I’m currently in a high school/associates degree program and will be attending a non-target, but solid school this fall. I am wondering if it is possible to break into banking with just my associate degree. If not, how can I position myself to get into IB (BB or possibly MM/boutique) with my U Grad? Finally, if I can’t get into IB out of U Grad, how easy will it be to get into IB from a top B school?

Let me tackle your questions 1 at a time. First, you can forget about breaking into IB without a Bachelors degree – the Associates degree is not going to do it, so move right on to breaking in from U Grad. Moving on to your U grad, while you’ve got a chance at breaking into a BB from the non-target (see Here), you will definitely have much more opportunity with regional boutiques and MM shops. That said, it is possible to get into BB shops, it will just require a lot more work, networking and some luck – you should definitely try though and landing some IB-related internships with smaller shops ahead of your junior SA (or at least FT) recruiting will definitely help.

Finally, regarding your MBA ideas, attending a top MBA will definitely be your best shot at breaking into BB IB – but let’s not make the mistake of assuming you will be able to get in straight out of U Grad, or even after 2 years of any-old work experience. It is very, very difficult to break into these top (not just top 5 or 10, but even top 15) schools and it is by no means a given after 2-3 years of experience. Therefore, while this is definitely your best bet, getting to that stage is anything but a definite at this point and will require some serious work on your part (check out my 2-part series on getting into B school Here and Here).

For now, focus on getting into U grad and doing very well. From there, you can position yourself for IB (whether BB or not) and then you can decide if an MBA is right for you, and, if it is, you can make the big push.

I plan on applying for summer internships in IB and am wondering what steps I should take to prepare myself for landing a good summer internship ahead of senior year. How much knowledge should I have about finance and accounting before going into interviews?

In terms of what you need to know for an interview (check This and This out for help with your upcoming interviews), this all depends on your major – if you are a finance/accounting major (or at least have some solid relevant coursework on your resume), you should definitely be comfortable with valuation, financial statements, etc. If, however, you are a non-business major (without this type of relevant coursework), you should be focused on more of the fit questions, but still have at least a basic understand of the financial statements – just so that you aren’t stumped by the most basic “walk me through the 3 financial statements” type of questions.

Next, in terms of next steps, you want to reach out to your alumni database and start networking as much as you can – of course, the better the school you attend – non vs. semi vs. target – the more alumni connections you will be able to make and utilize. Beyond that, you want to make sure you’ve got a solid resume and cover letter to showcase your skills.

Beyond that, while IB is your ultimate goal, don’t become entirely fixated on BB IB for SA opportunities – don’t forget about MM and boutique shops or even other relevant fields such as S&T, consulting, boutique P/E, etc. Keep your options open and, of course, cast a wide net in terms of applications and networking.

I’ve been networking a lot lately, and a few contacts have asked me for my resume. I just got a job that I started in late may (non-finance) – is it worth it to include this in my resume? Also, at what point should a job description be included in your resume (1 month, 6, etc)?

Once you start a position you can include it on your resume, and as you perform valuable (relevant to IB) tasks, definitely include them on your resume.

More specifically, to your first question, it really depends on the type of internship to which you are referring. Although it is not finance related, it can still be relevant – consulting, ops, accounting, etc can all be tweaked to appear very relevant to the skill sets necessary in IB (analytical, quant, attention to detail, leadership, writing, team work, etc). If, however, you are working in a fast-food shop, or as a bar tender, for example, that is not terribly relevant, and doesn’t need to be included in your resume (instead just use it as a means of earning some extra income as you search for a more relevant internship/position). Essentially you want to showcase as much relevant experience as you can, but relevant is the key word – you don’t want to give a mixed message as to what you want to do. An exception to this rule would be if you are entering your senior year and don’t have any work experience listed at all – in this case, it is better to list something, even if it is not completely relevant, but at least business related, on your resume (I would still leave off the fast-food cashier position though – for the record).

I understand GS TMT/MS M&A are widely regarded as the top of totem pole when it comes to PE recruiting, but how about other groups at GS/MS? Essentially, if given the opportunity to work at a top boutique, which other groups at GS/MS would be comparable or better for recruiting? Should I base it all of group or worry about fit?

First, just because M&A is a top feeder and GS TMT is a top group, it does not mean that the other groups are inferior. When it comes to P/E recruiting you need to figure out 2 things – 1) do you prefer M&A/Leveraged Finance or an Industry and 2) if an industry, then which industry? While M&A and Lev Fin are highly sought after, if you have a particular industry focus and end up in that particular industry at a bank like MS or GS, then you will definitely be in good shape for P/E recruiting since you’ll have industry expertise and will have some M&A exposure in that industry (especially if your group happens to do some of its modeling as many groups do) as well as working for a top bank.

Next, there is nothing stopping you from pursuing numerous employers and picking the best option. Essentially, if you get an offer with Blackstone, for example, and get another offer with MS and find out that MS M&A is only hiring 1 analyst, then Blackstone might be a better fit. If, however, you are networking with some of the MS bankers in M&A, your chances are much better. Additionally, when ranking your groups, you can rank M&A as #1, then lev fin, then Sponsors, then an industry or 2 of choice – you should get one of those options if not one of your top 2 or 3 (even without a bunch of networking, although networking does help).

Remember, while boutiques are great, their reach outside of the IB/PE space are not as strong as top BBs such as GS and MS. A strong BB on your resume in your industry of choice, for example, can open many doors in terms of future IB, P/E, corporate finance/development and so forth down the line, while some of the most prestigious boutiques aren’t known that much outside of the IB or P/E worlds (although this isn’t necessarily a bad thing if those are the worlds you are targeting).

At the end of the day, I would push for M&A, Lev Fin, Sponsors and an industry group of choice. Beyond that, I would really focus on fit and culture – you will be spending a lot of time there and the happier bankers or at least the less angry/disgusted bankers get the better projects, reviews and recommendations (usually).

Rather than charge my readers for this guide, I came up with a better idea to help show my appreciation. Since now is the time for everyone to revise their resumes and brush up on their interview skills, instead of charging for this guide, I will simply give it to everyone who purchases one of my other services – in other words anyone who purchases either a resume revision package (Here) and/or an interview prep package (Here) will receive this guide in my follow-up thank you email.

That’s it!

There’s no code to enter, no special message, simply purchase a resume revision service package or an interview prep package and receive this 4-question guide for free. Although you will definitely be asked more than 3-4 questions during your interview, most, if not all of your interviews will ask you at least 2 of the questions in this guide, if not more.

Pick up your resume revision package or interview prep package now and start remedying more than 1 concern at a time!

I truly mean it when I say thank you to all of my readers, customers and subscribers who help keep this site running and help me to see that this site does help people break in – I know it’s a tough road, but it can definitely be done.

Thank you for all of your support and stay tuned for more articles (including an article specifically for those readers interested in Sales and Trading), another new product and much more! As always, comments go below and emails can be sent Here.

