It’s Only A Summer, Right?

Starting with the second, better scenario first, if you get stuck in a bad group (whether for the future placement, deal flow, hours/balance, team, etc) as a SA you are definitely not screwed here. The big objective in this case is to do your job, do it well and essentially tough it out with a smile on your face for those 2-3 months. Remember the SA position is exactly that, a position for the summer and as long as you stay in everyone’s good graces, you should have a decent enough experience and be able to leverage that into an opportunity with a better group – whether with your SA employer or a different IB.

As a SA, especially if you want to stay at the firm you are currently at, you will need to work hard and land that FT offer. Landing the offer, however, does not usually mean that you HAVE TO stay with your current group – as with most BBs, landing the offer means that you have a FT offer with the bank, not definitely and specifically within your SA group. Yes, if your group likes you and you wanted to stay in your group, you’d definitely have a great shot at that, but for the sake of this article, we will assume that you prefer another group. In order to make this group switch into not just any group, but your group of choice, you should definitely use your time as a SA to not only build experience, but also to build a network or at least network with a few bankers in your top groups of choice. This will definitely help you to land in the group you prefer come the following summer, when you begin your FT analyst career.

It’s Not A Lifetime, But It Can Certainly Feel Like One

Moving past the SA scenario, the other case involves getting place in your less than ideal group as a FT analyst. While in this case you do not have the ability to work a summer and then move on as part of a structured SA program, you are definitely not screwed and doomed to this particular group or industry for all eternity (yes, the exaggeration is completely necessary). In this case you’ve got a few options as to re-branding yourself in a new group/industry, but before I go into those, we need to quickly discuss how to prepare yourself for those options.

Regardless of the group you are placed in, in order to highlight yourself in a proper fashion when preparing to make your move, you need to be a star in that group while you are there. Essentially, treat the group as if it were your top choice by pushing for the big projects, getting more work on your current projects, offering to help out on other assignments, doing additional research and generally showcasing yourself as a team player and strong analyst. Yes, it is often hard to motivate yourself for something your heart isn’t in, but remember, it’s still valuable experience and will you to build your candidacy when making a push, especially if pushing for another group within the bank (good news travels fast, but bad news, as in you’re lazy and useless, will travel faster). Additionally, make sure to meet your whole team – this again follows the being a good team member path – and you definitely want to meet analysts, associates and senior bankers of other groups – use deal team contacts and your analyst class as a means of networking both for immediate opportunities and opportunities going forward.

Once you’ve shown yourself as a strong analyst, you can definitely begin to think about your next move. One way you can always go about re-branding yourself is by pursuing an MBA. While this path will definitely require the most time in your current position (as you probably won’t get into a strong business school until you’ve completed the 2-3 year analyst program), it will also open many doors for you in terms of on-campus recruiting, alumni network, as well as provide you with a fresh start as an associate. Additionally, since you’ve demonstrated your ability as a strong analyst, you should be able to land some strong letters of recommendation and ideally have at least one or two interesting deals to discuss.

Since business school is obviously not everyone, or at least not for everyone at one specific time, you might want an additional option. Along the same lines, 2-3 years in your bottom group choice might very be a nightmare for you, regardless of how well you perform during that time. With that in mind, we move onto the most popular alternative –the opportunity to make the Group Switch. Essentially, making the group switch within your bank will require all of the above preparation and work, with an emphasis on, of course, networking. Remember, moving to a new group within your bank is always easier than getting into a new bank – so use that to your advantage. Once you’ve established some sort of a reputation within your bank, it will be easier and preferable for the new group to satisfy its hiring needs internally, rather than by looking outside to a completely new person. Also, generally speaking your current team won’t have much hard feelings, especially since you can talk to them about it when you know you have an opportunity to move into the new group rather than just springing this on them last minute – you can give them a heads up and put in the time to make a smooth transition for everyone involved, even if it requires a little extra work for a few weeks (it’s better than burning bridges).

Finally, you can make the push to move to a new bank through utilizing your network. Of course the key here will be in maintaining discretion in your networking efforts. You don’t want to shout from the roof tops that you are leaving bank X until you know you’ve got something definite (and even then, a little tact still goes a long way in terms of maintaining good relationships). This avenue is most appealing for someone who likes their group/industry, but doesn’t particularly care for their team’s deal flow, work/life balance or doesn’t really get along with a member(s) of their team. In this case, you would love to stay in your industry, just move elsewhere, where you find a better fit. The reason why I say this option is best is because 1) you want to stay in your industry/group, just move to another employer and 2) other banks will have a much easier time taking on an analyst from another bank if they want to stay in the same group, rather than start completely fresh. For example, I knew an analyst who wanted to make a move to another bank that had a stronger footprint in the M&A space after his first year. That analyst was highly ranked and working in leveraged finance space currently. When this person interviewed with 2 or 3 other potential employers (with a bit of network help), the other employers were interested in bringing him on, but not as an M&A analyst, but rather as a leveraged finance analyst. While it is definitely possible to make a fresh start, it is easier to move within your bank.

While two years can definitely feel like a lifetime in IB, remember that you are only starting your career. As an analyst, you definitely have avenues to make a fresh start in a different group or industry. However, just because you have opportunities to make a switch, it does not mean that you should spit all over your current opportunity and just expect something new to come along. Be smart, be tactful, work hard, and keep your eyes open – you’ll find a new opportunity or, at the end of the day, you might actually decide to stay in what was once your bottom group choice.

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Generally speaking, IB bonuses will be higher than capital market banker bonuses moving up the chain. However, in most banks, the bonuses will come from the same bonus pool – in other words, at the analyst level your bonuses will be based on ranking regardless of group. As you move into VP and higher, bonuses will be based on your performance and the performance of your group with the group that brings in the most revenue generally getting, understandably, the largest piece of the pool. Personally, unless you are really interested in DCM, I would go with a different product group within IB (such as leveraged finance, M&A, or Project Finance – in those banks where PF is an independent group) or an industry group (energy and power, financial institutions, technology, etc) of interest.

That said, on an analyst and associate level, there really isn’t a difference in bonus figures. Additionally, in DCM, at least high grade DCM, the hours are often a bit better, and there will be more client interaction a bit sooner, but the modeling is nearly non-existent – at least in terms of interesting modeling such as M&A, project or lev fin modeling.

I landed a SA position, but am still considering other options for FT – should I reach out to my contacts now, wait until the internship is over, or not at all? Will my contacts talk with the bankers here and get me shunned?

You’ve got a few questions here, so let me tackle each of them one at a time.

First, while the Street is small, there is nothing wrong with networking and, generally speaking, your other contacts won’t go running to your current bank and be like “hey, check this out – so and so is totally screwing you guys – don’t offer him a FT position.” It’s expected that you will shop around, network and keep your options open if for no other reason than you don’t officially have a return offer yet (and won’t have one until nearly the end of your internship or so – even if it implied beforehand). Also, it’s always good to stay connected to your alumni and contacts not just for immediate use, but for down the line – if you are ever thinking of making a move or helping out a friend, etc. In short, definitely network and definitely put the feelers out there.

Now, to the 2nd question – whether you should start networking now. I definitely think that putting the feelers out now and making a big push is acting too soon. You want to give things some time – let people begin their internships, and start looking towards FT before really reaching out – you don’t want your contacts to think that you are miserable in your current position or that you don’t care about it – you want them to see that you’ve experienced it, like it, are learning a lot from it, but are considering other options for FT. That said, waiting until the end of August, if not later, is definitely delaying a bit too much (considering you have options and contacts already). In other words, waiting until August/September is fine, but in your case, you’ve already got several avenues to pursue – so pursue them. I would recommend that you wait until you are about half-way through your internship and have worked on some projects and learned a few things so that you have some valid talking points and, honestly, selling points. Essentially, I’d start thinking about reaching out towards the end of July – take it slow, but definitely make your move. This will give you enough time to pace yourself and continue to build the connections.

