Ask an investment banker anything...

[MHurricane]

1. In College, per day, how much time did you spend studying?
2. What are some extra-curriculars I should go after if I want to get into finance/IB

[WickedMind]

What make you chose the IB route over the entrepreneurial route? With the hours you work now and experience you have it wouldn't be hard for you. I couldn't imagine working 100 hours a week for only 160k.

[Temperature]

Do you think it is worthwhile to pursue a CFA?

Can you suggest a minor that may be relevant to the industry? I'm currently looking at one of math, econ, or stats. Which one of those would be most useful or do you know if something else would be better?

Check my previous post on CFA

Do a minor which you will be good at and have an interest in.

[Temperature]

1. In College, per day, how much time did you spend studying?
2. What are some extra-curriculars I should go after if I want to get into finance/IB

I was never focused on studying, I have always been practical. I never read books and only studied when the time for exams came. I did put emphasis more on course work rather than exams. I prefer learning through case studies rather than having to go through an old boring text book

2. Finance/investing club, charity, entrepeneurship, investing in markets (set up a fake portfolio, sports, etc. Do something you have a passion in rather than just for the sake of it.

[OmniscientCause]

good ish op...had an interview for a training program for an IB last week...I thought it went well but I guess I will have to wait and see.

I'm about to graduate and my only regret is choosing ecn over finance strictly because it was tougher on my gpa than finance...havent got less than an a- in a finance class...


reps for you tomorrow im on spread

[Temperature]

What make you chose the IB route over the entrepreneurial route? With the hours you work now and experience you have it wouldn't be hard for you. I couldn't imagine working 100 hours a week for only 160k.

I have bigger dreams. My analyst program is merely my bootcamp to prepare me for something more interesting. The salary I am earning now is not something I am looking to earn in the future. I have a passion for investing. I am more speculative than accumulative so I am trying to follow my dream to work in a big credit fund. I like banking because its the best place to learn about finance and also meet people and have a solid network. Who knows, years down the line, I might come up with a business idea and I can call a few colleagues and ask them to invest in me.

[TheVM]

good thread brother, i'm a med student and I still find this thread interesting

what kind of hormone disease do you have btw?

[ShevaSpeed]

Why didn't you go into S&T, and become a trader instead of doing banking?

[Temperature]

good thread brother, i'm a med student and I still find this thread interesting

what kind of hormone disease do you have btw?

One of my good friends used to be a doctor but did a complete U-turn and joined the healthcare team. Now he works with hospitals, medical instrument companies, etc. and loves it.

I got some problem with my thyroid brah.

[fatinNYC]

Would respond in detail as possible (would be great if I can get out of red - got mod neg rep'd for liking Rebecca Black - Friday video but I only like the raping bit).

I work in Leveraged Finance - I raise high yield bonds, leveraged loans for companies and financial sponsors looking to buy-out companies. Closed many big transactions. Got 3 years of work experience and will be promoted to Associate. Used to work in M&A but moved 1.5 yrs ago.

can i borrow your ferrari

[MHurricane]

which careers in finance have a great work-life balance (at least 100k/year).

[Temperature]

Why didn't you go into S&T, and become a trader instead of doing banking?

Because IBD provides a better platform of learning financial modelling, financial analysis, deal execution/process - basically in IBD you have a chance to become all-rounded. You get involved in every aspect of the deal process. Sales is boring, you don't really need to learn the intrinsics of a company or know the deal properly, you just need to sell it to the client. Trading is too mechanical for me - just look at charts all day and get the best price for the client. Investment banking is more interesting and more challenging IMHO. Traders and Salespeople would differ but we all have our own opinion. Just depends on what you enjoy and what are you long-term ambitions.

[Temperature]

which careers in finance have a great work-life balance (at least 100k/year).

Asset management IMHO offers the best work-life balance. Also hedge funds but its very hard to get in there without going through analyst program.

[Temperature]

I gotta go now, will come back tomm for more.

[Strengthftw]

How many people in your class moved into a completely unrelated field such as starting their own business or going to engineering or health care, compared to moving on to another position in finance such as PE?

[TheVM]

One of my good friends used to be a doctor but did a complete U-turn and joined the healthcare team. Now he works with hospitals, medical instrument companies, etc. and loves it.

was thinking about doing something like that, even took my GMAT and was about to apply for the HBS 2+2 program. (Was having some second doubts about the whole med school thing) Then I realized its tough in any field really. Hell who knows might still do something on the business side of medicine, I'm always being pulled in different directions cause I find a lot of stuff very interesting.