Parameters:

Let’s get right into the basics here. First and foremost, the cover letter should be, in total, 1 page. This means that from the address/heading down to the signature (and mention of attachments, if necessary), you should be no more than 1 page in length. I’ve seen cover letters that span over 2 pages, and let me be the first to tell you, straight up, this is way too long, and no one is going to read it, nor will anyone be excited by the amount of effort and/or information you’ve included in it. Simply put, this looks like you don’t know what to include and have therefore included way too much. So, we’ve got the 1 page down, but how should the 1 page look?

As you can imply from the name, the cover LETTER, is exactly that, a letter, and, as such, whether it is a separate attachment or the body of an email, it should resemble that of a letter. Start by including the basic information – essentially, your contact information and name at the top, then to whom you are addressing the letter – you don’t need a full address here, although if you’ve got the room, you are welcome to include it (this opening information can be left out if you are writing the letter in the body of the email, instead, just start with the next point, your greeting). Next, insert your greeting/opening – Dear Mr. XXX, or Good afternoon Ms. XXX (for non-email cover letters, you can also include the date just above this line if you want to and/or have room).

Moving past the opening and greeting, we get to the body of the letter. The body should be 3-4 paragraphs, although the last paragraph is a short paragraph, but we’ll get to that in a second. Paragraph 1 is the introductory paragraph, essentially, an introduction to you (school and major/current employer and role, etc – high level details only) and why you are interested in the specific opportunity with company X (the company and role to which you are applying).

Once you’ve got paragraph 1 done, you have paved the way for paragraph 2, which is essentially a continuation of the “introduction to you” in paragraph 1, but now with all details you want to highlight. Paragraph 2 should highlight your experiences with school and/or with your current/past internships/FT positions. Additionally, while you are discussing your experiences, you should briefly highlight their relevance to the position to which you are applying, especially if the relevant isn’t perfectly clear. For example, running the financial modeling of a closed deal as an IB analyst is obviously relevant to another IB position; however, being an engineering major, or even Finance major, or perhaps working in a corp fin role might not be and might warrant a quick few words on how the experiences are useful to IB.

Next, we come to our optional paragraph, paragraph 3, the extra stuff. Paragraph 3, just as the name implies, highlights other aspects of your candidacy that you feel are relevant and/or important to your candidacy, albeit not related to your professional or academic (major/coursework) experience. Paragraph 3 is where you will want to highlight your leadership, club involvement and non-profit experience. Paragraph 3 is a great opportunity to set yourself apart from other candidates and possibly even find some common ground with your prospective employer. Paragraph 3 can definitely be useful for those candidates applying to consulting positions, P/E and even smaller boutique IB shops in that these positions often look for what you’ve done besides grades and work, assuming, of course, grades and work are up to par. Additionally, paragraph 3 is often useful for those candidates that lack work experience, but have strong leadership experience, especially within relevant student organizations. Finally, while paragraph 3 can be helpful, it definitely isn’t necessary since: 1) you might not have enough room for it on your single page and you definitely don’t want to cut out important academic and/or professional experience to highlight something that is probably on your resume already anyway under a leadership or extracurricular section, 2) you might not have much leadership experience and you definitely don’t need a bunch of fluff in your resume and 3) many positions won’t really care that much about your EC experience and can find out what they need to know from your resume or from you in your interview – therefore, you can let your cover letter be a bit shorter and leave paragraph 3 out.

Finally, after all is said and done, we come to our last paragraph, paragraph 4. Paragraph 4 is a very quick paragraph in that paragraph 4 merely thanks the reviewer, mentions your attachments and contact information (phone and/or email) and closes out the letter.

With paragraph 4 done, you have your final lines starting with your closing remark (Sincerely, Best regards, etc) and then your name. If you want to, you can include an italicized line, 1 or 2 lines below your name (again, you want to keep it to 1 page) and call it “Attachments” or the like, and mention your resume – Ex. “Enclosure: Résumé”

Include it:

Now that we’ve covered the parameters and highlighted the major fields of your cover letter, let’s quickly run through what you should include in your cover as far as content is concerned. If you are a student, first and foremost you want to include some basics from your academia including your school, your grade, your major and any relevant coursework you have taken. When referring to relevant coursework (see Here for more), I am referring to the same coursework you would include in your resume – any finance and accounting coursework is at the top of the list, followed by math/statistics coursework, economics coursework, and, finally, any interesting strategy/leadership coursework. Moving beyond your undergrad basics, you want to include your club involvement, with a focus on those clubs that you have taken more of a leadership role in (especially those clubs relevant to IB – such as a Wall St. club, a Finance club, an IB or P/E club, etc). Finally, we come to your internship and non-profit experience. You definitely want to highlight any relevant work experience that you have as well as the interesting projects that you have worked on while there. If you have more than 1 quality internship on your resume, you can definitely highlight more than, but for each position/internship you list, you should include a little less experience/project responsibilities from each to keep the cover letter balance. For non-profit experience, I am referring to anything that is important to you or that you have taken a leadership in (for paragraph 3) and anything that is relevant to IB from a quant/analytical perspective (in paragraph 2 or 3 depending on how much additional work experience you have).

Now before anyone gets crazy, the previous paragraph is referring to undergraduate students or students in Master’s programs who don’t yet have FT work experience. Once you are a graduate, and have some FT experience under your belt, you want to change things up a bit. As a grad, you don’t need to include all of the information from your undergrad that you included as a current student unless you are applying for a position outside of your current FT role and your undergrad studies are relevant (meaning you work in IB and want to go into something completely different or the opposite). Assuming this exception isn’t the case, you don’t need to highlight all of your relevant coursework (although you can still keep it in your resume) and you only really need to mention your school, when you graduated, how you graduated (if it was with any honors) and what you majored in (although this last point isn’t necessary if it isn’t relevant to the position). From there, you want to delve fully into your current work experience first, and depending on how long you’ve been there and how many projects you’ve worked on, take the necessary space to highlight the position properly. After your current experience, you can briefly highlight one or 2 of your internships, again, if they are relevant, as well as a bit on what you worked on while there. The balance between FT and internships will, of course, vary, based on how long you’ve been at your FT role. Before I close out this article, let’s cover 1 last point – essentially, what not include in your cover letter.

Save it for the interview:

This section covers those points that, whether interesting or not, should not be included in your cover letter as they will be seen as more fluff, filler, or, at the very least, not relevant and when something is not relevant, it should not be included – remember, shorter is usually better (unless we were talking about a 3 sentence cover letter, in which case I would make an exception to the rule). First on the list is non-relevant coursework – essentially, if I haven’t listed it above, it is non-relevant. Yes, your history courses might be interesting, but they are probably not relevant. Therefore, if you want to discuss them, save it for the interview (see Here for help preparing for your next interview) and only if you are asked – don’t randomly go off on a 10-minute history course tangent. Next on the list would be non-relevant work experience. Included in this list is work experience that doesn’t involve leadership, analytical/quant skills or strong written skills. Essentially, you want to always be highlighting those experience that showcase the relevant skill sets sought after by bankers/potential employers. Finally, we come to the big no-no of cover letters and that is the dreaded overstatement (essentially, beefing yourself up too much). While you definitely want to be selling your candidacy, you also don’t want to pretend like you’ve done WAY more than you have, or taken on WAY more responsibility than you have (the same is ABSOLUTELY true for your resume). As a quick example, one of my friends from college was interning with a boutique IB shop the summer of his junior year and into his first semester. While he had an interesting experience and enjoyed his time with the firm, he really didn’t have much exposure to modeling – he spread some comps and such, but never really built any models. He had, however, seen some models and had taken some coursework in M&A and learned a bit about financial modeling and such. Well on his resume and in his cover letter, he figured that he knew enough to beef it up and decided to say that he built several DCF models and worked on several LBO models during his internship. While this seemed like a good idea at the time, he landed an interview with a BB and his first round interview was a technical interview and he got absolutely hammered on this experience and his financial modeling including his supposed DCF and LBO work. Suffice it to say that he did not do very well and did not get called for a second round.