Is using Linkedin is a viable way of networking when contacting alums and such. Would someone think I am a creep if I randomly sent them an ‘inmail’? Sorry if this is a stupid question, but I figure it is better to ask and know than have no idea at all.

To your question, it is definitely not stupid, and one that I hear fairly often. The purpose of LinkedIn is to actually connect people with other people – more specifically, professionals with professionals that have common points of interest who otherwise, might not have made that connection. While everyone that you reach out to will not come running with open arms, you will absolutely find several people that are interested in making the connection and helping you out – whether with advice, insight, a recommendation, or a combination of the 3. Just as with an alumni database, the key when reaching out is to be patient and let the contact grow. At the same time, however you want to be persistent and really cast a wide net. Craft an articulate email mentioning the mutual point of interest (your school, for example), and then ask if they’d be available to offer a bit of advice and such. Start slow, and then, if they show an interest, you can talk more about school, their background, how they broke in and more. You’ve got some time, so really use it and make it count.

I am trying to get placed into my BB’a M&A team for the summer and I’ve gotten in touch with the VP staffer for M&A and set up a time to speak. Honestly though, I’m not sure what I’m going to say. I reached out to indicate my interest etc. I’ve spoken with an analyst in the team who was cool, but I honestly have no idea what I’m going to ask the staffer.

Just be yourself and be genuine. You should talk to the staffer about the number of projects that have been coming in, the team dynamic (personalities, interests, etc), what they are looking for when the dole out projects to analysts, etc. Try to show your interest in the group and the field and ask a few questions accordingly. Remember, it doesn’t have to be a big formal interview – keep it casual and enjoy the opportunity.

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The spring internship in WM will not hurt you unless you are indeed fairly certain that your GPA will suffer. If your GPA is going to take a big hit, I would advise against the internship. Additionally, if you think you are going to be miserable, then again, don’t take it, as it will not help you much in terms of building quality experience, good recommendations and contacts, etc.

When it comes right down to it, an internship in WM is neither going to really provide you with a strong outlet to network with bankers nor create a strong avenue to leverage your position into an IB opportunity. Beyond that, your Big 4 internship can help you, or it can do little for you depending on the group you are in. If you are in audit, it won’t help nearly as much as if you are in more of an advisory role or something similar. At the very least, however, the Big 4 internship will put a strong name on your resume, provide you with some solid experience and give you an internship for the summer (as opposed to nothing – which will definitely NOT help you to break into IB).

The bottom line is if you think you can keep your GPA up (which doesn’t seem to be the case) and think you will enjoy it, take the WM internship as it is a solid opportunity. Otherwise, drop it, as a strong GPA will definitely help you more than a PT WM internship in terms of breaking into IB.

In order to earn a FT IB slot with a BB firm, do I need a SA internship in IB with a BB (I am thinking of enjoying my last summer of peace)?

While it certainly helps to land a FT offer, you can definitely break into FT BB without doing a SA program. Just as you would when going for SA programs, the key is in networking and delivering a strong resume. The difference here is that you will be competing with many applicants who have IB experience as a result of their SA positions (whether with a BB, boutique, etc). The biggest benefit to the SA program is that you can earn a FT spot and then not have anything to worry about during your senior year – no recruiting and interviewing, unless you don’t want the position, as you have already locked up a FT offer. Beyond that, the SA program will offer concrete IB experience that will help you to stand above many other applicants from target and semi-target schools (whether you attend one or not).

The bottom line is if you earn a SA opportunity (again with a BB, boutique, etc), it wouldn’t be a bad idea to take it – if for no other reason than to make sure that IB is actually for you and that you can and want to handle it and make it your profession for the next year, 2, 3, etc. If, however, you don’t land one or really don’t want one, then at the very least I would work the networking channels and try to land an internship either in boutique IB or at least something related to IB – advisory, corp dev, consulting, etc – something calling on a similar skill set and fairly competitive. If you can land a solid position such as something listed in the previous sentence, you should position yourself pretty well to land a FT IB position with a BB – especially if you attend a target or semi-target (if not, this will still certainly help you to level the playing field).

For breaking into BB IB, is it better to accept a summer P/E internship or a boutique IB internship as a freshman/sophomore (before SA IB recruiting)?

As a freshman/sophomore to land either of those opps is incredibly impressive and neither option would hurt you. That said, just as with all opportunities, you want to go where you will build the greatest skill set and have the broadest experience in order to continue to position yourself in the best possible light as you move towards FT recruiting. If the boutique seems to offer you transaction experience and such, then that would definitely be a great path to take in terms of preparing yourself for BB IB and ultimately, FT IB. If, however, the P/E job seems like you would be working on more transactions and concrete projects, while the IB role seems a bit more juvenile in nature, then go with the P/E shop. Bottom line is both opportunities sound solid and both will help you as you move to pursue SA IB and then FT IB – go with whichever seems to offer the greatest experience set and don’t look back.

Why didn’t I get more offers – is this a tough year or am I just making the wrong moves?

I honestly can’t say why exactly you didn’t get too many offers. It is always a very competitive process selecting from pools of the most intelligent and capable people. Just getting interviews is impressive and beyond that it becomes a matter of fit and interview technique. You might want to consider some of my interview prep services that I offer ahead of his FT recruiting as I have helped numerous candidates impressive their interview skills and land offers. Besides interview technique and interview question responses there is also a “luck of the draw” factor to consider. There are many talented and capable students, but only so many slots – sometimes the fit isn’t right, sometimes a few small missteps can add up and sometimes you fall just a bit shy of the stronger applicants at that particular superday (not even overall – just that day). Keep your head up, stay focused and driven, and try to avoid common interview missteps.

I was wondering if you have any idea about the best course of action regarding smaller boutiques because most of the time their websites don’t mention anything about internship opportunities.

Generally speaking, I would recommend that you draft a strong letter of inquiry (check out my cover letter and resume services) and resume to ensure that you are putting your best foot forward. Besides that, you need to search the usual suspects (Craigslist, efinancialcareers, etc) and then perform general Google searches for boutiques closer to you. Don’t be afraid to make some phone calls and send out inquiry emails to ask about internship opportunities. Additionally, make sure to have a solid elevator pitch ready to go highlighting a few key skills and accomplishments as well as your interest in banking for when you get bankers on the phone. It will definitely be a tough road, but it is absolutely possible – reach out to firms looking for FT analysts, interns and even those firms that don’t have any need listed – simply put: cast a wide net. Paid or unpaid, the biggest thing here is to just gain some solid experience.

Is it too late to reach out as a sophomore who has not yet received any opportunities?

It’s definitely not too late to reach out. At the end of the day, even if you don’t earn any position, it is great practice – you want to be comfortable cold calling and you want to be comfortable on the phone, discussing yourself, different companies, technicals, etc.

The key here will be in getting to the point and being prepared to showcase your skill set as well as your interest in the company. Do some research, prepare some questions and get right to it – fire out some inquiry emails, or make some cold calls and be flexible. Explain that you are interested in the learning opportunity and chance to witness the profession firsthand, rather than making money and such. Focus on your talents and how you can help them, even on a PT basis – if that’s what they need. What you want to avoid, however, is sounding desperate. There is a line between driven/hungry and desperate. You don’t want to beg for an opportunity, you don’t want to go on and on about how you’d feel privileged just to sort papers, make copies, get coffee, sweep the floor, etc – part of selling yourself is in having goals and standards. Yes, you might be asked to get coffee and make copies – but you should be vocal in your goals to learn, to grow and to contribute to the team.

