career choice.
@bjkmom well daughter is going to do what she wants to do, and we are not going to stop and we will let her make het own life decisions as she has always better instincts than us. After reading, it seems a great opportunity, let is see as new opportunities are there which we did not anticipate previously. Thanks
It might only affect FA to the extent that she has money available to contribute. The FA might be offset by the amount a school thinks she can contribute–but she will have those funds available so, again, no issue that I can see. Do colleges even look at student assets?
Yes… colleges do look at student assets and earnings, and expect them to be used at a higher rate than parent assets and income. But they don’t look at the most recent year now. When she has to report this income, she should let the college know that it was a one summer experience and she had to cover costs to live in NY for it. Any savings she gets from it would be considered then as well. But that does not seem like a reason to not do it.
I don’t know about the FA implications, but WOW, what an opportunity, especially for a high school kid! I hope it works out for her, even if the result is she decides she hates finance and banking. Congratulations! My son (14) did some volunteer manual labor at his old school this summer and is hoping to get paid to do the same work next year.
OP said, “can be offered.” Has an actual offer come through? Seems early for that. Do you know what the salary would be?
It’s a shame to limit an experience like this because she might need to contribute some earnings to school costs. This is the sort of thing that can open her mind, as well as start a resume.
And taking one summer position doesn’t lock her into a different major.
Colleges will not look down on her for being on FA in prep…and getting a good summer job. It doesn’t work that way.
But does she have a job offer or someone is only encouraging her to consider applying?
“I thought she was going in computer science and not math, but it seems to now question mark what she will choose to pursue as a career choice.”
Plenty of people at investment banks majored in computer science or mathematics, generally on the sales and trading side of the business, which has been becoming increasingly quantitative since at least the early 1990s. In fact, much of the cutting edge work in mathematical finance and derivatives pricing , for instance, happens at investment banks, not universities. That’s been true at least since the heyday of Salomon Brothers in the late '80s/early '90s. Over the decades, computer science has also become increasingly important, as algorithmic and AI-based systems are displacing what had been less computationally intense trading and investment processes.
The quantitative focus is even more evident in the hedge fund and proprietary trading businesses. At one of the most successful hedge funds of all time, Renaissance Technologies, something like half of the large investment team have Ph.Ds in one of the mathematical or scientific disciplines. It’s been a long time since i worked at a hedge fund (not Renaissance but perhaps just as prominent “back in the day”), but back then particle physics and solid-state physics Ph.Ds were particularly valued and recruited for the proprietary trading arms of the prominent “bulge bracket” NYC i-banks. Goldman Sachs was said to be the largest single employer of Harvard Physics Ph.D’s and the second largest employer (after the NSA) of Harvard math Ph.D’s. (Not sure if that is fact, but it seemed plausible to me back in the mid- to late-1990s.)
My point is that this could be a wonderful opportunity for your child. And if it is in a quantitative business (as opposed to the traditional “glad-hand” corporate finance functions) she will likely be exposed to resources - certainly in dollars and likely even in brainpower - that exceed what is available even at the best universities. There’s really no reason to close off computer science or math or choose between them; both disciplines are incredibly valued at the banks. Don’t worry about the future FA implications - she can spend most of her salary on rent, which will not be difficult to do in NYC. Best of luck!!
It’ll only reduce her financial aid if she makes more than $6,000 and then by only about 20% of the money above that. And remember, only about 80 universities out of 3,700 “meet need” so that money is likely to come in handy.
More than that, it’ll give her an idea of that world and whether she’s interested (many aren’t).
Not to your point, but how will she afford to live in NYC next summer? Will the friend’s family take her in? It seems like there will be a lot to think through.
I have a niece who was a math major at Harvard. Every math major in her class was headed into finance and most were being courted by the hedge fund industry. Her plan was to go into complex climate modeling but she’s ended up at a hedge fund too. If’s off topic but the brain drain into the hedge fund business troubles me. Also, a paid internship is great and it’ll be a great window into that industry but “paid” can, and often does, mean near minimum wage and if that’s the case commuting and other expenses can use up most of the earnings. That happened to me one summer when I interned at a hedge fund. (A worthwhile experience.)
@lookingforward offer is verbal, no idea about what she is going to be paid, but she was told that she will have a 10 week paid summer internship and pay will be what other interns receive at the investment bank.
@SatchelSF thanks for your post, this is all new to us. From last two summers she has interned in very top universities as a summer intern for free. Next year summer research is already lined up but this offer we did not anticipate. Let us see what happens
Many large investment banks have internship programs, just like other industries, and they are usually for college sophomores and juniors. I have rarely seen real paying internship jobs for high school students. I would have your daughter find out more about it before she commits.
IB analyst and associate jobs are usually very intense and with long hours. They hire students with different majors, but they look for students who are very analytical, good critical thinkers and good communicators. In the recent years they have focused on hiring more women and URMs.
D1 went into IB right out of college as a math/econ major(s). She is responsible for her firm’s associates and analysts (oversight and ratings). They have a hard time retaining women in the program.