That about does it for this article – as always, comment go below and emails can be sent Here!

The Luck of it

One of the big components of your rank is in what you’ve done for the team – fortunately, or unfortunately (depending on which side of the spectrum you are on), that means the projects you work on and played a role in count. In other words, if you ended up being staffed on a big deal that went live, required a lot of work, a ton of hours, and some concrete thought on your part, the case made for you to earn a higher rank (4 or 5) will be easier to strengthen than the smart analyst who wasn’t staffed on a noteworthy live deal and didn’t end up doing much more than a ton of pitch work over the past several months/year.

Yes, there are certainly analysts who don’t get staffed on the big live deals who earn 4s and 5s, and there are of course analysts who do get on those types of deals who end up getting 2s and low 3s, but apples to apples, it is easier for a strong analyst to shine when he/she lands a few big deals and has the opportunity to “show the goods.” When I 1st started, I knew an analyst (not a 1st year) who was an all-star – ranked a 5, everyone wanted him on their deals, had a great reputation for delivering great low-error, really high quality work in short periods of time, helped other analysts, etc. This analyst was staffed on several deals – unfortunately, after his 1st 2 years, he didn’t have 1 closed deal to show for it – not one closed deal for his personal league table. I bring this up because it is possible to shine without closed deals – making this point, however, does not negate the fact that it is much easier to shine with the big deals under your belt. Great or crappy, nice or nasty, this business is about what you have done for me in general and what have you done for me lately – getting your name out there and on some big deals matters to your reviewers, to headhunters and to your prospective employers (if you’re looking to other avenues after your 1st, 2nd, 3rd year, etc) – but I can spend all day talking about what prospective employers and headhunters want to see (or at least another article).

Back to the point at hand – besides the deal flow you see, the luck of your ranking is also based on exactly that – the luck of the process. When it comes right down to it, there is a bonus pool and for analysts your ranking dictates what slice of the pool you receive. With that in mind, every analyst cannot get a 4 or 5 (and frankly, not every analyst deserves it). Landing a 4 or 5 means that you are (or should mean that you are – politics and such aside) better than average – sometimes much better than average (since many systems have a 3 for average and a 3+ for above average) – and in the case of a 5 definitely much stronger than the average analyst. Since that is the spoken rationale behind the ranking, a benchmark needs to be made and with every cutoff or bucket for placement, there are only so many people that can land in each – especially in flat or down periods. This also ties into why it is harder for those analysts who don’t land the big or at least live deals of any size to receive the best ranking – with only so many 4s and far fewer 5s to be given out, it is easiest for senior bankers to justify high ranks for those analysts that have made the most visible marks on their teams – and those visible marks can readily come from the live and recently closed deals. Remember, by the time the ranking process and bonus talk gets down to the analyst level, the MDs at the top often need to bring in lower senior bankers (Ds and VPs) to help with the decision and inject some real insight into the caliber of the analyst. If the VP can point to specific input, it becomes much easier to support his or her ranking – not to mention the fact that the VP would like to have a reason for picking a ranking himself and not just – well it seems like he’s a hard worker or that he thinks he remembers you working hard on that project 9.5 months ago – again, it’s what you’ve done for me in general and what you’ve done for me lately.

The Work of it

Yes, there’s definitely some luck behind your ranking in some form or another, but just because luck can be a factor or play a role in your ranking, it does not mean that you can or should rely solely on luck to carry you. It also does not mean that you are powerless against the forces of luck or that you cannot absolutely boost your rank without the big deals or a host of live deals. First and foremost, you need to step up and become the Go-To Analyst. You need to create a name for yourself and show that you are smart, capable, detail-oriented, analytically inclined and an overall strong analyst with or without a live deal going on. Tackling your projects with intensity is definitely worth a gold star, and being able to tackle any project – whether for a big deal, or a pitch on a small deal bound to go dead – with a strong level of intensity and commitment will definitely help to highlight you as a talented and above-average-level analyst.

Yes, you need to keep your spirits up and yes you need to keep that strong focus and intensity. All of that, however, either won’t mean much of anything to senior bankers or won’t mean much for very long if you can’t turn projects around quickly and maintain a high level of accuracy (little errors and when errors are made, you correct them quickly). The quick turnaround time is essential in banking, just as in any high-intensity/stressful/demanding job out there. A quick turnaround time is important, but coupling that with an ability to minimize errors and consistently improve upon your work is the “magic formula” when it comes to impressing colleagues and earning better projects and assignments. As a former superior once put it, “I don’t expect everything that you hand to me to be 100% perfect, if for no other reason than we are going to change a lot of it anyway by the second turn. I do, however, expect it to be at least 85% right and immediately corrected.” In other words, mistakes are going to happen, but you want to avoid the repetitive and silly mistakes (spelling, simple formatting, etc) as much as you can and then correct them as quickly as you can when they occur. Additionally, while it is important to minimize errors, it is possible even MORE important to eliminate or minimize repetitive errors – in other words, making the same errors time and time again.

So you’re bringing your “A” game to the table – you’ve got drive and a strong skill set, you make minimal errors (even less repetitive errors) and you are on the ball when it comes to correcting your oversights – what else can you do? Next on the list comes one of the most basic things that an analyst can do, but often fails to do, forget to do, or just doesn’t pay any attention to – knowing the deals, the calendar, and the team’s products. As an analyst it is very easy to become an Excel machine, a PowerPoint zombie, or something just as mechanical. While you are certainly expected to know these programs in your sleep and be ready to reformat a pitch or crunch a model at the drop of a hat, you also need to see the bigger picture. By knowing the team’s calendar, knowing which deals are hot and cool and knowing which products work best on various types of transactions you are showing that you are more than just a typical analyst – you are showing an interest in the team and the profession. You are showing that you are capable of seeing more than just formulas and slides and that you understand the bigger picture, the greater importance in the system. Furthermore, harnessing and using this knowledge will allow you to play a more valuable role in your team – you will be able to anticipate some requests and be able to offer insight during meetings – you will not have to wait to be told do something all of the time – and those tools not only showcase you as a talented analyst, but also allow you to take more initiative. Know what’s going on around you and get out of that analyst assembly-line type of mentality.