Learn about the company, know what you are looking to get out of the opportunity (but be realistic – don’t expect to close a bunch of deals, run models, etc as a soph on a cold call) and be comfortable, yet persistent. There are a lot of boutiques out there and if you can work unpaid, you might actually get some solid experience ahead of junior recruiting. Remember, worst case scenario is you are in the same position as you are in now (no offer). In other words, give it your all – no one is going to hold a grudge, no one is going to reject you next year because you cold called a few places this year.

First, it depends on how long you were at the FoF internship – if you were only there for a few weeks or less, you can probably leave it off. If you left on poor terms and won’t expect a good recommendation – perhaps they feel you left them high an dry since you committed to stay until XXX and left early, then you should leave it off your resume as well (this is assuming you weren’t there for like 3-4+ months). If, however, you were there for at least 2+ months and there were no hard feelings when you left, you could probably put it down on your resume with bullet points encompassing whatever it is that you did while there. You don’t need to mention leaving or leaving early for another gig, etc – your reason for leaving doesn’t need to be on your resume, only your experiences and responsibilities.

Next, regarding your new internship, you will want to put the basics down – in other words, firm name, date you started, position and location. Regarding specific bullet points, you should not put down what you expect to do, you should only put down what you’ve done. Wait as long as possible to submit for the SA at Citi – until deadline, and by then, ideally, you’ve done at least a few things of interest that you can put on your resume – even if embellished a bit. When it comes to a standard resume drop, applying at the deadline as opposed to a week or so early shouldn’t make much of a difference.

Remember, it’s one thing to add a bit of flavor to your resume, it’s another thing to put down tasks that you haven’t performed and may not perform. If I were you, I would hold off until the deadline and then fill in the position with a few bullet points on what you’ve already done and really try to sell it. If you throw too much on there, it will be obvious that something is a bit off since you’ve only been there a week or a few weeks. If you get to the interview, you can absolutely update them on what you’ve done since the drop, which will only make selling your candidacy easier.

So I got a 1st round BB interview, but when I applied, I wrote down on my cover letter that I was competing in an academic competition. Between coursework and a job, however, my preparation took a back seat and I dropped out. Can this really hurt my interview chances or am I overreacting?

This really isn’t a big deal. Granted, it is an oversight and no longer true, but: 1) cover letters are read briefly and often as a “check-the-box”, 2) even if you are asked about it, just be honest and mention that between drop and now, your courses became too demanding, etc and you decided to withdraw rather than deliver something of sub par quality, and 3) while it is an interesting point, even if the reviewer read it and liked it, it isn’t something that is a banker-killer – it’s not something terribly relevant nor entirely necessary – more just a fun talking point, which, as the description implies, might be fun, but if not there, you are still worthy of that same interview and opportunity (assuming all else is true, of course).

What would be the BBs? Would UBS, fixed income be a good BB to have summer internship? Also, is S&T internship less prestigious etc than IBD? Or, are both S&T and IBD together get referred to as IBD or is it only IBD (M&A) that gets called IBD? Of the two which is preferable? Or is this question dumb in some way? Thanks.

As a rule of thumb there are no “dumb questions” – although I’ve seen some contenders. The “BBs” are essentially the bulge bracket banks – the big banks and players in the IB space – including: Goldman, MS, JPM, DB, Citi, CS, UBS, Wells/Wachovia, Barclays, and probably a few others I am forgetting (strictly talking BBs and not elite boutiques and such).

Getting beyond that, although UBS is a weaker name among the BBs right now (due more to internal issues than IB problems), it is still a strong name in the space and carries some weight – especially in terms of SA opportunities to prepare for a FT push. Fixed Income can refer to S&T and/or IB and/or Credit depending on the position within the space. I am assuming it is either S&T or IB – either way, it should be a solid opportunity.

Finally, to your last question, IB and S&T are both true front office roles and carry, more or less, equal prestige – but they are quite different from each other. It is not a matter of which is better or preferable, but more a matter of which you prefer – if you are interested in IB, then S&T won’t help as much – if, however, you are interested in S&T, then an S&T SA with UBS will absolutely be helpful.

IB refers to more than just M&A – although M&A is nowadays synonymous with IB in many circles. IB includes all industry groups (consumer and retail, technology, media, energy and power, etc) and all product groups (M&A, leveraged finance, high grade, etc) within the IB.

The bottom line is that it all depends on what you are most interested in. Additionally, even if you are interested in IB, accepting an SA position in S&T with UBS will still definitely help as they both carry high levels of prestige and often rely on similar skill sets (even though a SA position in IB would be preferable in this case). The biggest thing in that case will just be in defending your interest in IB, when interviewing for IB FT offers.

It’s getting late in the season and I’ve been rejected for a few SA opportunities. Over the years I’ve built an extensive list of contacts through alumni and linkedin. Should I just send out a mass email to all of them this week? It would definitely save time, but is it worth it?

I would definitely reach out to your contacts, but I would not go with a mass email as a mass email is very impersonal and makes your contacts feel like they are nothing more than resume droppers especially since many of them don’t know you very well if at all. Instead, I would send the emails out 1 at a time, and take your time. Don’t wait 3 months to do it, but it’s perfectly fine to tailor a few emails to your best or most engaged 10, 20, 50 contacts, and then see what types of response you get over the next week or so. Then send another batch if you need to dig deeper. You never want to call on everyone all at once if you only need a few at a time to get the ball rolling. Save your pull and keep them in reserve and interested for another day. For now, look to your most interested contacts and start there.

One of my interviewers (SA) was a VP in M&A. I received the offer, but I definitely want to get into his group. The sell day is later, but is there a way I can reach out to him to really indicate my interest and get the ball rolling? How should I go about saying that I am talking to other firms but would come to his firm if I got into his M&A group?

To the last part of your questions first, there really isn’t much of a way to get hired directly into a group during a standard SA (it is for the IB position and then the sell day follows where group selection is made) – only if you are a direct hire into the group will you have a guaranteed spot in the group. That said, there are ways to definitely increase your chances.

First, you should definitely reach out to the VP and ask him a few more questions, express your interest in the team, and ask him if it would be alright one day to even potentially come in and meet a few of the guys, etc – see how the team flows, works, etc – briefly of course, perhaps before an early lunch. All of this will show both your enthusiasm and interest in not just the opportunity, but also the group. Once you begin speaking with him a bit more and develop a bit of a better relationship, you can then talk to him about SA opps in his group, your interest in specifically working with his team, his thoughts and so forth.

From there, you might have an avenue to speak to HR to lock in a spot with the group, or potentially persuade the VP to push hard for you (which will definitely help your cause). The first step, above all else, is to work on developing the relationship with the banker and even some of his team – get the email going, ask some questions, express an interest, and then offer to meet for a drink (coffee) or a quick lunch – really try to learn about the group and fit into the team’s dynamic.

With a decent SAT score, should I take the GMAT and try to ace it as a freshman or sophomore in order to take the focus off of the SAT and if so, will it help me to land internships?

A high GMAT is definitely a positive mark on your resume, but as a freshman, soph, or even junior, the SAT is the standardized test of choice and merit, not the GMAT. Showing the GMAT on your resume and not your SAT score will also raise flags as to how poorly you must have done on your SAT given your choice to highlight the GMAT, a B school exam. Additionally, since the GMAT is only good for 5 years, if you decide to attend B school, it is highly likely that you will have to retake the exam, study all over again, etc. Finally, the GMAT is not going to really help since, as I previously mentioned, at your age, the SAT and GPA are the pivotal academic points of interest – as long as you have a solid SAT, just focus on maintaining or earning a high GPA, start networking, and keep your eyes open for opportunities. Save the GMAT for senior year, or later.

Stay tuned for future posts on what an analyst really does, staying ahead of potential layoffs and more!

