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I suppose this is a Hail Mary attempt.

I graduated last May from UT Austin and I just hit the 1 year mark doing investment banking in NYC and I am desperate to leave my shop. I have been applying to jobs for weeks on end and it hasn’t gone anywhere and it’s gotten to the point where I figured reaching out here may help. If there’s any Longhorns in NYC looking for a kid who was scrappy enough to break into IB but not dumb enough to stay, please let me know. Any life advice is also appreciated im just at my wits end. 

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40 minutes ago, Axle Hongsnort said:

Grinding a few years in IB will set up future résumé opportunities up for a life time. Get like 2 years and slide into private equity.

You’re not wrong. This jobs just so fucking exhausting man. Just one of those late nights in the office where I go a little existential. 

Edited by Leverage
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43 minutes ago, Axle Hongsnort said:

Grinding a few years in IB will set up future résumé opportunities up for a life time. Get like 2 years and slide into private equity.

Agree with this.  Think hard about keeping on riding the dragon as long as you possibly can.  The stripes that you'll earn in the process will pay off over the course of your career.

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13 hours ago, Leverage said:

I suppose this is a Hail Mary attempt.

I graduated last May from UT Austin and I just hit the 1 year mark doing investment banking in NYC and I am desperate to leave my shop. I have been applying to jobs for weeks on end and it hasn’t gone anywhere and it’s gotten to the point where I figured reaching out here may help. If there’s any Longhorns in NYC looking for a kid who was scrappy enough to break into IB but not dumb enough to stay, please let me know. Any life advice is also appreciated im just at my wits end. 

subject-verb agreement error on sentence #4.  pls fix.  thnx

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What are you looking to get into? What is your background - college degree in science/business/liberal arts, M&A or research analyst, O&G, retail, pharma... Are you sure that you want to remain in NYC? Where are you from?

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53 minutes ago, Bevo said:

What are you looking to get into? What is your background - college degree in science/business/liberal arts, M&A or research analyst, O&G, retail, pharma... Are you sure that you want to remain in NYC? Where are you from?

Born and raised in Houston and looking to stay in NYC. Don’t wanna mention too much publicly but always open to chat

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The problem with chatting is that I can't help you directly. I can only give direction and contacts. I have family members and friends who were in O&G M&A and now run companies, others who started hedge funds, others who started software companies for commodities trading... Some moved back to Houston, some are still in NY, some went to St. Johns, Kinkaid, Memorial, St Thomas, 2nd Baptist, Beth Israel, some went to Texas... So the more background you can provide, the better. You don't need to tell everyone that you worked for Jamie Dimon and he is pushing you out - that kind of stuff is irrelevant except in pms. But, if you want help, it is pretty hard to get anywhere on a public forum without providing at least some background. 

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23 minutes ago, Bevo said:

The problem with chatting is that I can't help you directly. I can only give direction and contacts. I have family members and friends who were in O&G M&A and now run companies, others who started hedge funds, others who started software companies for commodities trading... Some moved back to Houston, some are still in NY, some went to St. Johns, Kinkaid, Memorial, St Thomas, 2nd Baptist, Beth Israel, some went to Texas... So the more background you can provide, the better. You don't need to tell everyone that you worked for Jamie Dimon and he is pushing you out - that kind of stuff is irrelevant except in pms. But, if you want help, it is pretty hard to get anywhere on a public forum without providing at least some background. 

Dude, there's only 4 investment bankers in NYC.  It will be so easy to dox him.

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I mean it’s hard to give any real advice without knowing anything about your background or where you’d like to transition to.

That said, I’d push back on the “stick it out” advice above. There’s nothing magical about two years as opposed to a year and a half or whatever. Life is way too short to hate your life in your 20s. You should get to work on an exit strategy now.

First thing is to think about where you want to go - we know where you don’t want to be, but where are you trying to go? Once you identify that, work on crafting your resume to highlight the most applicable elements and study up on technical skills you might need. Ask around in your network. Get back to applying once you’ve reworked your resume, and apply thoughtfully - if you can’t identify why you’d be interested in the work then don’t bother. Don’t waste your time spamming apps just to do it. It doesn’t have to be your dream job, everything can suck if you’re doing it 40+ hours a week, but if you can’t articulate what you want out of it then it’s both a waste of your own time and it’ll show in an interview.