Finally, we come to the last, but certainly not least big point – one that belongs in both the luck of it and the work of it – your personality and connecting with your team. I know that I’ve said it before and I hate to run the risk of beating a dead horse, but I need to say it again – personality counts big. Fitting in with your team and being a part of the group is definitely a great way to improve your rank. Yes, rank should be based on work and talent, not how much someone likes you – but let’s be honest and cut the crap – this is banking – yes your work and talent of course count for a lot, but if you think you are going to land a 4 or 5 without being liked by anyone or worse, being a bit of an ass, you are usually quite mistaken. Now I’m not saying that you want to completely follow the herd, but you certainly want to get along with your team and show an interest in what they do (at least when they talk to you about it) – especially senior bankers. It doesn’t require much work to have a conversation of a few minutes and chat about something of interest to another party – so do it. You want to be the analyst who gets along with the majority if not the whole team – you want to be the analyst that people enjoy talking to on walks to get lunch, during dinner, when grabbing a drink occasionally, etc. At the end of the day, banking is a networking business, a social business, and a people business – isolating yourself might be fine in some professions, but banking is definitely not anywhere near the top of that list. In short, be a social butterfly both in terms of networking and carrying yourself (don’t be annoying or tactless) – it might not get you a 5, but it will definitely help you to stay in the good graces of senior bankers and probably land you a deal opportunity or two as well (especially if you work in a smaller group).

Stay tuned for future posts on a host of topics, a BRAND NEW PRODUCT coming soon and MUCH more!

Need your Resume Punched Up before that drop date? Need some Interview Prep or to brush up on your Interview Question Responses ahead of your interview? BankonBanking’s got it – so don’t wait for the offers to fall in your lap – get proactive wherever you need it now!

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Use your alumni network

The alumni network is absolutely a big part of making the move to banking from a field outside of investment banking. By reaching out to those alumni that are already working in banking you can gain valuable insight into their banks’ process of hiring professional from outside of banking, information on any potential opportunities and how to best shape your past experiences to appear more attractive to the team, and, of course, have support from within the firm, which, as any banker will tell you, makes the process much, much easier to navigate and successfully close.

I always recommend reaching out to alumni via email, and then work on the getting the networking phone call to further build the relationship and tackle numerous questions in one session. Rather than go through the whole process again, for more tips on reaching out to alumni and navigating the networking phone session, click here

Target boutiques and smaller MM shops

By this point, I don’t mean target ONLY boutiques and smaller MM shops, but rather, not to ignore boutiques and smaller MM shops, thereby focusing solely on elite boutiques and bulge bracket banks. In other words, take off the horse blinders and expand your search – focus on landing in banking with a firm that could offer you interesting projects and experiences, and the opportunity to grow within the firm, interact with clients and expand your skill set – boutiques are often known for many of these attributes as their lean staff frequently requires them to rely on their junior team members – whether that be of the associate and/or analyst levels.

While working for a BB or elite boutique sounds incredibly enticing, smaller shops should be by no means overlooked, especially by career switchers, as boutiques that service their sector of former employment might absolutely be interested in picking up a former professional in the field. For example, if you previously worked for a renewable energy company in an engineering/design capacity, a boutique with a renewable energy focus might very well be interested in your expertise. Never underestimate the power of your background, and never undervalue the experiences and skill set you can acquire by working at a boutique IB/advisory shop.

Finally, if you are able to break into banking through a small boutique, you could very well leverage that into a position with a BB down the road – especially if you utilize some of the other tips here such as networking and then continuing to network with alumni.

Brush up on your accounting (or learn accounting)

While many will argue that BBs, and even smaller shops will have training programs and not require you to necessarily know accounting/finance, don’t take any of that for granted. You are competing with laid off bankers as well as U Grad/Grad students – those who the programs were developed for – and as a result, you need to do whatever you can to show that you are not only prepared for the field, but have demonstrated an interest in both the field and the underlying material. Brushing up, or even learning, some basic accounting and finance will allow for the interviewers to both see your interest in the field, as well as pose more challenging interview questions – technical questions that is – that will surely help support your candidacy provided you have the right answers. If a banker interviews you and asks you about the 3 financial statements and you are ready to go with a strong response, you will definitely make a much better impression considering the interviewer might not have expected you to really know them at all, let alone provide a detailed and eloquent explanation/response.

Now by brush up on your accounting and finance, I don’t mean break into the rules governing deferred compensation, or complex tax or inventory practices, but you should absolutely know the basics. You should know the discounted cash flow model, methods for valuing a company, the 3 financial statements and how they tie together, the capital asset pricing model and so forth – nothing terribly complex as long as you take a bit of time and do the review.

Regarding how to go about cracking this information, I recommend that you first pick up an interview guide, whether mine (Here) or another similar product, to become familiar with both the interview process and questions, as well as all of the basic finance and accounting concepts. From there, some google searches, investopedia, etc can get you over any hurdles and through any questions that might arise as you make your way through the material.

Consider B school (not Masters programs, the CFA, etc)

While I know that many of you have asked about the CFA, a general Master’s (the 1-year or so past U Grad), and so forth, my honest opinion is this: the only finishing degree that you really want to get to make it in banking is an MBA. Now let me double back and state that the CFA is absolutely useful as are other graduate degrees, certificates, etc, and if you have them already that is absolutely a plus for you. That said, if you are considering pursuing a degree with the main goal of breaking into banking, attending B school is by far your best bet. Beyond the academics, the network and career service opportunities set B school well above the rest. B school, especially during the boom years, was known as the career switchers key to break into banking. Whether your U Grad was a target or not, whether you were in advisory, engineering, or what have you, if you attend a top B school (read: top 15ish), the B school now becomes the dominant force on your resume and coupled with a supportive and well-represented alumni network, will now be your key to breaking into the industry. B school is by no means a guarantee into banking, but it definitely provides a firm path and solid foundation to break in from most industries/former professions. The difference or advantage can be summed up easily as follows: while you will still probably have to network and work hard, the opportunities will absolutely be clear and available to you.

Now that I’ve pitched B school if you were considering the advanced degree as an option, it’s important to figure out whether you should be considering an advanced degree as an option in the first place and if that choice would be wise for you. As a career changer, you will have a big advantage when it comes to banking: industry experience (given your particular industry) – this is definitely an advantage and not one that should be overlooked. You will also, however, have a few big disadvantages (of course some or all of these might not apply given your particular background): a lack of direct banking/banking-related experience, a lack of accounting/finance-specific knowledge, and, perhaps most importantly, a lack of industry contacts – otherwise known as your network that you would otherwise use to switch banks/groups/etc. While your skill set and experiences will only be achieved through time on the job, the other two disadvantages can absolutely be overcome, to a large degree, by attending a strong business school and networking while there. Hands down the number one reason for attending business school is the networking opportunities (of course the career services/placement aspect is definitely noteworthy as well). If you are a career switcher who comes from a non-target, is several years disconnected from your U Grad, or has become too involved in your professional industry to break free from that space and break into banking, I would definitely consider B school as a viable option.