I got some problem with my thyroid brah.

thats what i figure

[kingaesthetic]

LOL a thyroid problem, isnt that the standard fatty excuse? unless its really legit then damn

also, are you a virgin op? srs

[fatinNYC]

Some places look at it that way. Bonuses can be looked at in many ways - also depends on level. You can't compare a bonus of a 3rd year analyst like me to a managing director who brings in millions of dollars - I am a small clog in the system. If i die today, no one will remember my name and they will find someone else to replace me. It all depends on performance of the bank, how much M&A/ECM/Levfin fees are brought in, compare that with last year, divide it by headcounts, etc. Headcounts is a key parameter when calculating bonuses. The less people you have, the more they will get paid from the general pool. But yeh, theres many ways to look at bonuses, some say % of salary, some say its own its own.

so how much do you make? how much does someone normally make in this field? trying to compare to law.

[USC]

LOL a thyroid problem, isnt that the standard fatty excuse? unless its really legit then damn

also, are you a virgin op? srs

thyroid problems are hereditary, and legitimate, they can be life threatening

[michaelenzo]

Hey man awesome thread, repped.

1. Do big firms in US hire top Canadian graduates? (ex. Ivey School of Business)

2. How do Canadian firm's payrate compare to US?

[mfitty9000]

Pretty motivating, wow. No doubt you'll be CEO'in one day soon, strong professional work ethic, srs

[JaxBrah]

Mirin work ethic.

But at what cost? 18 hours a day including weekends sounds horrible for anything under 200k. When do u ever get to enjoy anything in life?

[drew_c9]

Good thread brah found some great resources from this thread.
I really want to impress my boss this summer.
What should a person do to be the best possible intern?

[Scofield]

This is coming from an Aussie? My bank help raised billions for a leading Aussie mining company, which used the money to invest in Australia mining projects, which created jobs, which in turn helps GDP of Australia grow. Banks are part of the financial system. Sure they fuked up, but who doesn't?

Banks ****ing up ≠ any other industry ****ing up. Banking are probably the only industry that can cripple society. Therefore its pretty damn inexcusable.

Bull****.

Banking has become so perverse that its affect on society is still a net negative. All that is needed from banking is to provide loans and a return for customers who provide the liquidity for those loans.


Brb speculating on commodities to defeat the securities original purpose
Brb making ****ty loans, not a single **** given
Brb pulling new financial products out of ass with no regard of consquences
Brb risking nothing and getting bailed out when it all blows up
Brb making the man on the street pay for it



Garbage man > Investment banker

And its not even close.

[Madsen89]

But at what cost? 18 hours a day including weekends sounds horrible for anything under 200k. When do u ever get to enjoy anything in life?

From an economic perspective, no amount of money is worth working 18 hours a day, because you have 0 leisure time to enjoy that money. OP probably wouldn't notice a difference past $150,000 anyways.

[zennyDMT]

would a masters degree in computational finance help?

From an economic perspective, no amount of money is worth working 18 hours a day, because you have 0 leisure time to enjoy that money. OP probably wouldn't notice a difference past $150,000 anyways.

[SoftTings]

I wanted to get into IB but my GPA is only 3.6 (hopefully i will have it up by the time i graduate) and i don`t really do any extra curricular stuff. Its not that i don`t want to, i don`t have the time since while in school i work close to full time to pay for school, books, and partially support my family because my mom and dad make very little. Am i going to have to give up on the idea of getting an internship offer for full time job straight out of school and work into it by starting lower at a major bank, or is there some way i can use this to my advantage?

[faddy5624]

I wanted to get into IB but my GPA is only 3.6 (hopefully i will have it up by the time i graduate) and i don`t really do any extra curricular stuff. Its not that i don`t want to, i don`t have the time since while in school i work close to full time to pay for school, books, and partially support my family because my mom and dad make very little. Am i going to have to give up on the idea of getting an internship offer for full time job straight out of school and work into it by starting lower at a major bank, or is there some way i can use this to my advantage?

Brah that work ethic is worth a lot more then any dumb club. Explain that to employers and they will be impressed.

[fatinNYC]

thyroid problems are hereditary, and legitimate, they can be life threatening

no he's right - thyroid problems are the standard fatty excuse, but if he does have it that is a legit problem.

[drew_c9]

I wanted to get into IB but my GPA is only 3.6 (hopefully i will have it up by the time i graduate) and i don`t really do any extra curricular stuff. Its not that i don`t want to, i don`t have the time since while in school i work close to full time to pay for school, books, and partially support my family because my mom and dad make very little. Am i going to have to give up on the idea of getting an internship offer for full time job straight out of school and work into it by starting lower at a major bank, or is there some way i can use this to my advantage?

Start making phone calls or emails to banks or employers you would potentially work for. Tell them what your interests are, and why you want to intern. It doesnt hurt to ask these people you never know what might happen.