A Career in Investment BankingBy Finn Kjerulff, CBS Career Center

Why be an investment banker?

• High business prestige

• High saleries

• Very high curve of learning

• After some time with a lot of spreadsheets very interesting work tasks

• The possibility of creating a business network for life

• A lot of career opportunies afterwards in other businesses

• A very international business, int. teams, etc.

• To cooperate with other bright minds

And - for some - the dark side……..

• High demands to your performance

• Normally long working hours, keep the deadline!

• Short vacations

• Missing your social network (girl- or boyfriend missing you)

• The pay is not that high compared to the working hours spent

• Show value for the money paid, you have to sell new products

• The up or out career concept, ’daily’ measuring of your performance

• Often very strong internally competition about benefits and promotions

Which investment banks recruits Danes?CBS is target school for these banks:

• Barclays Capital• BNP Paribas• Credit Suisse• Deutsche Bank• HSBC• Goldman Sachs• JP Morgan• Merill Lynch• Molis• Morgan Stanley• Nomura• RBS• UBS

Which study programs are they looking for?

Principally are they just looking for talents with a high potential for learning and development!!!

But, from DK they more or less only recruits from these programs:

• Cand.merc. ( især finans og matematik)

• Cand.polit.

• Cand.oecon.

• Cand.polyt.

All banks have target schools!!!!!

If they don’t have any recruits in 2-3 years, the schools lost their status!

A recruiting year

Paid summer internship (10 weeks in London) for students at their 3rd or 4th year:

• Some banks announce their offers already in September, most in December. Look at their web pages!!!! Deadline before Christmas or medio February. Start applying already the day of opening for applications! Never wait til the deadline (all offers are occupied then)

• All banks today only accept online application• Apply for 7-10 banks• Don’t be to impatient! Often you have to wait for weeks or months for a reply.• If you are in, each bank has its own recruiting procedure. Remark it normally

is more diffecult to pass for an internship compared for a permanent position

• There is also industrial internships outside the summertime.

A recruiting year/2

Permanent offers:Normally impossible to get without having participated in a summer

internship (more than 85% of the hires have done that)• Open for applications from medio August or start September• Apply as soon as possible• Apply for at least 5-7 banks• You will normally be given a feed back within 14 days.• The process equal to that of internships (9-15 rounds).

Spring events ( for 2nd or 3rd years students) A week in London• An unpaid starter, perhaps they offer you a summer internship.• Deadline normally in January. Not offered by all banks.

Which competencies are they looking for ?

• Superior analytical ability• Well structured mindset• A high drive• Brilliant communicator and presentator• Good performer under all conditions, also under high pressure• Passion & commitment• Very strong business judgment• Very good team player• At home with numbers• Global mindset and attitudes• High knowledge level concerning business and economics worldwide• Holistic business view

And what more….?

• Very high knowledge about the business

• Very high knowledge about the company you are applaying for

• Good knowledge about its closest competitors

• That you in a very good and powerful way can explain your choice

• Personnel manners, attitudes, behavior etc.

Attachments

• CV ( mentioned below)

• Grade transcripts, remember also the one from your exchange and summer school

• Recommendations (best from a professor)

The CV

• Facts, facts, facts and no bullshit!

• Easy to skimm and read. Not a novel! Use bullets!

• Dont’forget your key qualifications

• Emphase:

- Relevant marks and averages

- Projetcs written in or for one or more companies

- Relevant students jobs and functions

- Electives where you add to a investment bank career

- Exchange, mention relevant subjetcs and marks

- Languages and IT

- Interests if on competetion level (sport, music etc.)

Tips for the Application

• It has to be a kind of guideline for reading and interpretating your CV

• It has to explain all your choices

• You shall here show that you are a good and well structured communicator

• It has to leave the reader a good impression about your whole potential

• It has to be reflecsive, a little humble but also express selfconfidence and that you trust yourself and your mission in the business.

Cover letter

You have only one page A4 format!!!

• Not more than 30 lines! Often less, eg 300 letters ord words

• Divide it in 4-5 parts with emphasis on part 2 and 3

Part 1: What you are applying for (company, internships, department and perhaps function)

Part 2: Why bank xx or yy ( challenges, culture, values, career opportunities etc.) Stress always that you come for learning not for teaching!!

Cover letter/2

Part 3: How you can add and contribute to the company. Discribe.

selected skills and interests, experiences etc. Don’t lie or

boast

Part 4: That you can add more information if needed/wanted

Part 5: Hope for an interview where you can express much more.

Attached or uploaded files (remember them all!)

The interview process

Very, very different from company to company, content and priority.

Some start with a telephone interview. Can be hard!

• Tests (numerical, personal, logical)

• Case interviews, measuring global business understanding, problem solving, methods, structure, communication, numbers,

• Assessment Centre

• Interviews and ”oral examinations”

Up to 12 rounds (3 x 4)! If out, you have to wait a year for renewing your application.