Shape your Resume

Most resumes that I see/review/revise/edit/etc share one thing: they fail to properly express their experiences with a banker’s eyes in minds. Now you obviously can’t lie and say you’ve already worked in banking, nor that your experiences are directly related /applicable to banking or the same as those you’d pick up in banking, unless of course, they are or are at least of a very closely related field (small P/E, Corp fin or Acct. advisory to a degree, etc). That said, you absolutely can shape the experiences that you have acquired over your professional life to resemble or reflect the skills and skill set necessary to succeed in investment banking whether as an analyst or an associate. Furthermore, you can articulate your experiences in your specific industry to explain exactly how you can contribute to banking, especially boutique banking, within that field.

All of the fancy language aside, essentially what I am saying is think IB, write IB, explain in IB and by IB, I mean focus on the analytical qualities and aspects of your past experiences, especially those that require a strict attention to detail. Next, point/write to the results that you have achieved or how you have grown in your past positions – what sort of an impact have you made there and how can that be viewed by bankers as a plus. Related to the results point, focus on the leadership qualities that you have both groomed and displayed over your past experiences – leadership, although you may never exhibit it as an analyst, is absolutely essential and held in high esteem by bankers as bankers see leadership as drive, passion, hard work, the ability to work in teams and the ability to tackle challenging situations/problems, all of which are seen as banker-positive attributes. Finally, don’t lose sight of the fact that banking, above all else is business and business wants to see those business aspects on your resume – the easy ones – communication, organizational skills, time management, and things of this nature. While these final aspects are by not the most glamorous, depending on your industry of past employment (for example, accounting, business, engineering, etc backgrounds won’t really have to focus on this point as much as the others) you might have to slip some of these aspects into your resume – coupled with the other prominent and more impressive aspects or previously mentioned points, of course.

Connect the Dots

Along the same lines as the previous point of shaping your resume, be prepared to show how the skill set (or skill sets) necessary to thrive in your former career is the same skill set or contains integral parts of the skill set necessary to succeed as a banker. While this will predominantly be done through your resume using the previous points, you also want to point to these specific attributes (and the best experiences to illustrate your points) in your cover letter when applying. While I realize I am being a bit repetitive here considering most of this can be inferred from my previous point, I feel that this is absolutely a necessary aspect to cover, and, as such, I felt the need to repeat myself and highlight this single point in a separate entry.

Know the Business

By this point, I mean that you need to know the answer to the ever-crucial questions asked of career switchers or those with numerous differing finance careers in their past lives – “why investment banking,” “what are your goals with this program and after,” and “why this bank” to get started. The goals question is a pretty easy one once you learn the positions, and what you are applying for (analysts don’t need a terribly specific answer, just a well-thought-out and eloquent response that shows an interest in banking, but doesn’t necessarily commit – associates, however, should know, or at least state that they want to stay in banking).

For the why bank X question, you will be best served to do a bit of research on the firm, and, if possible, talk to a few alum bankers or banker contacts with the firm so that you can put a quick story behind your response – this both shows your interest in the firm as well as forms the basis for a more believable and genuine response (as opposed to those responses that can be easily used for every bank (although usually they can all be swapped pretty easily).

Finally, for the why banking question, you will need to know what banking is, what bankers do (senior and junior), and what about banking interests you the most. When answering this question, you should also use this as an opportunity to illustrate how the skill set, or part of the skill set from your previous job(s) was both enjoyable and applicable to banking – this both describes why you will be a good banker and answers the question.

Know the Role

With this section I don’t mean that you should know what the role entails, although you absolutely should, as stated above, but rather, this section is a sort of extension of the previous section in that you should know the position to which you will be applying. If you do not have an MBA, you will be applying for analyst-style positions (the only exceptions could be if you are coming from a strong law, a strong tax, or a strong general accounting – CPA – background – since those skill sets are clearly advantageous to banking, there are some banks that would consider offering the associate position to you based on your experience within said fields). Too many people believe that since they’ve worked in their current position for 4 or 5 years that means they should come in as an associate – wrong. Ignoring the few exceptions, the only ways to become an associate are: 1) earn an MBA, or 2) earn a direct promotion to associate from an IB analyst position.

One of the easiest ways for a career switcher to ensure that he/she will NOT break into banking is by applying to the wrong position. Don’t let that happen to you – don’t let pride or confusion keep you from landing a job – do your research, evaluate past experiences and then apply to the proper positions. Considering there is always at least one exception to the rule, the big exception here is for applying to boutiques. Since boutiques, specifically smaller boutiques don’t have highly structure training programs, promotions processes, etc, they could absolutely hire an applicant who doesn’t have past banking experience for an associate position if that candidate has a strong background in the specific industry, or a highly desirable skill set – even though the applicant will need to catch up on the banking specifics. Now I’m not telling you to only go for associate positions with boutiques, but if that is what they have, there is no harm at all to submitting the app and following up accordingly.

That’s about it. I know that this is a pretty long article, but I feel that the information is definitely valid and valuable to any of the readers out there that are or are planning to soon be eager career switchers. If any of you have any further questions, suggestions, or just want to chat, drop me an email HERE or leave your comments below!

Stay tuned for upcoming posts on interviewing, to delay or not to delay graduation, and so much more!

The Series 79 exam will be a 5-hour, 175-question multiple choice adventure, designed to inspire the reader and illuminate your mind. In others words, be prepared to waste a bunch of time cramming for this exam, then sitting 4-5 hours to take the test, and then immediately forget the information upon earning your license (note: whether successful or not, to be fair, the test is supposedly designed to be more closely aligned with the business of banking). To add a little more spice to the mix, regulators are currently claiming that banker will only have three attempts at the exam – what happens if you are unable to pass after the 1st three time, I have no idea. Then again, how many bankers are still in the business who failed the 7 once or twice…let alone 3 times.

By comparison, the Series 79 shouldn’t be that bad – considering the joy of the Series 7 (note the sarcasm). Finally, current Series 7 holders will have 6 months to be grandfathered in, and bankers who transfer to other banks will have 2 years to amend their licensing status to avoid the Series 79 requirement.

FINRA Makes a Mark

First, get your contacts together from each of those groups – if you know some senior guys (VP, for example) really well, then you can jump straight to them, otherwise I’d recommend giving a call (not shooting an email as emails are less personal and can easily be ignored or put off for ages) to a junior guy (analyst/associate) in the group that you know to get the ball rolling. Once you get your contact on the phone, ask them if they have a few minutes to talk, and if they do not, then set up a time, at their convenience, to talk about the group (this can be done on the phone or via email).

If you don’t know anyone well in one of the groups that you are considering, use your network. Contact other analysts that you know, and ask them if they know anyone well in group X – then let them know you are thinking of making the move, make sure they know to keep it quiet, and have them email their contact first and let him/her know that you will be reaching out to them regarding their group.

