Non-Quant Financial Career Advice

[ToddC]

Hello,

I have a few questions that may be out of place here. However, I feel this community is so knowledgable and friendly, that I may get lucky and receive a bit of advice.

First and foremost, I am about to graduate from a state university (average reputation) with a bachelor's degree in finance. The closer I get to graduation, the more anxious I become about finding a career afterwards. Ideally, I'd like to find some sort of an analyst position. Knowing this, I have tried to teach myself financial subjects that go beyond (or in further detail) than the university provides (which is how I found this website).

I've purchased Valutation by Wiley Finance to brush up on some concepts, and also have looked into some quant subjects (not too much, obviously, but merely to look around and get a feel for the concepts).

I'm not a dumb person, but I have a hard time moving forward. I never had the opportunity to intern and my grades are decent (3.4-3.5). I'm basically stuck "in the now".

Does anybody have any advice as I move from being a student at the local university to solidifying an entry-level analyst position?

If this is not the OK, feel free to delete the thread.

Thanks, all.

 

[JDawg]

Analyst is extremely general. You should be more specific (eg. corporate finance, commercial banking, etc). Also you realize that most full-time and internship recruiting is over right? I mean I'm sure that some places are still hiring, but it's prob going to be hard to find something now unless you network with boutique firms or something.

 

[Jayanthan]

Have you tried through your school career services?
Have you tried through your school Alumni?
Do the company/ major banks visit ur school?
Have you talked to department professors? He/ she may know someone.
If you don't have any of those,

Major banks go to certain target schools to recruit people, you can go there and try to get an interview with them.
I have an engineering degree, trying to get an analyst position as well. I was fortunate enough to set up an interview, but couldn't make it for an interview for some reasons.

This is all I can think as of right now.

 

[mfegrad]

jdawg is correct. analyst in what? research? banking? s&t? within those, there are many subcategories.

 

[John]

I concur with others in that you need to research thoroughly this industry and figure out where you fit in this picture.
A career development series book 'What Color Is Your Parachute?", although written for a general audience, might help you in this regard.

 

[Jayanthan]

Analyst is extremely general. You should be more specific (eg. corporate finance, commercial banking, etc). Also you realize that most full-time and internship recruiting is over right? I mean I'm sure that some places are still hiring, but it's prob going to be hard to find something now unless you network with boutique firms or something.

jdawg is correct. analyst in what? research? banking? s&t? within those, there are many subcategories.

You don't necessarily need to know that. IBs have rotation in every 6 months.

 

[mfegrad]

You don't necessarily need to know that. IBs have rotation in every 6 months.

ever tried interviewing and saying "oh yeah, i don't really know what industries or sectors i want to cover. i kind of like them all. i'm interested in all of them"? try it next time. guaranteed you'll definitely have more free time for the rest of that day!

furthermore, i don't know of any BBs that rotate kids through banking and s&t. it's generally one or the other.

 

[ToddC]

First, I'd like to thank everyone who replied to this thread. Thanks for helping someone you don't know out.

Also you realize that most full-time and internship recruiting is over right?

Unfortunately, I do realize this. I had to job (retail) during college, so I never applied for an internship. I regret this, immensely.

Have you tried through your school career services?

No, not at this moment, but I certainly plan to take this opportunity when I graduate.

Have you tried through your school Alumni?

No, but I've heard others here mention this before. How does one contact alumni while maintaining a professional appearance? Is there a school program to align recent graduates with past alumni?

Do the company/ major banks visit ur school?

We have a "career fair", but it's not many banks. It's mostly sales positions (huge emphasis here), marketing positions, and some accounting positions.

Have you talked to department professors?

I certainly have. I have contacted 4-5 past professors asking for similar advice, but more in depth, and the responses I have received are meaningful, but are mostly advice (no networking opportunities).

analyst in what? research? banking? s&t? within those, there are many subcategories.

I'm not sure. I don't have much exposure to the different fields, so I don't know what interests me, yet. If I had to choose, I'd like to look into equity analysis or banking. Again, I'm not 100% sure.

A career development series book 'What Color Is Your Parachute?", although written for a general audience, might help you in this regard.

Added to my Amazon.com cart. Thank you for the suggestion. Basically, am I on the right track? How should I prepare for the interviews and/or position? How does one show s/he's knowledgable in the field, without advanced degrees or puffery? Thanks again. I really, really appreciate it.

