What sets apart people who get the GS/JPM/MS offers?
Is it grades? Ability to talk? Extracurriculars (doesn’t seem so to me)? Networking? Just trying to understand what gets people offers
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Combination of networking/interviewing skills + a bit of luck. Pretty much everyone has similar ECs/GPA so that is more of a box to check
Got one of those offers - I think ultimately grades, technicals, student finance club involvement are all just check boxes within an application you need to have them but they don't get you the job.
From what I have seen around me I would break it down into 3 points.
1. Nepotism - This one is candidly an extremely small box, the jobs are so competitive that it is like 2-4 people in any given class who got in through this.
2. Incredible Communication Ability - You highlight ability to talk, but I think that is a little broad. The people around me have an incredibly ability to simply and explain concisely complicated topics. They are effective at communicating their thoughts and are reflective when posed with pushback not defensive. The vast majority of these candidates stand out in the interview room, especially in a super day where everyone gets everything right. Its the reason why in hearing decision rooms the top 2-3 candidates are often times consensus and immediately recognized.
3. Having Another Offer - Using an earlier offer to accelerate one of these processes and keep yourself out of the general process increases your odds of getting into one of these specific banks significantly. Often the people that are holding good enough offers to be accelerated by one of the banks highlighted above fit the 2nd bucket anyways.
You think too highly of yourself. People who get those offers are just lucky. That's all it is. People get lucky. So tired of people writing big blocks of BS putting themselves on pedestals or pretending there's some secret formula or skill to getting these offers when it's literally just a matter of luck. Especially JPM who don't even do networking!
LOL - I got 2 top EB offers before accelerating my process. Recruiting is NOT luck in the aggregate, in an individual process you need to be lucky to be successful but if you are truly a great candidate you will end up with offers. I see this mentality a ton among kids I've helped mentor, you are not unlucky more often than not you were just not good enough.
Its also why I highlighted accelerating your process as one of the best ways to go about getting an offer, GS particularly will typically fill 50-75% of their class before they even start rolling interviews to normal applicants.
Attributing to just one factor, luck, is oversimplifying. If the sole factor is luck, then every candidate would have the same probability, but that's clearly not the case. Some candidates have better odds than others. Anecdotally I have seen polished kids who communicate extremely well, and those nervous wrecks who literally can't speak normally during interviews (speak so fast that they are almost stuttering).
Luck is a big factor, but it's not the only factor. It's more of a combination of interview skills + luck.
Do they also have an "incredibly" ability to "simply" and explain how to spellcheck/proofread? I would hope so for their sake, incoming analyst...
Apart from the typo, that sentence would be a lot easier to follow if that part was written “simply and concisely explain.” The way he wrote it, it seems like “concisely” is supposed to modify “complicated.”
Some superstar communicator!
Diversity programs in combination with luck and any prior experience.
Luck, luck, and luck. Then diversity. Finally, actual ability
Completely wrong. Big 3 bankers are noticeably more polished, sharp & well-rounded than bankers from rando MMs like KeyBanc and shit. Half of the latter are uncouth non-target fucks that don't know how to behave at a dinner table and will never be able to present publicly. You think guys like Jim Donovan / Greg Lemkau are spending their time at fucking KeyBanc??? KEYBANC my brother?!
I think the discussion revolved more around bankers in GS/MS/JPM vs bankers in BOFA/Barc/Citi/UBS. There is literally no noticeable difference between them
If you line me up 10 bankers and 5 come from The Big 3 and 5 come from BofA, Citi and/or UBS, I can tell you with roughly ~75% accuracy who the Big 3 bankers are. They will be taught and malleable, with fresh-face charm and a tight, moist little keister holes.
give me a blindfolded test where I give each intern a soft succulent kiss on the lips I’ll tell you straight away who got offer from GS/MS/JPM
Who even brought up Keybanc
Sociopathy
Ya there's an insane amount of luck involved. But you can boost your odds from 10-20% if you prep well, and across 5 or 6 interview processes that makes a big difference
Gender/skin color
The two Ps -- pedigree and polish.
What does being polished actually mean?
If you think about "awkwardness" in an interview, polish is the complete opposite of that. It's the ability to converse naturally and smoothly when answering non-technicals, and the ability to answer the technicals clearly and concisely. In short, it's the ability to make the interview format almost feel like a normal, stress-free chat for the person doing the interview. Polish comes with either a million interview reps or just being a natural when it comes to interviewing.
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