Number to Ask

Many people have asked me at what point should I stop asking questions and how many questions crosses the line between interested candidate and blindly annoying rambler. Unfortunately there is no magic number of questions you should automatically ask and no sudden bell that goes off when you’re at the interviewer’s recommended limit. That said, there are some general guidelines to follow when it comes to how many questions to ask. Generally speaking, 2-3 (I try to stick closer to 2 unless one of the interviewer’s answers was really short and left an opening for a follow-up question or such) solid questions are enough to leave a pleasant closing impression and appear genuinely interested without annoying the interviewer.

There are of course exceptions to this rule such as casual conversation. If the dialogue between the interviewer and you has become a bit more casual/comfortable, then you can allow it to play out for a few minutes. In this case, however, it is no longer the number of questions, but rather the time that should guide your moves. As the dialogue appears to wind down and you’ve covered a few topics in the closing questions, if the interviewer asks for if you have any other questions or leaves an opening, use that opportunity to close the interview for yourself to avoid the risk of taking your interviewer’s courtesy and turning it into his/her mistake.

Another exception to the rule runs closer to the extremes in terms of available time. If you are in the middle of a superday interview, for example, and there are other applicants in the middle of the process, you need to be aware of the time constraints on the interviews. In other words, if the interview comes to an end with just a few minutes before the time expires, do not try to squeeze 2 or 3 questions in – instead, ask 1 solid question and then excuse yourself and thank them for their time citing the time and the other interviewees – being aware of your situation and courteous of the interviewer’s time and process will definitely help you more than squeezing in 1 more rushed question. On the other side of the coin, if there is a lot of time left over, rather than speeding out of the interview, you can use this time to ask an extra question – ideally something that can stir up some sort of conversation and create more of a casual atmosphere – perhaps something hobby-related, or group activity related – this is not an opportunity to leave the interview and rest, but rather an opportunity to show your fit with team.

Topics to Cover and Not Cover

Just as you should not as 30 questions of your interviewer, you should also keep in mind that this is still an interview, and, as such, there are certain topics that you can and should cover and certain topics that you generally should try to avoid (unless of course, the interviewer brings them up in conversation).

When asking your interviewer questions, some of the best questions come from topics including his/her background – such as how and why he/she got into banking, how he/she chose that particular industry or product, etc. Besides background, ask questions on his/her team such as team dynamic, group activities, etc and the popular “what-if” questions meaning those questions that put the interviewer in a particular scenario or ask him/her to recount on events of his/her past and if he/she would do anything differently. For example, you can ask the interviewer what the one thing that he/she wishes he/she knew before getting into the business and whether that point would have changed his/her mind on entering the business. Beyond those questions, you can also ask about his/her most enjoyable moments/deals were in banking, what the most important qualities are for analysts, what mistakes he/she has seen analysts make, etc.

Of course for all of the interview topics that are acceptable and recommended, there is also a list of topics/ideas that it is generally better to stay away from. The most popular questions that I have heard from topics that you should try to avoid involve making the closing questions sound like a news reporter from CNBC interviewing him/her by grilling the interviewer on specifics on deals and market analysis (where do you see the market going in the next year or so, for example). Additionally, stay away from topics that can easily be found through a simple google search such as bank specifics, general questions on investment banking, etc (and of course questions on religion and politics – this should be assumed, but I figure it is better to mention it than leave it out and have someone walk down that path). Stay away from league table questions and street reputation questioning as this can both be found online and can be a bit offensive. Finally, stay away from exit opps questions such as “what P/E firms have you sent your analysts to” before actually landing the job and checking out the sellday – some of you might be laughing at this, but trust me, I have heard it before.

Pitfalls

I’ve went through a few things that you should be doing and covered a bit of material on what you should not be doing, but there are also some common pitfalls to avoid that relate to the past points and enter some new territory as well. First and foremost, avoid asking too many questions – yes, I mentioned it in a roundabout way before, but it needs to be mentioned again as it is the most common pitfall that I encounter. Remember, some interviewers will end the interview for you, while others will keep asking if you have any other questions even after time has expired – it is up to you to know the situation and be prepared to bring the interview to a close. Along the same lines as the previous point, try not to ask multiple part questions. In other words, it is one thing to ask a 2-part question, but I have heard candidates ask 3,4, or even 5-part questions that run about a paragraph long. Frankly, by the time you get to the end of the question I can barely remember where you started. Keep the questions interesting, but also simple. Don’t assume that asking two questions means you ask 1 question and then a giant 4-part question requiring a 20-minute response – the closing questions should leave a relaxed and enjoyable impression, not a tense and stressed feeling.

Beyond that, do not ignore the answers the interviewer provides to your questions and avoid spacing out during his/her responses. I have heard candidates ask a good question, then after a few moments the interviewer answers the question only to have the candidate ask a follow-up that the interviewer literally just answered in his/her previous response. I’ve also seen candidates space out, lose eye contact, yawn, fumble around with keys, etc, during an interview – this is just silly and something that you should have no problem avoiding.

The last pitfall that you need to avoid is subtle, but definitely real – cutting the interviewer off mid-response. I have had candidates ask me a question and then halfway through my response they (I assume) think of a follow-up question and just cut me off to ask it. Sometimes they apologize for cutting me off and sometimes they don’t – either way, don’t do it. If you think of a follow-up question just store it in your head for a few seconds and then when the interviewer has finished his/her response, ask it (this does not, however, mean that you should tune out the rest of the interviewer’s response when you’ve thought of the follow-up question – stay in the conversation!). Cutting off an interviewer is rude, creates a bit of that interrogation-room feel and is, simply put, not the impression that you want to leave just before closing the interview.

Knowing When to Close

This is a short point, but an important one – know when to close the interview. Whether it is because you have asked 2-3 questions, the interviewer is clearly becoming ready to end (by gauging his/her body language, he/she is checking the clock, he/she is closing answers quickly), or even just because you’re out of good questions (I know it sounds funny, but some people will try to force questions when they don’t have anything left to say to avoid ending the interview). In any case, you need to be prepared to end the interview. Simply decline to ask any further questions, thank the interviewer for his/her time, ask for a card or email address if he/she hasn’t already given you one, shake ends, and make your way out. Don’t be afraid to end the interview – it will hurt you more to ramble on and on or show a complete disregard for the interviewer’s time than to simply end the interview on a high note – a bit of showmanship (thank you George Costanza for those Seinfeld fans – ending on a high note).

Don’t Forget the Follow-Up Email

The last point that I will leave you with is regarding the follow-up email. I’m not going to give you guidelines or a sample follow-up/thank you email (maybe another time), but rather just remind you that you do indeed have a thank you email to utilize – so utilize it. In other words, use the thank you email to not just thank the interviewer and continue to express your interest in the opportunity, but also to ask another quick question if you have one and happened to run out of time during your interview or just to keep a dialogue between the 2 of you going. Remember, you’ve always got the follow-up thank you email to toss out another question – don’t hesitate to use it if for no other reason than to avoid running on during the interview.

That about covers it – stay tuned for more articles coming soon! As always, comment go below, and emails can be sent HERE.

Make the most out of a resume

Without a strong support network and a lot of closer friends on the inside, without a well-designed and well-articulated resume, you will have a very difficult time getting to the second stage of the process, the interviews, where, yes, the importance of the resume will diminish. As a SA candidate you are not expected to have a wealth of internship experience, nor are you expected to have banking experience – if you do, you will clearly stand above the rest and have an initial advantage over the competition (I say initial since, as I mentioned before, the resume diminishes in importance once you begin the interview process – here your experience will still absolutely help, but you’ll need the interview skills as well to keep your edge).

