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NYC Finance Internship/Job? - Page 3

post #31 of 46
6/3/11 at 9:36pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Egert View Post
BTW, just that I work as a sales trader (was recruited while in uni, still 1 year to go before I get meh bachelors). Then I would have 2+ yrs experience and I'd aspire to a trading position as well. Should we maybe do a "enchance my resume/cover letter" thread, so more experienced guys can give some tips or points how to make your resume more attractive (eg. what to add, take out, mention etc).

Why don't you seek internships at smaller prop-shops or market makers (most are based in Chicago), because sell-side trading is a whole different game, but maybe that's what ur interested in. And the pure prop is a yesterday's thing @ big banks. As far as I've heard, traders @ IB's rarely succeed outside the comfortable flow of the bank, but prop and mkt making shops really attract the raw trading talent, because you eat what you kill there. Although you won't probably kill anything for a while when you start...

BTW, I'm building models in my spare time in excel/matlab as well, currently working on imp.vol curves of distillates to find overpriced 2sd's OTM options for shorting. Learning VBA on my own as well - maybe we can stay in touch?

I probably appreciate your post than any other single one in this thread. I will definitely take your suggestions into consideration, and would be happy to stay in touch.
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post #32 of 46
6/3/11 at 9:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yachting Man View Post
^ This.

I've been in investment banking for over 25 long and sleepless years. I've worked at both a traditional Swiss boutique in Switzerland and BB banks in London and NY.

From experience be advised:

I have yet to find a person who gets into this line of work because they love it. People do it for either the money, power or the future prospects it grants (exit strategy).

If you plan on getting married and having kids I hope you have an exit strategy. In this field for the first four or five years it is safe to assume you will cut all ties with family and friends. Reaching VP level doesn't help much in this department either. Stick to it and you can make MD after maybe 15 years if you're lucky (the hours are still horrible).

Just remember the higher you climb the more stressful it becomes.

Best of luck.

Very true. I have a couple of close friends who are in their third year as junior analysts and the quality of life is pretty low. They constantly complain about never knowing how long they're going to have to work for the day - you might sit around till 5pm doing nothing and then get assigned work that keeps you there until 1am. Or waking up on Sunday thinking you have the day free only to get an email from your MD asking you to come in to work....and getting stuck there until the evening.

One things for sure, you will become amazing at building models in Excel!
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post #33 of 46
6/4/11 at 1:15am
Thread Starter 
All the people posting horror stories arent really much help in themselves, however can anyone tell me the firms at which these individuals work?
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post #34 of 46
6/4/11 at 4:16pm
doesn't matter...take your pick, UBS, citi, GS, MS, barclays, rothschilds, it really doesn't matter. Ibanking is grueling stuff. Trading has much better hours, but job security is basically non-existent.
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post #35 of 46
6/4/11 at 4:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quadcammer View Post
doesn't matter...take your pick, UBS, citi, GS, MS, barclays, rothschilds, it really doesn't matter.

Ibanking is grueling stuff.

Trading has much better hours, but job security is basically non-existent.

UBS? not anymore!
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post #36 of 46
6/4/11 at 6:46pm
Thank you yachting man for your honesty. I discouraged my son from pursuing ib (it would have been hard for him to get in but he had a shot) because I thought the lifestyle seemed brutal. He will be starting at a big4 accounting firm - he found he liked accounting. I have felt guilty about subtly discouraging ib but your post made me realize that I did the right thing for him. My son, however, is happy with his decision to pursue accounting.

My husband has made a nice living in law. It has provided a good enough income, interesting work and a decent work/life balance. I wanted my son to pursue law but he wasn't interested - business is his thing. I'm sure things will work out for him - he has a sales personality and will be very good with clients. I just wanted to say how much I appreciated your posts.
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post #37 of 46
6/4/11 at 10:42pm
^Why not let your son pursue both then let him make a decision once he has offer(s)?
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post #38 of 46
6/4/11 at 11:17pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marshmallow View Post
Thank you yachting man for your honesty. I discouraged my son from pursuing ib (it would have been hard for him to get in but he had a shot) because I thought the lifestyle seemed brutal. He will be starting at a big4 accounting firm - he found he liked accounting. I have felt guilty about subtly discouraging ib but your post made me realize that I did the right thing for him. My son, however, is happy with his decision to pursue accounting.

