Recruitment (i) - my story and an overview

Having gone through various banking recruiting process myself, I'd like to share some tips for the recruitment process (especially for junior professionals). 

In this very first post, I will discuss what a banking career is like for recent graduates, why I started my career in banking, and what you should do.   

Choosing your first job ......
Leaving the academic world means young graduates have to find a job. Needless to say, universities around the world offers a lot of opportunities (eg. recruitment talks, internships) to help students find their first jobs. 

I don't need to elaborate of these opportunities here; what I want to point out is that banking / finance is not the only option for business students. Other very good options include: 

• IT (sales / business development roles in eg. Google, Apple, Microsoft.),
• Economist (researchers / economists in eg. IMF, World Bank.)
• PhDs (in various subjects eg. econometrics, developmental economics.)
• Consulting (eg. Mckinsey, Bain, BCG.)

But if you decide to pursue opportunities in finance / banking after considering all these option, my blog is here to help. In a series of post, I will discuss the recruitment process, interviewing tips, different roles within banking / finance, etc.    

Why I have chose banking
For me, I have chosen banking because:

1. Good foundation for business career: businesses are inseparable from finance. Working in investment banking allows me to gain valuable knowledge of how companies finance their operations, acquisitions, and strategic expansion. 

2. Training: banks typically put a lot of resources to train up its junior bankers (eg. academic programs, sponsorships of CFA and other licensing exams). Don't forget, I receives all these trainings while getting paid! 

3. Network: another advantage of being a junior banker is that I get a lot of opportunities to cooperate & connect with other professionals (other bankers, lawyers, consultants, etc.).      

4. $: I don't get paid a huge sum for my work, but I do admit that pay is typically better in banking compared to a lot of other industries.  

What you should do
If you decide banking / finance is the right opportunity for you, then doing the following will help you in achieving your goals:

1. Have a good resume: making my resume took me way more time than I initially expected. But what I realize is that having a good resume saves me a lot of time by getting me lots of interviewing opportunities. My blog will discuss what a good resume is like.

2. Network: talk to teachers, friends, alumni; ask for opportunities and find out more about what a banking job is like.    

3. Brush up your finance knowledge: this include studying again the materials from your "introduction to corporate finance" class (at least knowing how to calculate free cash flow, what is CAPM model, etc, what are the different method of valuing a company, etc.)

4. Interview practice: your first interview may not land you a job right away, but practice makes perfect. 

I will elaborate on these points and other tips in the posts to follow. 

Questions

If you have any comments or questions, please drop me a comment (or email me at investingneverdie@gmail.com). Happy to discuss your particular situation and whether CFA might be a good option for you.