One thing you’ll come to realize later on is that applying to jobs for weeks isn’t really a very long time if you’re talking cold applications for entry level positions. For one, it can take companies weeks to reach out, and frankly entry level candidates are a dime a dozen especially this time of year. It won’t take as long later in your career as your skillet gets more specialized, but you’re out here applying for entry level jobs right as the class of 2023 is hitting the market. It may take a while.

By the time you mark up your resume, put in enough applications to get some interviews, go through the process, negotiate and accept an offer, several months may have gone by. There’s no reason to wait a year to get started.

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11 hours ago, wackawacka said:

DM - I am about to hire an associate from <bulge bracket bank> and there is a 50% chance that he doesn't take the offer. At the very least, I can point you toward some startups that are looking for finance analyst.

Dude with Fozzie and screen name "WackaWacka" is just out there being a player in the New York investment banking world on a Longhorn message board.

Fozzie Bear Reaction GIF by Muppet Wiki

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33 minutes ago, FirstTimeCaller said:

Dude with Fozzie and screen name "WackaWacka" is just out there being a player in the New York investment banking world on a Longhorn message board.

Fozzie Bear Reaction GIF by Muppet Wiki

It’s always a bear market for him 

Edited by Pato del Muerto
Wacka wacka wacka!
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Think big, think positive, never show any sign of weakness. Always go for the throat. Buy low, sell high. Fear? That's the other guy's problem. Nothing you have ever experienced will prepare you for the unlimited carnage you are about to witness. Superbowl, World Series - they don't know what pressure is. In this building, it's either kill or be killed. You make no friends in the pits and you take no prisoners. One moment you're up half a mil in soybeans and the next, boom, your kids don't go to college and they've repossessed your Bentley. Are you with me?

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Whatever you do, absolutely do not listen to South Austin. 

Aren’t you just a year away from the MBA off ramp? Assuming you have a healthy love for money, I’d stick it out and get to grad school, and then reassess. I’m an M&A partner (very junior) at a big law firm in NYC, and I realize grass is always greener, but I sometimes kick myself for not going the banker route. Not because the PE/investment banker gig seem like a less miserable job (it doesn’t), but those MFs can make wayyyy more bread. 

All that to say, if you don’t absolutely love the almighty dollar, go back to Texas and get a 9-5. But being in nyc in your 20s with some change in your pocket isn’t that bad my guy.

Edited by Reynolds Woodcock
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On 6/16/2023 at 8:20 PM, Reynolds Woodcock said:

Whatever you do, absolutely do not listen to South Austin. 

Aren’t you just a year away from the MBA off ramp? Assuming you have a healthy love for money, I’d stick it out and get to grad school, and then reassess. I’m an M&A partner (very junior) at a big firm in NYC, and I realize grass is always greener, but I sometimes kick myself for not going the banker route. Not because the PE/investment banker gig seem like a less miserable job (it doesn’t), but those MFs can make wayyyy more bread. 

All that to say, if you don’t absolutely love the almighty dollar, go back to Texas and get a 9-5. But being in nyc in your 20s with some change in your pocket isn’t that bad my guy.

Yeah, a close relative made through all the early burnout years to a high level position at one of the most respected firms and got sick of the lifestyle and moved back to Texas, He kicked himself for a number of years wishing he hadn't left. Once you leave, it is almost impossible to come back.

Edited by Bevo
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I've had multiple classmates go through the grinder, didn't envy them the hours or lifestyle at all first few years, but after that, it isn't the grind any more and they're now making a shitton of money. As an outsider, I'd also say to stick with it. At least do a few years and then transition, like many have advised already.

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Appreciate the supportive words. Hopefully I can look back on this thread one day and laugh. I’m just taking it one day at a time and staying positive. Funny you mentioned St. Thomas / St. John’s / Strake - I went to one of those schools actually. Long term I’d like to be at a L/S or a LO fund. 

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On 6/21/2023 at 5:15 PM, royiv said:

Snl GIF by Saturday Night Live

Hah, I wish. My parents are immigrants and my dad worked 2 jobs to put me through said school. I got very lucky in some ways getting to this point but I don’t want to discount the hard work and right decisions I’ve made along the way. 

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