Second, once you’ve decided on a contact, have given him/her a call, and have nailed down a good time to talk, don’t immediately ask for a job, instead, tell them that you are thinking of making a move, and was wondering how they liked Group X (be sure to express an interest in the group), what kind of work they have been seeing, and whether they have heard any rumors of a potential need for junior resources – if so, at that point it is alright to ask whether there are any slots available (considering there are a lot of groups short staffed, but very few groups that have the resources to hire). If not, then just ask them if they would mind keeping an ear open for you, and/or if they think it would be smart of you to email the staffer (as they know the staffer and how receptive he/she will probably be better than you do) regarding any potential opportunities. The other thing you want to be sure to mention to your contact (although it is usually pretty obvious), is that you want this kept quiet and that you haven’t mentioned anything to your group yet. Usually, this is assumed, but it is always better to be safe than sorry, and taking a second to mention the confidential nature of your chat may let the analyst know not to mention your name, but rather to refer to you as a friend, if/when he/she inquires up the chain about potential needs.

Third, now let’s say that of the 3 groups, Group Y is the only one that has a need and has the resources to staff that need (perhaps, for example, one of their analysts has decided to pursue another opportunity, and, as such, they need to replace that analyst). For that group, you will want to follow up with your contact (and the staffer if you’ve reach out to him/her as well), express a continued interest in making the switch and get an interview set up with some of the senior guys on the team to find out if you are a good fit (an interview with the staffer, or even the departing analyst, may be required first).

For the other two groups, when you follow up, you want to let them know that you are still interested, and for them to keep you in mind incase anyone leaves, or a slot opens up (as in they are allocated resources to bring on another analyst or 2). I would recommend following up with those groups (Group X and Z) once or month or so just to catch up, see how their business unit is doing, and see if there have been any whispers and/or need to bring on another analyst – I would reach out to your immediate contact, and then a hiring manager or the like if you got in touch with them the first time you made the pass through. If you have both a hiring manager and a junior contact at Group X, for example, then stagger the emails. It is perfectly acceptable to follow-up once a month or so, but try to stagger the follow-ups so that you may follow with the analyst at the beginning of the month, and the staffer more towards the middle of the month, for example. Also, it is fine to let a month or a few extra weeks slip by from time to time – you don’t want it to be a routine, but you do want them to remember you.

Fourth, for Group Y, if you are a good fit, and they want to bring you on, you will have to break the news to your group – tactfully of course – and then send out a brief farewell email just to let everyone know that you are changing groups, although your contact info will remain the same (just to avoid those frequent emails asking for help from your old group). Be sure to work with both groups to figure out the ideal start date with the new group – a date that should work well for both groups, and not leave either group feel like they are lower than the other. Remember, even if you are leaving the group for personal reasons involving other group members, it is NEVER a personal thing. The reason is always about changing it up, new deals, new opportunities, broadening your skill set, etc. It is for this reason (or, I guess, reasons), that you always want both groups to be happy, even if it is a mixed emotion, about your move – therefore, both groups have to be satisfied with the move, the start date, any responsibilities to get the old group’s staff up to speed, etc. Remember, finance is a small world, so you want to burn as few bridges as possible on your way to the top.

Looking to the other side of the coin, if you don’t fit in all that well with Group Y, or if they just decide to move forward with a different candidate for whatever reason, that’s fine, no harm no foul. Keep your chin up, thank them for the opportunity (remember, no grudges, no burning bridges) and just pursue the other 2 groups.

Finally, regarding those 2 other groups, I would recommend following up once a month, as I said before, with both your immediate contact and the staffers (staggered if you are following up with both). Keep it casual, as I mentioned before, but make sure you get your point across each time. You may think it could be annoying, but it’s not – people are busy, forget things, lose track of schedules and such, and when something opens up you want to know that you are in contact with the person and should be able to get a shot at it. Once a month, give or take, is a good time frame in the sense that if anything opens up, you should have either just sent them an email, are about to, or even halfway through the month, you could still be on their mind (or at least one of them, analyst or staffer – especially if you stagger the emails) and as a result, you definitely increase your chances of getting that interview. Just make sure that they know to keep it fairly quiet as there is no need to alert anyone ahead of something actually happening.

Remember, people will usually be fine with helping, but often have a hard time remembering and going out of their way. By following this, you will make it much easier for everyone to help you, and, at the end of the day, the easier it is to help, the more feedback you will get to your benefit.

In this market, the question is no longer whether your bonus will be 1x, 1.5x or 2x your base salary, but rather, whether your bonus will 25%, 50% or, ideally, 75% of your base salary (disclaimer: different banks, boutiques, and bulge brackets pay differently, which makes these figures estimates that are not meant to encapsulate everyone’s payout). The question now becomes what can you do to separate yourself from the rest of the pack and put yourself in the best possible position to, say, break (read: at least approach) the 6 figure mark your first year – in other words, what can you do to earn that 5 or even 4, vs. that 3/3+ rating. The key, in every market, whether boom, bust or anything in between, is not only to step up above the rest but also to STEP OUT.

Stepping up involves the “manual labor” side of the equation – in other words, when people ask how to separate themselves from their fellow employs, the answer is usually work harder and work longer. This is a pretty simple concept to grasp and is a surefire means of stepping up in the workplace. Take on additional projects such as willing to stay late and help out some colleagues turn a pitch book or revise an info memo, and volunteering to run with a new project if given the opportunity. Go the extra mile in terms of taking on smaller tasks that are necessary, but perhaps boring or tedious, such as spreading some general comps, organizing files and folders, or pulling together research for projects that you are working on and projects that other teammates are be staffed on if they are swamped (note: be VERY tactful and courteous as it pertains to helping others with their projects – you don’t want to step on anyone’s toes and create animosity – always ask twice before “helping”). Needless to say, I completely agree with this philosophy as a means of stepping up and shining. For some groups, stepping up and performing your tasks well will be enough to rock superstardom, but for others, you will need to take it up one more notch and try to step out.

Stepping out, although related to stepping up, involves stepping out of the traditional analyst mold; stepping out of an analyst’s typical comfort zone, if you will. Just as with virtually all situations or problems in the banker world, it’s easy to throw words and phrases around without any concrete meaning behind them. Therefore, let me actually describe what, in my humble opinion, it means to step out as an analyst through a few examples that I absolutely encourage you to try, build upon, and modify to best fit both your and your group’s personalities and dispositions (disclaimer: as hinted to, everyone’s situation is different, which means that all of these opportunities will not be available to everyone, but hopefully at least a few of them are available to most of you).

Offering your $0.02

In meetings (internal especially, but if spoken to, don’t be afraid to give full and confident answers in client meetings as well), during discussions regarding pitch book materials, information memo tweaks/additions/deletions, and modeling changes or sensitivities, make sure to actively participate in the conversation. By actively participate, I don’t mean nod along and chuckle whenever someone makes a small joke, but rather, actually become engaged in the conversation, courteously of course, and contribute. Obviously don’t rudely interrupt someone to make a point, but when you see something, say something – if, for example, there is something on slide 23 that no one has mentioned that you think should be changed, corrected or deleted, don’t wait till later to say it, mention it during the internal roundtable – get yourself involved and stimulate the debate – even if nothing ultimately happens from your comment, just making the comment leaves an impression in everyone’s mind. Essentially, you want to mold yourself to be the analyst whose opinion is asked for, not merely injected from time to time, and offering your $0.02 is how to get that ball rolling.