If you happen to have some highly relevant experience, if not actual banking experience, then the job of putting together your resume becomes more a matter of expressing your internship responsibilities well, highlighting select other aspects of your candidacy (such as involvement in a club or two) and making sure there are no obvious/grammatical errors throughout. This is not a problem that most SA candidates face – most SA candidates face the opposite problem – not having the clearly relevant or actual banking internship experience and need to overcome that issue.

As I mentioned before, you don’t need to have clearly relevant experience to get into a SA program – it helps, but you can do it without it as well. With some work experience, your best bet will be to first and foremost sell your school’s brand, your GPA, relevant coursework – essentially some relevant and impressive factors from your educational background. From there, you will want to craft your limited work experience bullet points to be as relevant to banking as you can – working in operations/accounting can sound relevant if you focus on some analysis and even number crunching, even non-profit work or tutoring can sound relevant. If you have little-to-no work experience (and for those with some work experience after they’ve highlighted said work experience) after highlighting your school, GPA, coursework and so forth, you will absolutely need to sell your undergraduate club/organization involvement as both interesting and relevant to recruiters. Holding officer positions in clubs and having a visible impact on the organization can be a selling point as strong as most work experience, especially when it comes to SA recruiting. The key with selling club involvement on your resume is in selling the relevance of your work as it pertains to banking, while demonstrating how you’ve stepped up as a leader, whether of the club, a sub committee or just of the tasks your office is responsible for. Leadership, coupled with a relevant experience base is definitely going to impress recruiters, especially when lacking directly relevant work experience.

Working the interview

Everything is looking up and after all of the networking, resume editing, applying and hoping (if you’ve done any of this), you’ve made it – you’ve received the first round interview invitation. Walking into that first round interview is a welcome sight for many since the interview is now the focal point of the application (not the resume, background, etc – although they all still matter) and fate, in a matter of speaking, is once again in your hands – for a little while. Once you get past the excitement of getting the interview call/email, it’s time to start your preparation. While the SA and FT interviews are similar, especially for those SA candidates that have past internship experience or are finance/accounting majors, there are still some differences that need to be touched on.

Exceptions aside, the SA interview will often rely heavily on fit given the lack of a technical background in the applicant pool – meaning a lack of strong internship experience (that requires a comparable skill set to IB, if not IB) and/or a lack of technical coursework in Finance and Accounting. For many candidates, this internship would be their first “real” finance/technical internship – they may have had club involvement or other unrelated internships, but nothing of this caliber – not the worst internship to lead off with – that’s for sure.

SA candidates need to be prepared for all of the behavioral questions (check out my interview guide for more on the types of the questions and, of course, explanations) from background to goals, from strengths to failures and everything in between. Although the manner in which you respond to these questions will generally be similar to FT applicants, SA candidates need to be especially prepared for them since interviewers are going to rely heavily on these responses when assessing your candidacy.

One fit question in particular that a SA candidate should pay attention to is the goals question – whether phrased in the form of intermediate (3-5 year) goals, next step (post SA goals), or something else entirely. For FT candidates this question is usually not as dangerous since FT analysts need only to express an interest in IB and can then have various longer/intermediate-term goals – whether move to a boutique, buy side, etc. FT associate candidates on the other hand need to show an interest in growing with the firm (or at least they should since the associate position is essentially used to shape the next VPs). SA candidates need to think of the goals question more as associates do than analysts. Specifically, going for a SA position, you should know that next year you plan to accept a FT position with the bank and in the next few years you will be working towards completing the FT analyst program. Remember, the SA program is a grooming and interview tool used by banks to gauge who they want to become a part of their next incoming FT analyst class and if that’s not what you at least say you want, you’ll definitely be in a bit of trouble – no bank wants to hear that you are going to use them for their SA program to land at a better bank – or that you are only accepting this SA position because the better bank you applied to dinged you.

Getting beyond the fit questions, some applicants will be faced with technical questions. Some candidates will be faced with the highest level questions such as “what are the 3 financial statements,” while others will be asked more complex questions on transaction impact on the statements, discounted cash flow, and so on – depending, of course, on your level of aptitude in these fields. Additionally, due to a common gap in technical knowledge, brain teasers can often become a headline of the SA interview (especially for more quant-inclined candidates such as math, stat, econ, etc majors). Brain teasers come in 2 main types – those questions that have a specific answer (degrees between the two hands on a clock at time X) and those questions that do not have a definitive answer (bowling bowls in a large building). In either case, the more important aspect of your response is in how you arrive at your answer, not the answer itself. In other words, candidates need to be comfortable enough to walk the interview through their thought process even if they arrive at the wrong answer – showing an articulate and lucid thought process will carry much more weight than just sitting quietly, or with your head buried in a piece of paper and delivering an answer (whether correct or incorrect). It’s fine to take a few moments and think, or write down some steps, but just remember to keep the interviewer engaged and aware of your thought process and the way in which you are working out your problem – these questions are to test how you think and solve problems (as well as your confidence and ability to communicate) – use these questions to sell your candidacy, not shoot it in the foot.

Forward-Looking Thoughts

Well thank heavens! You earned the interviews, nailed them and managed to land yourself a SA position – congratulations! Instead of being excited, however, you’re wondering if you should hold out for another opportunity and look for something better (such as a better name brand bank or if you are hired into 1 group but wanted another) – maybe push a few other contacts, keep networking, prep for a few more interviews, etc. The answer is: unless you are really close to landing another position and will find out before this deadline passes, absolutely not!

If you have to “settle” for your second or third choice of bank for IB, that’s not a problem at all. Remember, the SA program is nothing more than an opportunity to build experience/your resume for a few months and then earn a FT offer and/or leverage that experience into an offer with a better bank. Utilize your expanded list of contacts for the FT employment search in a few months with a much stronger resume. Additionally, you might find that you really like the bank you interned with over the summer and want to stay – in this case, if you’ve earned the FT return offer, you can relax during your senior year and not go through all of the stress of recruiting, interviewing, planning and praying all over again. Finally, keep in mind that landing a SA position with this bank, does not mean you will have the same fortune with a better bank, or even a lower-ranked bank – this bank liked you, you might not interview as well, a different reviewer might not like your resume as well, etc – you never know – for a 3-month program, take the experience and then worry about your next move – you do not want to end up accepting an offer with a lesser company, let alone in a lesser or even unrelated group because you held out for a better IB SA internship – IB SA is better than Operations SA (and most things in between) when it comes to FT IB recruiting.

On a similar note, if you have to “settle” for a group outside of your main group(s) of interest, that is alright as well. Again, it is only a summer position, and at the end of the program, if you are offered FT employment, you can then discuss other group opportunities. Throughout your SA internship, you will also want to network with as many bankers as you can in your favorite groups – this will certainly give you an upper hand when it comes time to request the move for FT. Connect with the bankers in your favorite groups, find out about FT opportunities, etc – they will be your best allies when it comes to your pitch to make the move. Remember, it is much easier to change groups once you are in, have a capable reputation and have networked with some of the group, than if you are applying blind, with no connections from another bank, school, etc.

Stay tuned for future posts, products and much more! If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, drop them below or send me an email HERE!

Make sure your contacts are updated and saved in your blackberry and an Excel backup

This sounds like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised by how many people forget to do this, or, worse, forget that their blackberries and corporate laptops actually belong to the corporation, and are taken back upon displacement. If your blackberry is yours, make sure all of the information is up to date, if it is not (either way, really), make sure all of the information is backed up in an excel file and that you’ve got it if you need it. Regarding which information should be saved – think of all of the basics: name, cell and work phone numbers, address (whether office or home), email address (corporate and personal if you have both, but at least corporate), company (especially if it’s a client contact and not a bank contact), position (analyst, VP, etc) and group (Leveraged Finance, M&A, Industrial Growth, etc – if applicable – if it’s a client, it might not be relevant). Additionally, you want to make sure that the spelling of the first and last name and email address is correct as I have spelled names wrong in the past and wonder why the hell the email wasn’t going through. Finally, as one additional point of interest to keep record of, although not by any means essential, for each contact (at least in your Excel file, where you will have more room), you can keep any talking points such as mutual interests, deals you’ve worked on together, and how you know the person (whether through someone, just through deals, etc) just as talking points and points of reconnection for the future.