My husband has made a nice living in law. It has provided a good enough income, interesting work and a decent work/life balance. I wanted my son to pursue law but he wasn't interested - business is his thing. I'm sure things will work out for him - he has a sales personality and will be very good with clients. I just wanted to say how much I appreciated your posts.

Isn't the work/life balance in big 4 public accounting terrible in it's own right? The difference of course is that you get paid peanuts in accounting.

I suppose there is still a huge difference between 60 hours and 100 though!
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post #39 of 46
6/5/11 at 2:08am
All of the posts in this topic are bumming me out and discouraging me from my inevitable job route. However, this one takes the cake:
Quote:
Originally Posted by makker View Post
This is just fucking awesome. No joke. Be it how sadistic, this is what I am aiming to pursue for my future career. Plus, I dont really honestly care for the fact if I dont have proper time for family or friends. Especially friends havent been a substantial part of my life for the last 5 years and I guess by now I'm used to it. Survival of the fittest.
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post #40 of 46
6/5/11 at 4:09am
Thread Starter 
^ seriously I posted looking for connections, and all anyone can seem talk about is how terrible IB is. The funny thing is that I was looking for a trading job, not IB.
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post #41 of 46
6/5/11 at 3:57pm
^ At least you know what you want. I'm just another unofficial Finance major who has no clue what he wants to do. The fact that I fell asleep in all of the meetings at my bank internship a few years back was the first red flag for me.
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post #42 of 46
6/5/11 at 11:56pm

..


Edited by Souper - 10/10/11 at 10:31pm
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post #43 of 46
6/7/11 at 12:12pm
There are places in NYC, a dime a dozen that will let you trade their capital and share in the most likely outcome...losses. That will be short lived. Anyone who tells you they are a successful trader is likely one who works at an IB or a Hedge Fund and those are likely few and far between. A lot are pedigreed guys out of top universities. You will almost certainly become and assistant first running to get Johnnys Clam Bar, or on the next train to Philly getting some Pat's to bring back, than putting in actual trades or offering anything constructive. Here is the advice, stop posting on a fashion site and start working any connections you might have and calling any and all prop shops in lower Manhattan offering a pitch on the phone that is different. Someone will listen.


Quote:
Originally Posted by stayclassy View Post
I want to be a trader because I am a degenerate gambler, and its the only healthy way I can feed my urges. JK, thats just how I have heard traders being described at work. Really I just find it the most intriguing aspect. I enjoy watching charts, and also developing models in excel (built a pair trading model today), although I don't really understand VBA let alone developing algos. I can see myself trading from home once I gain some experience, or maybe even starting my own hedge fund. Although I find it painful watching the current trader allocate block trades at work. I can also add some publications to my resume as I currently co-write articles for Lee Munson on seeking alpha. As previously stated, I do want to seek mass monetary gain, but I am also genuinely interested in finance. I appreciate people providing me the tip to go to WSO, but I am really looking for some direct connections if anyone has any.
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post #44 of 46
11/6/11 at 1:41pm
As part of this finance program I'm currently in, I have to confirm some of these horror stories posted in here. We have speakers every week tell us very similar stories/experiences.

But contrary to some of the things said in this topic, these speakers have told me they actually like their jobs. Maybe they're lying, maybe they're not. Who knows?
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post #45 of 46
11/6/11 at 7:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by austinite View Post


Quote:


Originally Posted by Marshmallow View Post

Thank you yachting man for your honesty. I discouraged my son from pursuing ib (it would have been hard for him to get in but he had a shot) because I thought the lifestyle seemed brutal. He will be starting at a big4 accounting firm - he found he liked accounting. I have felt guilty about subtly discouraging ib but your post made me realize that I did the right thing for him. My son, however, is happy with his decision to pursue accounting.


My husband has made a nice living in law. It has provided a good enough income, interesting work and a decent work/life balance. I wanted my son to pursue law but he wasn't interested - business is his thing. I'm sure things will work out for him - he has a sales personality and will be very good with clients. I just wanted to say how much I appreciated your posts.




Isn't the work/life balance in big 4 public accounting terrible in it's own right? The difference of course is that you get paid peanuts in accounting.


I suppose there is still a huge difference between 60 hours and 100 though!

I'm starting in a big4 firm next fall and at least from my view although the compensation is substantially less the work/life balance while not great is better. I feel like I can have some semblance of a life working 75 hours 4 months out of the year and 40-50 the rest of the year. On the other hand working 100hrs 52 weeks a year feels like a straight up trade of my 20's for a big salary.
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