Expanding your knowledge of your industry and its specifics

Learn your industry, learn your deals and learn everything in between. I’m not telling you to spend every waking moment studying up on terminology, technology, and everything in between, but I am telling you to make a conscious effort to learn the financing subtleties of the industry, in general, learn all of the big players, some of the growing players, the mature players, the current technologies that dominate the market and potential innovations, some the bigger problems/threats/competition of the market and of your representative players, current deals in the market (including pricing, tenor, and types of financing), and general market sentiment towards the industry and its respective deals. I know that this sounds like a lot, but you should be learning these things over time and as they come up through deals and pitches. The trick here is to realize that you will never know everything on the list, but that’s ok – you just want to know a fair amount and be able to contribute to documentation drafting and discussions. Just as with everything else I have described already, the main goal here is to shape yourself into an integral part of the team – anyone can revise a pitch, some will do it better than others, but the bottom line is that not every analyst can revise a pitch they have more or less written. The more knowledge you have, the more freedom you will be given to run with tasks.

Be an individual

I know that in banking, there will be many people who tell you to be just like everyone else, blend in, and do what everyone else does – I’m here to tell you NOT to do that. Now I am absolutely not telling you to ignore senior requests for work or staffing responsibilities, to talk back for the sake of being argumentative, to act in a stubborn or adolescent manner when it comes to working late (or on the weekends, or when you wanted to go to the gym, a date, a movie, etc), or to ignore deadlines. That said, I am simply telling you to be yourself (unless yourself would entail any of the aforementioned “do not dos,” in which case, be yourself without that stuff). By be yourself, I mean show your personality, your intellect and your, presumably, unique way of thinking. Talk about your hobbies, and take an interest in the hobbies of others – if you have never done something that others are talking about, simply ask questions. I know that this one, perhaps above all of the others, sounds incredibly intuitive, but I know so many people that simply conform to the banker mold, nod at everything, keep to themselves, and seem to be some sort of successful Hulu goo-like creations (note: I absolutely love Hulu, but I don’t recommend acting like someone whose brains really have turned to goo – if you haven’t seen the commercials this may not make sense) – simply put, corporate drones. Bottom line, not everything is funny, not everything sounds fun, and you don’t have to go for a beer every day just because a colleague likes to. If you like to work out, make it happen, if you like to make the occasional joke, do it (crude humor can be left at home though, thanks) – just be yourself – no one has ever been truly great, or truly exceptional by trying to be just like everyone else, or by trying to be someone else (sorry if it sounded like a rant there for a second, but do visit Hulu, and no they do not sponsor this site in any way, though that would be awesome). At the end of the day, it is your unique character that will carry you further than any drone out there.

Stay tuned for future posts on Networking, Interview 202, Savings Plans, and much more. Also, keep an eye out for my soon-to-be-released Resume/Cover Letter service, and Interview Prep service – suggestions are, as always, quite welcome.

Regardless of how bad a story sounds, or what it has caused, keep in mind that they represent a small part of the job, not the job itself. The last thing that you want to do is give up all of your hobbies to make yourself available 110% of the time – trust me…YOU WILL BURN OUT. If your group needs you, they will get a hold of you. Alright, so getting over that hurdle and acknowledging the need for some hobbies (some sort of life outside of 65-slide pitch books), let’s figure out how best to translate this into a message easily conveyed to, and understood by, your team.

I’m going to treat this advice as if I were providing it to someone interested in hitting the gym for an hour or so a day, a few times a week, who happens to work in a group on the more difficult side of the spectrum. If your group happens to be more lenient, understanding, or actively engaged in your hobby (in this case going down to the gym), then you can skip some steps, or speed the process up accordingly.

First thing’s first; make sure this activity is something both important and enjoyable to you. If you don’t really care about the activity and are just interested in wasting some time and doing your own thing, there are easier ways of getting that task accomplished, which will involve less work and none of the bitter feelings associated with your group suspecting that they’ve been “duped”. Just consider that a general disclaimer – “duping” your group…not a good idea.

Assuming this activity is something that you enjoy and something to help you maintain your sanity during the frequent insanity of the job (an equally important aspect of the hobby/getaway time), then the first step is to start doing it outside of work. I understand that the last thing many of you want to do is workout on the weekend, but it’s much easier if you do. The reason: if you’re doing this activity on the weekend, then it’s obviously something important to you, and will not be as quickly misconstrued as something to just avoid sitting at your desk. Now, when asked what you did over the weekend, mention some of your activities and be sure to throw in the fact that you worked out, and include it as a point of excitement, such as something that you used to do and are excited to get back into, something that you’ve missed and want to reacquaint yourself with (the same can be said about reading a good book, or other activities – again, I’m just using working out as an example).

As you get this trend going, fit in a really late night run or something similar to talk about the next day – again, keep the enthusiasm going, then start bringing your gym stuff (or book, etc, depending on activity) “just incase things are really slow” and keep your eye out for that slowdown (maybe a few guys are out of the office that day), and then make your move. Be tactful, ask in advance of actually going, and tie it into grabbing a quick lunch on your way back up. Ask if the person (associate, etc) wants to join, double check before you actually head down, and see if the person needs anything first, or wants you to bring back anything, a drink, food, or such. The first time, maybe even the first few times, you may get shot down, or told something needs to be done and check back later – later may not come that day. Remember to be patient; don’t get frustrated as this is the hardest part. Once you get down those first few times and get back up pretty quickly (without incident – associate missing something or annoyed by your delay), you’ll begin to sense the good/right times to head down, and how long you probably have.

When you first start taking the time, keep it brief – 30-45 minutes, in order to ease everyone into the idea and not give anyone a poor impression of the activity/time away. Of course keep the blackberry on you at all times, check it frequently, and become adept at the 3-minute shower, just incase – especially in the beginning. Soon enough, you’ll be enjoying your workout, and may even recruit a few team members to join in on the fun. I know it sounds overdone and painfully elaborate, but bucking the norm is not an easy thing in this field, but in this case, not only something worth it, but in my opinion, something completely essential.

Again, this advice is for some of the more difficult groups out there; if a lot of your team already works out, or at least a few of them, then work on “buddying up” with some of the other guys, then show that it’s important to you – in other words, be the one who initiates the event and gets people excited about it (but don’t be pushy), and before you know it, you’ll be able to skip out without everyone joining in on the fun.

If we think of getting a job, the job you want, as scoring a 100% on an essay exam, your resume is the question that always annoys students because while most questions are worth 10 points or so, this question was the one that was worth 50-60 points – in other words, get this question wrong, and you can kiss that 100%, or even passing the exam, for that matter, goodbye. Metaphors aside, I think everyone understands the importance of a resume, so I’ve decided to pull together an assortment of tips and notes designed to help each of you draft an impressive resume that can effectively highlight all of your strengths.

For many people, this article may just be reinforcing what they already know/believed to be true. For others, it will seem a bit out of left field and different from what they are used to building. Either way, I hope that these tips and explanations will get all of you on your way to creating phenomenal resumes that only a complete fool would pass on.