Slowly get your name back on the street

I stress slowly here for two reason: 1) you don’t know if you are even going to be displaced, and if you are not, you might not be interested in putting out all of the feelers, giving off that impression and then not following through, and, more importantly, 2) you don’t want your current employer to find out that you are looking for other opportunities, leading them to believe that you are interested in leaving, which, needless to say, is a good way to ensure that you are part of the headcount reduction. The best way to slowly get your name out there is to follow a similar procedure as when you are looking to internally Make the Group Switch. Essentially, start slowly and quietly – reach out to contacts at perhaps a few other firms and put out the feelers. However, let your contact know that you are sensing layoffs, so want to get a preliminary interest – in other words, keep it quiet as you don’t want to guarantee a boot in the ass out the door.

Backup your deal-related work on a flash drive

This is sometimes a bit of a touchy topic depending on the bank, and depending on how comfortable you are with this, but if you get the opportunity, I would definitely recommend uploading, if nothing else, the work you’ve done on any of your closed deals. It’s often tough to remember all of the little details of a project, especially 6 months down the line when you are interviewing and asked about cash flows, discount rates, schedules, etc and by backing up your models, pitchbooks, etc on a flash drive you’ve now got the ability to look back on your projects ahead of your interviews to refresh your memory on any important deal-specifics so that you’re not caught off guard if those technical questions come out. I believe in being prepared for any situation and if you don’t have access to the specifics of your closed transactions it will be very hard to articulate exactly what you worked on, how you were able to perform it, and issues that came up and the ultimate resolutions – and all of this is definitely helpful during an interview and will definitely help to set you apart from those candidates that can only provide “high level” summaries of their transactions or less.

Considering this is often an intimidating task for many, there is an alternative. The alternative is to take hard copies of your documents – print out your models, pitchbooks and IMs, if nothing else, and keep them for your records. Of course you don’t need to print everything out at once, but start early, and over time working on printing out your transaction-related relevant docs for your records. Of course, this will require that you can keep the documents together, neatly, and in a safe place so that they aren’t thrown out, ripped up, or mixed up. I’d recommend starting folders at your house, just as you would in your cube, for each transaction. It won’t have the flexibility or convenience of the flash drive, but it is just as good for a quick review at your house ahead of an interview.

Look into filing for unemployment

This is definitely a point that people often ignore either because they assume that they will be able to find another position very quickly, or because they are, well, embarrassed that as an investment banker they would even need to consider unemployment. Put your egos aside and focus on the market and your finances, not your pride. There is nothing wrong with looking into the process, how long it takes to actually kick into action, how much you’d get and how long you’d be entitled to it. All of these issues matter, and if you take the proper steps early on, you will have one less thing to worry about if, in fact, the cut does come. Preparing yourself for the unemployment process can take at least a small measure of the stress off of you if you find yourself out of work and in need of finding a new employer. You may not ever use your new knowledge or need it, but when and if that cut ever comes your way, it is nice to have the knowledge ready to take immediate action and at least get some money into your pockets until you land that next position.

Polish the resume and cover letter

I’m thinking that this is a no-brainer, but in my experience it is often the “no-brainers” that I need to remind people of the most. By polish the resume and cover letter, I don’t just mean make or edits, or add a line to your current position, I mean fully revise your resume. In other words, look into your past deals, current projects, responsibilities, and so forth, and make sure your new resume fully explains all of these aspects of your current position. Next, look to all of your past experiences and see if anything there can use some rephrasing, some tweaking, or some deleting – if you are adding new experiences, you will probably have to cut some of the old – start with college-related activities and those not directly related to banking that may have helped you get the gig 2-3 years ago, but don’t matter nearly as much as your current projects. A past internship in a different field, college club involvement can be truncated to fit on a single bullet point towards the bottom of your resume (Organization – Dates – Position, such as Finance Club of XXXX – September XXXX to May XXXX – Treasurer) instead of 3-5 lines on your resume in your “Leadership” section where you describe your activities, etc. Remember, after a few years of experience your resume should usually be leading off with a strong work experience section, then move on to your education section (which is not already full, can be the new home of your club involvement as described above) and then whatever is left such as Hobbies, Skills, Interests, Volunteer Work, etc, depending on how much room you have left – but don’t short-change your professional experience to fit an extra Leadership or Hobbies bullet point.

Beyond the resume, your cover letters will have to be redone as well. Essentially, take the same approach here as with your resume. You should have much more strong work experience here than before, so you need to incorporate all of that into the body of your letter to demonstrate your strength as a candidate. Even if your cover letter is not read, at least it’s there and illustrates all of your capabilities as an outstanding analyst/associate, rather than having some outdated or sloppy letter that doesn’t, in all honest, do your candidacy any justice. Take the time while you’ve got it and are still getting paid to put together a strong cover letter – you can always come back and fine-tune it whenever you need it, but you need to clearly articulate your new experiences and skill set.

I know that reworking the resume and cover letter can often be difficult. Sometimes adding new experiences, etc is hard – finding the right phrasing and such, but many times deleting past experiences, etc is harder in that we are all connected to out experiences and can see the merit in them and how they have enhanced and continue to shape who we are. If you’re having difficulty letting go or finding the right way to express something, feel free to drop me an email Here and let me know. No, I’m not pitching my resume revision service by any means, but I can definitely understand the difficulty and have no problem helping you along with cleaning up a few points on your resumes (as I already do, so I guess that it’s really nothing new).

As always, comments go below and emails can be sent right Here. There are many more articles coming so stay tuned and if you have any suggestions for my articles or for the site in general, let me know!

Am I fluent in a language even if I don’t know some technical concept phrasing?

Not knowing technical phrases/words is not the same thing as not knowing how to discuss markets, go through your resume, etc in that language. You don’t need to know how to say WACC in the language to be fluent, but if you are not comfortable holding an entire conversation, going through your resume, etc in the language, then you are not fluent. Forgetting a word or two is not a big deal, but if you stumble the entire time and can’t get through more than 2 sentences without forgetting words, screwing up phrasing, etc – especially if you are speaking to someone who is fluent in the language, I would not advertise your skills in the language as fluent. You can learn some of the technical phrasing or words without a problem, but no one is going to teach someone who claims to be fluent in a language the basics in sentence construction, grammar and every 5th word in a conversation.

I am Starting group X in a month or two – what can I do to prepare?

I think that your best plan of attack will be to just relax and enjoy your time off for the next few weeks. Everything that you need to know about the job will be 1) covered in training and/or 2) covered on the desk in a much more comprehensive and applicable manner than you could hope to do by reading a few articles and such at home. You will be trained in everything that you need to know once you start and there will be ample time to learn it all. The same is true with PowerPoint and Excel – within 2 weeks or so you will have plenty of PPT training and will be good to go in that regard. For Excel, it depends which group you end up in – some groups generally don’t perform much modeling – but either way, again, you will be taught on the job. I understand your interest in getting ahead, but in this case, I would recommend you watch some CNBC and read the FT/WSJ to stay on top of the markets, deals, etc and then just relax – do something that you enjoy non-work/finance/banking related – once you start, you will have more than enough opportunities to do all of the banker tasks. Remember, a few weeks will go by very fast – enjoy them.

What if I haven’t spoken to a few of my contacts in a while, but don’t have anything life changing to share or don’t need any favors at the moment – what if I just want to keep the relationship alive and current?

