1. Why university graduates still flock to banking jobs: important work and six-figure salaries
The most obvious allure of a career in finance remains obvious: money. Many of the brightest business students choose to go into finance. The industry remains a favourite for ambitious, high achievers seeking outsized pay and broader career options.
Nowadays the rise of the technology space and venture capital as well as the expansion of consulting companies in Germany have given many younger achievers other places for rewarding and high-paying jobs.
To be fair, the industry’s perception has also ebbed and flowed over time due to the financial crisis in 2008 and the death of German intern Moritz Erhardt at an investment bank in London.
Although these tailwinds in the industry may cause some people to re-evaluate their decision to pursue such jobs, many high-achieving business students still opt for investment banking.
Through interactions with its members and other students, EMERGERS has concluded that there are a handful of reasons that drive students to pursue a career in investment banking:
• Working in investment banking exposes you to many very intelligent and driven people who want to achieve something. Many valuable skills can also be acquired in this profession such as financial modelling, corporate finance, and working efficiently under pressure.
• Junior bankers are also exposed to exciting deals and given responsibility. Where else can university graduates work on projects to advise the executives of the largest companies in the world?
• Banks, especially the larger firms, give their juniors the opportunity to network widely within the firm with other investment bankers and industry professionals such as lawyers, other bankers, and investment professionals.
• The valuable skills, along with the network, open up many exciting opportunities for junior bankers.
• Although money is often not the important reason for students pursuing a career, it is worth noting that investment banking still provides the best-paying jobs immediately after graduation – often even higher than the salaries of people who have worked in an industry for decades.
2. Make yourself more attractive – what do students really want?
Typically, the recruiting process for internships and junior full-time positions is similar across different banks and occurs simultaneously. For these reasons, it is common for attractive candidates to be able to secure multiple offers. Therefore, there is pressure for banks to compete amongst themselves for the best talent. Which offers do they pick, and what do they then consider when deciding? By far the biggest deciding factor is the impression gained from the people working there and a glimpse into their culture – as well as their reputation, which is often a reflection of their fees and deal flow.
Oftentimes, applicants for internships and analyst programmes choose the largest and most reputable firms. Why is that? We believe that young people hungry for a career in finance value the steep learning curve that finance provides. In order to learn a lot, it’s important to work on live deals. Preferably large interesting and complex deals. Reputation and the strength of a brand is then often used as a proxy to ascertain a positive experience. Improving name recognition and the perceived reputation is difficult and may not even be desirable in some cases. Smaller companies and international boutiques are not as frequently portrayed in the media and may not be at the forefront of the minds of many applicants, but can still position themselves well. The best and most direct method to get in front of students would be to get in touch with finance associations at universities and then offer the students a great experience.
