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Help! How do I get my foot in the door?...Anywhere!

I graduated w/ a degree in Finance in 06, been bartending for the last 2 years, worked for a boutique IB as an internship in 04. I want to eventually be in IB or PE (yes, i'm serious). I'm good I tell you! I'm smart, driven, hard worker, all of that. But in terms of my resume, I shot myself in the food by being a bartender for too long and not getting a job right out of college. My resume and cover letter are well written (I've had many people look at them and I've spent alot of time on it). I want to get into an ivy league MBA program in the next 2-3 years (my GPA was a 3.7). I get VERY few responses and I know its because I have no recent experience and because of the bartending (and the economy). I've applied to everything (back office, internships) and no success. Does this mean I'll never ever be able to be a banker or pe analyst? Surely hard work and determination will get me there, right? My question is how to I get a job that will be a good bridge to get me into an MBA program and then look for IB/PE internships from there? Thank you for your help

Asked by jnharold

Posted in Interviews and Investment Banking / M & A

01 Jan 2009

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Answers (5)

  • I am amused by you determination in getting into an extinguished industry at such a time.

    Link 03 Jan 2009

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  • Call up your manager at the boutique IB where you interned in 04. Work there for few years.

    Anu 03 Jan 2009

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  • You didn't shoot yourself in the foot: you shot yourself in the chest. The price you'll now pay for those 2 years frittered away as a slacker, is spending your next 3-5 years in jobs far beneath what you could have landed straight out of college. And I'm talking only about the damage you did to your marketability by slacking so long; I'm not considering current market conditions, which makes it even worse for you. (Even if you were a new '08 grad, rather than an '06 grad with 2 years partying experience atop his trashed resume, finding a finance job now would be orders of magnitude harder than it would have been 2 years ago.) The ray of sunshine is, while you have to be currently employed in finance - and WELL employed - to get another good finance job, you DON'T need a finance background to get into a top MBA school. Any industry background (though not bartending, obviously) can get you into an MBA program. In fact, a high proportion of MBA students enroll hoping to switch from other industries into finance. So, start a career now in a less demanding, less pedigree-obsessed industry, work your butt off for a few years, make yourself a star...then apply to top MBA programs.

    Jon Jacobs 03 Jan 2009

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  • Honestly run, run away. In a good environment you would have to settle just to get your foot in the door and nothing in IB or PE is settling. Right now you would have to be lucky to get a miserable job that pays less than you want with little chance for promotion. My question to you is if you are so determined to get into PE/IB then how did you let 2 months go by after graduation forget 2 years? You seems like you are smart find a new goal or like the last person said start a career in another industry and get your MBA from a top 10 B-school and hope the economy has picked up enough for someone to give you a summer slot where you have the chance to earn an offer. Did I say run?

    Doug 07 Jan 2009

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  • You shot yourself in the food? That's not good... The world always needs bartenders.

    food shooter 12 Mar 2009

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