If you don’t have any pressing or terribly interesting to discuss, question or share, but it has been a fair amount of time since you last spoke, there is nothing wrong with sending a very brief follow-up email just to touch base. If you have absolutely nothing to say, then it might be a bit tougher, but in general, if you are interning, or starting class again, there is nothing wrong with dropping a sentence or two on what’s new or starting with you and then check in to see how they are, how their group is doing and so forth. Keep it to topics previously discussed, and keep it brief. Thank them again for all of their help and close it. These types of letters are not as common, but are still a valuable means of keeping the communication path open until you actually need some help or have questions again. Additionally they act to keep the contact fresh and the person remembering who you are.

Interview question: Is it better to be hard working or smart?

I would treat this question the same way as the “Better follower or better leader” question and take the middle of the road approach. I would lead off by saying that while hard work is absolutely essential, without developing your intellect and putting your “smarts” to work, you will be working incredibly hard without accomplishing much more than the completion of a few projects. Using your smarts allows you to see the bigger picture and multi-task. Essentially, I don’t see them as independent options, but rather, as a necessary combination to succeed in this business and life – hard working, but still thinking and analyzing – having only half of the equation is being only half an analyst.

I was just wondering if there was an advantageous time to interview. For example, if there are 2 dates (Monday/Tuesday), one early and one later, should you pick the early one and think that its a rolling basis and therefore will be easier to fill in spots early? Or perhaps you should pick the later date due to the fact that you will be more “fresh” on their mind?

In terms of days, it doesn’t really matter much – maybe person to person, but not in general. In terms of time of day, early morning is often rough as the interviewer is still shaking the cob webs and may have not even had his/her coffee yet (no, this is not a joke, unfortunately). The very late morning/early afternoon interview is bad as well assuming it is a pre-lunch interview because the interviewer could be hungry, and if anything like me, a bit cranky just before feeding time.

In general, try to stick to mid morning and after lunch through mid afternoon interviews (this of course refers to one interview and not a superday, as a superday is the same schedule for everyone and covers the day). Once you get into late afternoon/evening you run into the interviewer being burnt from interviewing the whole day and either 1) being ready to go home or 2) being eager to get out of there and get back to real work so that he/she could possibly see his/her home sometime that night.

Sell Yourself

Sell yourself, not who you think the admissions committee is interested in buying. While pretending to be someone or pretending to have an interest in a particular field has worked for many applicants in the past, you have a far better shot at earning a spot in the upcoming B school class if you are genuine; if you describe yourself honestly and express your goals and interests from the heart. Don’t fabricate an elaborate scenario where you make up goals and feign an interest in what you think is a popular field – come interview time, if you even receive one, this will most likely hurt you, or at the very least, not allow you to show your full potential.

If you are genuinely torn between a few different paths, then obviously go with the more realistic and focused plan – you can always change your mind once you’re in. Remember one thing regarding the business school admission committees; no one knows exactly what or who they are looking for, or even what exactly they prefer year to year, applicant to applicant. Therefore, try as you may to tell them what they want to hear, you may end up standing in your own way and sabotaging your own candidacy.

Know the School, Know Your Goals

It doesn’t matter if the application you are putting together is for your dream school, a safety school, or anything in between, before drafting those essays, you should absolutely knows the ins and outs of the school, how your goals align to what the school offers, and what you can offer back to the school. A safety school should not be a school that is out of your reach by any means, but every year waves of students are rejected from the schools that they consider “safeties,” and often accepted to more prestigious schools (but sometimes not). While it can easily be argued that perhaps the applicant just thought too highly of him/herself, it is also highly possible, that, like dating, no one likes to be a second, third, or ninth choice. This is why it is your job as the applicant to make sure every school to which you apply feels like it is your dream school (don’t say it though, unless it’s true – it is far worse to be a liar, than to have someone think you consider them second best).

Sure you may dream of attending MIT, and Fuqua is a complete safety school, but it is important to remember three things:

(1) Rankings change (sure MIT is phenomenal, but you never know, Fuqua, could run up in the rankings);

(2) Perhaps after visiting Fuqua you fall in love with the campus, students and general school atmosphere and now like it as much as MIT, or more; and

(3) Perhaps Fuqua gives you a full scholarship and MIT gives you nothing, so you call MIT, speak with admissions and end up being offered 15% or 25% tuition to MIT (stranger things have happened, although MIT is known to be a bit on the stingy side).

While these scenarios are not incredibly likely, nor is gaining admission to MIT – the acceptance rate is only around 15%, remember, for each school, don’t just talk about your interests and goals, and really tell a story. Discuss your background and reasons for these goals and interests, and why/how they are significant to you – this will set you apart from many other potential applicants. The last thing that you want to do is burn bridges and shut doors on opportunities, especially when you are spending $200+ (application fee) and countless hours (application time) to have these opportunities.

Give Back

Start volunteering – even if you are just a few months from applying, it is alright. While there is a chance that some of the schools may think you are only volunteering to impress them, many will not (again, support this through your essays) – and worse case scenario is if you have to reapply next year, you will have stronger volunteer experience to support your candidacy.

By support your volunteer efforts through your essays I mean that you need to show both how you’ve impacted the organization, as well as, if not more importantly, how the organization has impacted you on a personal level. Showing a connection to the cause, even if you’ve only pursued the cause for a relatively short time is incredibly important and will speak volumes both to your commitment and to your experiences with the organization. Yes, your experiences might be discounted due to the lesser amount of time spent volunteering, but an articulate and heartfelt expression of those experiences will definitely help to offset that lack of time. Additionally, you can absolutely talk to past experiences that are related to this new effort, even if a bit dated, as a means of further showing your passion for and commitment to the cause, so that it further appears less like you’ve only taken up this activity “wow” business school.

For the specific types of volunteer opportunities to pursue, again, passion and commitment is far more valuable than name or activity. If you are interested in working with underprivileged students trying to succeed in school, or adults dreaming to create a better life for them and their families, tutoring could be a great way to give back. If you are interested in working with hands and changing your community one family at a time, Habitat for Humanity might be another avenue. If, perhaps, you’ve recently been to another country where you saw a need to heal the community and found an organization looking to make the necessary changes, feel free to look into that as well. At the end of the day, B school will be far more impressed with what you’ve done for the organization/community AND how the organization has impacted your life; your way of thinking; your beliefs.

Do Not Rush – GMAT First, B School Next

Don’t wait until the last minute to prepare for and take the GMAT – while some hopeful applicants have used this strategy and have succeeded, a majority crash and burn. The decision to go to business school should be a conscious, thought-out decision that takes time, preparation and patience – rushing to take the GMAT, or rushing to finalize your essays will more often than not result in sub par work (or at least not your best work), which will often lead to rejection and a lot of heartache and questions. Taking the time to plan ahead for the GMAT and business school applications in general will both result in a higher test score, and far more focused, genuine, and impressive applications.

As a general rule of thumb, if you are interested in applying to business school, I would recommend taking the GMAT at least 1.5 months ahead of your application due date, if not much, much sooner. I choose 1.5 months because in the event that you do not achieve your goal score, or don’t even approach the scores you’ve been seeing in practice exams, you now have enough time to prep a bit more and retake the exam (since you need to wait around a month or so before retaking it). Remember, continuing the message of this segment, taking the exam 1.5 months before your application due date means you should start studying 3.5 to 6 months before your application due date. While the material on the GMAT as a standalone collection of information is not terribly difficult, do not be fooled into thinking that you can master the material in 2 to 4 weeks and nail the GMAT. Studying the material takes time, familiarizing yourself with the test takes time, and building up the confidence and practice scores takes time – don’t short change yourself and have to settle for a 610, when you’ve been testing at the 680 level – put in the time, do the work, and get the score. This goes for both the GMAT and the application itself – half-assing the essays is the best way to ensure your rejection come decision time.

