Industrial EngineeringInvestment Banking Analyst
Self-attested. The author confirmed their identity to us. The content itself is unchecked.Starting conditions
- Institution
- Regional Public University
- Major
- Industrial Engineering
- GPA band
- 3.8-4.0
- Graduated
- 2017
- Location
- United Kingdom
- Non-target school
- Financial need
Limited exposure to the destination field at the start.
The sequence8 steps
- Coursework7 mo
Self-studied accounting and valuation outside the engineering curriculum
- Networking9 mo
Cold-emailed alumni for informational calls
Cold-emailed alumni for informational calls. This took 9 months and was slower than expected.
Evidence for this stepObstacle
No existing contacts in the field, and cold outreach mostly went unanswered.
How it was resolved
Stopped sending generic messages and wrote to a much smaller, more specific list.
- Project6 mo
Built a DCF model portfolio to compensate for a non-finance transcript
Start this earlier than feels necessary.
- Application8 mo
First recruiting season
First recruiting season. This took 8 months and was slower than expected.
Obstacle
Applied broadly without understanding what the reviewers actually screened on.
How it was resolved
Narrowed the list and applied early in the cycle rather than late.
- Setback5 moPivotal
Cut after first rounds at every bulge bracket
Cut after first rounds at every bulge bracket. This took 5 months and was harder than expected.
Obstacle
The plan stalled here, and it was not obvious it would recover.
How it was resolved
Asked the people who rejected me what the specific disqualifier was, then fixed exactly that instead of everything at once.
- Internship5 mo
Boutique advisory internship
Boutique advisory internship. This took 5 months and was harder than expected.
- Networking6 moPivotal
Converted three alumni calls into referrals
Converted three alumni calls into referrals. This took 6 months and was harder than expected.
- Application6 mo
Second recruiting season
Second recruiting season. This took 6 months and was harder than expected.
Evidence for this step
Outcome
Summer analyst converted to full time
Reflection
Would repeat
- Starting the outreach earlier than felt comfortable.
Would skip
- The first application cycle, which I entered underprepared.
Biggest obstacle
Underestimating how long the prerequisite work would take alongside everything else.
What was luck
- One person answered a cold email who did not have to.
Estimated cost: Roughly $12,000 across the whole transition.