Quick note: The bulk of this short primer is designed with analysts and associates (junior positions for those outside of banking) in mind, and, as such, some aspects, such as many of the numerical limitations described below, will not apply to seasoned or senior employees. If you have any questions regarding your resume specifically, feel free to drop me an email. Without further delay, here we go.

Scream it loud, scream it proud – what your resume should convey

Leadership

This should not be surprising to anyone, right? Employers love to see leadership traits and qualities on an applicant’s resume. Whether through work experience, academics, extra curricular activities, or some combination of the three, pointing to concrete examples where you had to, or chose to, step up and lead the pack is always welcome, always appreciated, and always respected.

Team player

If lacking any sort of leadership experience is a red flag, thing of lacking any experience with being a strong team player as 100 red flags, 10 trumpets, and Paul Revere on his horse – in short, you need to show that you are a team player. Let me clarify, however, that being a team player does not mean that you had to have played on a sports team in college, or that you need to include your high school wrestling team days on your resume (please don’t, for the record). What I mean by being a team player is just that you have experience working in teams, and functioning very well in teams – whether through community service events, participating in a sport, large college projects, or working with a team at a previous employer or internship (i.e. sales team, or, for banking, working with your associate and VP on a few projects). At the end of the day, the employer just wants to know that you work well in teams, and that you can handle the give and take associated with being a team player – things are not necessarily done the way you want them to be done, and, at the same time, you need to be able to speak up when you are confused by something or think there may be a more effective way of taking on a task. Remember, you will be spending MANY hours per day, let alone per week, with these people, and if you can’t play nice, then there is no way that they will want to bring you onto their team.

Employee plus, plus

A strong employee and strong academic performer are absolutely beneficial to your candidacy when applying for an investment banking position (yes, I know I am stating the obvious). That said, too many people get carried away with employment and academics thereby forgetting to include a few lines near the bottom of their resumes for hobbies and community involvement. Whether applying to business school, or for a job, the resume reviewers like to see a well-rounded applicant. By showing off some of your extracurricular activities, you achieve two benefits: first, you show the reviewer that there is more to you than a job and a GPA, and second, you are giving the reviewer an opportunity to find common interests and hobbies with you – and having a common hobby definitely makes your candidacy, at the least, slightly more appealing, and, if invited to interview, makes for a much smoother and relaxed interview.

It’s in the details

Hopefully this is something everyone knows already, but whether it’s obvious is irrelevant; it is definitely worth repeating: Pay STRICT attention to detail, every detail. In other words, watch the typos, grammar missteps and poor styling (e.g. font consistency, line spacing, etc.), because if you don’t, you are essentially saying two things: 1) I don’t really care enough about whether I land this job to check my work, and, therefore, 2) move on to the next candidate.

Break it down one time – general section overviews

Extra Curricular Activities

ECs include community involvement and hobbies and should always find a small place in the resume towards the bottom of the page. I usually stick with a few general rules of thumb: 1-2 lines for hobbies, and 1-2 positions for volunteer/community work containing up to 2 bullet points per position. This gives the reader a chance to see that there is more to you than an education and a job, while at the same time not overpowering the true merit of your candidacy, that of your work experience and/or your education.

Education counts, but not that much

General rules of thumb: if you are in undergrad, it kicks off the resume; if you are out of school for a year with strong experience (and have an internship or two), then your education section falls just below work experience – essentially whichever area is stronger leads off the resume. Do not, however, allow your education section to encompass more than 2-4 bullet points (by points I mean lines, which includes GPA, major(s), awards and special projects – such as study abroad programs), as I have seen resumes with education sections spanning 10+ bullet points. Once you get into 5 or more bullet points, it becomes too much and starts to look more like filler and resume fluff, than relevant and candidacy-supporting information – odds are, your resume will be quickly overlooked.

Quick note: regarding B school job seekers (meaning those students who are about to graduate or who have just graduated and are looking for full time employment), I usually recommend that education only comes ahead of work experience if you are a career switcher without a strong internship in your desired field to support your candidacy, or if you feel the value of your school outweighs the value of your internship (attending Harvard, Stanford, etc). Furthermore, by career switcher, I mean someone who is drastically changing their career, not going from banking to consulting (which, although the two are very different career paths, experience in one will still hold up well against experience to the other). Once you start working at a full-time position, however, work experience should overtake education for the resume leadoff spot. While it is impressive that you attended Harvard and earned your MBA, your strong work experience is what will carry you to your next position – leading off with your education is a sign of poor employment growth, or lackluster previous positions – you need to take pride in your past employment, otherwise no one will.

Employment

Regarding your employment history, I recommend a 3 position cap (including internships and full time employment). Each position should include up to 2-3 bullet points, EXCLUDING your current or most recent position as this should be your flagship (or anchor, if you will) position, and pull the entire resume. The current position can have up to 10 bullet points (if you are including transaction experience bullets – for the bankers) or 5-6 bullet points without transaction experience. In my experience, resumes with 15-20 bullet points for a single position begin to appear redundant and often lack any real pop, therefore failing to make a strong or lasting impression – stick with fewer bullet points that have a far greater impact on the reader.

Little things that go pop – some general rules of thumb

Action verbs

Powerful action verbs – manage, design, implement, oversee – to mention just a few examples, all have a far greater impact on the reader than worked on, helped with, contributed to, etc. Own your projects and responsibilities – just because someone checked your work doesn’t mean that it wasn’t your work.

Bullet format

Ensure the bullets are justified, properly spaced, and of the same style (yes, I have seen resumes with different style main bullets before – primary vs. secondary bullet points do not necessarily have to be the same, but secondary bullet points should be indented further).

Consistent line spacing

The spaces between your lines should all be the same font size. While the difference between 30pts and 8pts is quite visible, the difference between 10 and 11, or 8 and 10 is not quite as easy to pick out. Go through your resume line by line and make sure your spacing is exactly how you want it to be and how it should be – if you don’t, someone else just may, and applicants have been passed on for far less than that in the past.

Font styles

Please, Do NOT overuse the bold, underline and/or italic font styles. I know that they are fun to play with, and help to call attention to different aspects of your resume, but they are also very distracting. Absolutely use the styles, but use them sparingly and consistently from section to section – the last thing a reviewer wants to see is a resume with every other word bolded, italicized and/or underlined. – less is more, and, as usual, moderation is key

Your name

Your name should be at the top of the page and typed in the largest font of the page – that is all.

Resume length

Here comes the argument, but I have to go here anyway. Keep it to ONE page, please. I know that a lot of people don’t necessarily agree with this, but unless you are a seasoned professional, there is rarely any strong reason for your resume to run over 1 page – I have seen people (analysts and associates) not even look at a resume STRICTLY because it was 2 pages and the student was just coming out of school (both Ugrad and B school). I know that there is a lot that you want to convey, but save some of it for the interview – remember, a resume reviewer spends an average of 3-4 minutes looking at a resume (although many of the people I know spent more like 1-2 minutes), so you want to keep it brief.

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