Too Good for Help, Too Good for Acceptance

Along the same lines as the previous point on preparation and patience, the business school application is a lengthy and fairly difficult process as a whole (not filling in your name and address, but describing accomplishments and awards, drafting the essays, and so forth). As a result, do not think that you are capable of writing a perfect application on your first draft and with no help from anyone else. Now I’m not telling you to go out and hire an essay or application service – far from it. I am, however, telling you to take your time with the application, don’t try to rush through your essays, carefully read the questions to ensure you are answering each aspect, and don’t be afraid to seek some help from a friend or a few friends that you trust and know can handle reading and critiquing essays of that caliber.

While asking for advice is often incredibly difficult, especially when you are sharing very personal experiences, sentiment, etc, it will absolutely help your chances of writing a very strong set of expressive essays. At the very least I would recommend that you ask someone to read the essays for grammar, spelling and punctuation as it is often those little mistakes that end up causing the most harm. Having a pair of eyes other than yours read the essays for grammatical, spelling and punctuation errors will greatly decrease the likelihood of seeing them in the final versions. Additionally, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to have someone read at least one or two of your essays for content – not to critique what you’ve written, but rather to express whether they understand the point you are trying to make and whether it is clear and expressive, rather than muddled and flat. This is often the most challenging aspect of the process, but having a trusted friend, if no one else, take a look at least one of your essays for this purpose will open your eyes to whether you are failing to capture that which you are really trying to capture – in terms of emotion, and experience.

On the opposite side of the coin, I would not recommend that you have dozens of people critiquing your essays. I have spoken with several applicants that wonder whether it is wise to have several people critique each essay, and the answer is no. The phrase “too many cooks in the kitchen” is the best way I can think of to describe what happens when too many friends, colleagues, services, etc critique your essays. Essentially, you will inevitably lose the originality and unique qualities that your essays would and should bring to the table in order to appease everyone’s criticisms and recommendations. Furthermore, you will often find that one or two people will think one thing, another two or three will think another, and then others will be spread across slightly different if not entirely different ways to go about expressing a point or describing an experience resulting in more of an incoherent jumble than an eloquent and articulate essay. In short, a few people is good, but too many people and you will run into one hell of a bottleneck, or, perhaps worse, a bland and unoriginal creation.

That wraps up Part 2 of Applying to Business School. Stay tuned for upcoming articles including Interview 202, Delaying Graduation, What a Banker Really Does, and much more!

As always, comments go below and emails can be sent Here

To touch on just a sample of the questions captured by this comprehensive guide, let’s look at a few behavioral questions and topics:

“Why banking”

“Goals and other fields of interest”

And some technical questions:

“Tell me about a recent M&A deal you’ve taken an interest in”

“If I asked you to evaluate whether company X would be a good investment using just one financial statement, which one would you use and why”

This guide isn’t just for the hopeful bulge bracket banker by any means. Whether you are looking at investment banking positions with bulge bracket firms, middle market shops, or any boutique, this guide is an essential tool to conquer every interview.

Furthermore, this guide can be applied to more than just investment banking – if you are looking at strategy, advisory, corporate finance, commercial finance, credit products and so much more, this guide (with just a bit of tweaking for some of the more banking-specific questions) will be an incredibly valuable tool (and ideally the only major tool you will need) in your pursuit to nail the interview and take that big step towards achieving your goal and earning that position!

No longer will you be left in the dark before your interviews. No longer will you have to pay big prices for guides that cover the exact same material in far LESS detail and without the thorough explanations, point for point answer structure and sample answers. Quite frankly, we were due for a change, and a change has come – don’t fall victim to the trap that a higher price means a higher quality of service; here are a few misconceptions that need to be cleared up:

A higher price means better quality – False! Don’t believe that paying a higher price means you will get something of better quality. The fact is, bigger sites that are only out to pump out products and sell services, such as Vault and so forth, can and frankly have to charge higher prices due to their subscriber base (why they can), and advertising expenses and overhead charges (why they need to). I am not trying to make a ton of money on everything I put out and I don’t have any overhead – I am working on the site in my spare time from my laptop – I am interested in putting out the best product that I can to help aspiring bankers land and thrive in this business (but before anyone asks, this is not a charity either and I am a businessman, so yes, I am charging for it – but not $50+ dollars).

All guides are created equal – False! I have put together this guide based on my experiences as a banking interviewee, and, more importantly, based on my numerous experiences as a banking interviewer. I know what bankers want to hear, I know what they DO NOT want to hear, and I can keep you on the right path so that you don’t shoot yourself in the foot the next time you are asked to describe one of your failures (for example). Don’t be so quick to trust all of those guides written by professional interviewers, or resume writers who are outside of banking, or even outside of finance. If you haven’t sat through numerous banking interviews, and haven’t conducted numerous banking interviews you shouldn’t be putting out a guide that claims to be able to conquer the banker interview.

A 32+ question guide cannot cover the material I need to succeed – Absolutely False! Remember, this guide is designed to provide you with the tools necessary to conquer the most common and frequently experienced interview questions. While many other guides claim to offer more questions, most of the time they are simply: 1) separating every single question (rather than combining multiple parts of highly related questions into 1 question as I have), and 2) ask the same question in 10 different, although pretty damn similar ways. I provide you with the explanation, blueprint and sample answers necessary to handle any of these slightly verbally modified questions (since the question itself is still essentially the same) – bankers can think on their feet, and I didn’t think it was necessary to charge a higher price for a product simply because I am giving you essentially the same answer 8 different time by just slightly changing the phrasing of a question – you can recognize a “why banking” question or a “weakness/strength” question and I didn’t see a reason to charge you a higher price for the same product (excluding the otherwise higher word count).

Furthermore, regarding the last misconception, I am already working on another guide that will be entirely technical questions for those candidates that feel they might need a more detailed and finance/accounting-specific guide that is still geared strictly towards conquering the technical aspects of the banking interview. I know that some of you will ask why I decided to not combine the guides, well that answer is simple: not all of my readers will need a guide to advanced technical questions, and, on the other hand, not all of my readers will need a guide to the most common/frequent interview questions. Rather than paying a bigger price for a guide that you will only use half of, you can choose to purchase one guide or both (since the combined guide would have been priced the same as both guides combined will be priced) and ultimately decide where you need the most work. More will come on this topic soon – but I just wanted to let all of you know that I am hard at work to provide you with all of the tools necessary to land that dream job in investment banking, and this inaugural survival guide is absolutely essential if you are serious about breaking into banking (but can admit that you might need a little help with the interview).

So now that we’ve gotten all of the pitching, sample questions and misconceptions out of the way, let’s get down to the real issue – the price. How much does it all cost? As I came close to finishing this guide I really started thinking about pricing, and what I should charge for it. I decided that I want a lot of people to be able to afford this guide if they want to, and that I would reward those people that get on board early.

The price: just $17.95!

Let me just say that this price will eventually go up (not to $50 or anything like that), but I wanted to try to reward the supporters of this growing site by offering, what I consider, a pretty low introductory price.

My last point, the process itself: quick and simple. You purchase the product through Paypal (the link is below), and then within a few hours I will send the guide to you (by “I”, I mean either I will send it to you or someone that I know will forward it to you from my site email address – just so that you’re not thinking you will have to wait for me to get out of work to send it out to you). That’s it. If you have any questions or suggestions, you can, as always, shoot me an email, and feel free to post any comments that you might have below! For the main Survival Guide page, click Here.

Learn what to say, how to say it, and, just as important, if not more so, learn what not to say. Stop waiting for the offer to simply fall into your lap and start dominating your interviews with BankonBanking’s Survival Guide for: The Banking Interview today!