 

[mfegrad]

todd, in response to:

"I'm not sure. I don't have much exposure to the different fields, so I don't know what interests me, yet. If I had to choose, I'd like to look into equity analysis or banking. Again, I'm not 100% sure."

i think the best things to do are to a) talk to people and b) read books. some of the books that are always recommended are liar's poker and monkey business; the former talks about the trading setting while the latter (if i recall) talks about life on the banking side of things. when reading these, remember that these are dated and slightly sensationalized. there are tons of other books that are worth reading. brookstaber's a demon of our own design gives you some good background, although it veers wildly off topic at times. lowenstein's when genius failed is also considered a worthy read. then there are all the books written about the crisis. finally, if you like dark satire, american psycho is quite a good send-up of a lot of the people you'll come to meet in the industry.

regarding talking with people, a lot of schools have an alumni database available to students for networking purposes. oftentimes alums will list their positions and that they're willing to help by speaking with current students. if your school has this, you can try looking into it. start at the low end (no sense in contacting people further up the food chain) and just be courteous and professional (just as you've done here). explain you're looking to know more about the industry and that you'd like to find out about their job hunting experience, what they do on a daily basis, etc. keep it informal and you'll be fine.

anyways, a lot of it comes down to personality traits and how you want to spend your time.

do you like accounting? research or banking might be for you.
do you like sixteen hour days? banking.
do you like the idea of discounting cash flows (in slightly more exotic ways than you've seen in your undergrad)? banking
do you like following economic trends and stories? research or trading.
do you like following a few companies or an industry really closely? research (but banking could also give you an industry to work within).
do you like products (cmo vs. cap vs. equity-linked derivatives)? sales or trading.
do you like dealing with clients? sales or banking.
do you like high pressured situations? trading (or, to a somewhat lesser extent, banking)

i could go on, but you get the idea. by speaking with people and having a long hard think, you'll come to have a better idea what you want to do. good luck.

 

[ToddC]

todd, in response to:

"I'm not sure. I don't have much exposure to the different fields, so I don't know what interests me, yet. If I had to choose, I'd like to look into equity analysis or banking. Again, I'm not 100% sure."

i think the best things to do are to a) talk to people and b) read books. some of the books that are always recommended are liar's poker and monkey business; the former talks about the trading setting while the latter (if i recall) talks about life on the banking side of things. when reading these, remember that these are dated and slightly sensationalized. there are tons of other books that are worth reading. brookstaber's a demon of our own design gives you some good background, although it veers wildly off topic at times. lowenstein's when genius failed is also considered a worthy read. then there are all the books written about the crisis. finally, if you like dark satire, american psycho is quite a good send-up of a lot of the people you'll come to meet in the industry.

regarding talking with people, a lot of schools have an alumni database available to students for networking purposes. oftentimes alums will list their positions and that they're willing to help by speaking with current students. if your school has this, you can try looking into it. start at the low end (no sense in contacting people further up the food chain) and just be courteous and professional (just as you've done here). explain you're looking to know more about the industry and that you'd like to find out about their job hunting experience, what they do on a daily basis, etc. keep it informal and you'll be fine.

anyways, a lot of it comes down to personality traits and how you want to spend your time.

do you like accounting? research or banking might be for you.
do you like sixteen hour days? banking.
do you like the idea of discounting cash flows (in slightly more exotic ways than you've seen in your undergrad)? banking
do you like following economic trends and stories? research or trading.
do you like following a few companies or an industry really closely? research (but banking could also give you an industry to work within).
do you like products (cmo vs. cap vs. equity-linked derivatives)? sales or trading.
do you like dealing with clients? sales or banking.
do you like high pressured situations? trading (or, to a somewhat lesser extent, banking)

i could go on, but you get the idea. by speaking with people and having a long hard think, you'll come to have a better idea what you want to do. good luck.

Sorry it took me so long to respond, I've been studying for an exam.

There is a lot to think about. Yikes. I have ordered both books you've suggested and plan on reading them over the next few weeks. I am interested in most everything, except sales (too much retail).

Knowing this, is there any analysis books that will help me self-study? Also, if I do self-study, how do I show this on a resume? I'd imagine "knowledgable in x, y, and z".

Thanks all.

 

[Andy Nguyen]

Did you see the mater reading list on our site?
There is a link to it from the right side panel.
You will get pretty good idea about if this is a career for you after reading all the literature, both free and classic.