Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

I'm a 4th year undergrad student at the Richard Ivey School of Business in Canada and I've done a marketing internship for Canadian Tire a top Canadian retailer and now I'm working at Deloitte Inc. (consulting) as a Business Analyst.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Is it possible to get good internships with just an average (3.0 on 4.0 scale) GPA?

I'm going into my 4th year as an undergrad.. is it a good idea to get an internship for the summer after graduation?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

A bit more context would help.

Grades are often your foot in the door but if you can swing an interview grades generally go out the window.

If you're looking to do post-grad work then certainly do a summer internship, but unless you can't find a full time job immediately it doesn't make much sense to get an internship after you graduate.

If you get an internship you don't have a secured offer full time and future employers might wonder why you only wanter a 4 month position when you were ripe to start full time.

But. Full time recruiting is usually in September - November and summer intern recruiting is in December - March so it depends on your time lines too.

If its about having experience, FT probably looks better than intern because the connotation of greater responsibility for FT.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Have you heard of that internship where you actually run a house-painting company? You do all the hiring and oversee everything, etc. This maybe only in the States or only in CA, but it sounded pretty amazing.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

I'm going to be starting my 2nd year of a B.Comm program. I will likely be specializing in accounting (3rd year). My goal is to get my Master's from U of T or Laurier.

General advice appreciated.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

What did most of your fellow class of BAs at Deloitte do for internships? Did they get consulting internships or were they all over the board?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Major?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

I applied specifically to consulting. I have friends that applied to ERS, Audit, or Taxc also. They don't randomly place you, its what you apply to.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Student Works painting is supposed to be an awesome way to make money, but they can really screw you around when it comes to 'liability'. i.e. they set limitations on you for not being able to paint insides of houses, which you make way more money for. And if you do this and break anytnhing they don't cover you.

They also take pretty high vigs for just their brand name. You do all the hiring, payroll etc.

Great experience -I ran my own interlock stone driveway sealing company for a summer and I highly recommend it or something similar.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

OK. Being more specific would be good, but in general start thinking about which big 4 accounting firms interest you. Its always going to come down to the people. Look at each firm's UFE pass rate, I know PWCs is very high.

For a MA you got lots of time if your planning on doing a CA first. If not, then I don't know why you would want to spec. in accounting - once your an accountant it can be tough to shake the label for the first little while I've heard.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
I'm going to be starting my 2nd year of a B.Comm program. I will likely be specializing in accounting (3rd year). My goal is to get my Master's from U of T or Laurier.

General advice appreciated.

[/ QUOTE ]find out what CPA requiremenets are in your state to more efficiently plan your college education. keep your grades up, and find a part time job at some accounting firm if you want. i only mention that because i got one before our recruiting started and all the firms were SUPER impressed with me, and the only explaination i have is that i could talk about my experience there, even though i just did administrative work.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Borno,

How do i get a job like yours? I am entering my senior year at Boston University's business school and have a pretty good GPA. But I don't really have any experience since I wasn't able to land any good internships this summer and I just played poker for most of the summers before that.

What are some things I should be looking to do my senior year in order to get a solid consulting or financial job right out of college?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

If you've got a good GPA that's a huge start as that is the first thing they'll look at before deciding to give you an interview.

Without any solid previous experience it will be hard to get a job at a major firm but you'll have a good shot at some boutiques if you interview well.

Being well rounded is big for consulting - less so for finance and marketing.

You should have a solid 1 page resume and cover letter. The career services at your school should be able to help.

To get to that well rounded point I would make sure you get some relevant or at least good work experience. At school you should try to get on a club in a leadership position (a finance or consulting related club is best obviously)

If the firms recruit at your school it makes it a lot easier but if they don't research firms big and small and seek them out. Look for networking opportunities wherever you can, business case competitions are often good for this and if there are any small firms there sweet talk the recruiters and get their contact/forward your resume and cover letter.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
I applied specifically to consulting. I have friends that applied to ERS, Audit, or Taxc also. They don't randomly place you, its what you apply to.

[/ QUOTE ]

No, did your fellow class of BAs (ie, those who you work with now) have consulting internships between their junior and senior years? If not, what did most of them do?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]

If the firms recruit at your school it makes it a lot easier but if they don't research firms big and small and seek them out.

[/ QUOTE ]

Pretty much no firms besides a local bank recruit at my school... it is a small public liberal arts school in Virginia (University of Mary Washington, anyone hear of it?).

I've gone to many different finance companies career web pages and none of them visit my school. Does that put me at a disadvantage to applying?

How many different places did you apply? I'm considering just sending out my resume/cover letter to as many financial companies as I can.

Also how big a part does being on a sports team play? I'm a 3 year all conference member on the swim team as well as the SGA Treasurer but I didn't make Deans List till last semester and I will likely graduate with a 3.2 GPA (every company I have looked at requires a 3.0 minimum, beating that by .2 cannot be impressive can it???).

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

My bad...

The undergrad BAs don't have any previous consulting experience. The MBA 'consultants' (entry level for an MBA at Deloitte) often have one summer consulting.

One was a beer girl for Bud Light, I did marketing, another worked at Deloitte doing data management stuff, others did engineering related jobs because they are from engineering schools..

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Your school not being recruited at puts you at a disadvantage because they are not looking for you, you are entirely looking for them. It means that your school doesn't have the reputation of having great business students.

It doesn't mean you can't get a job though.

If you have finance experience thats huge because they know you've done something like this before.

Varsity atheletics and club treasurer is awesome but work experience is key.

Grades are always so tenuous, 1st semester when I got my job I had a 3.2 GPA (Canadian = 80% avg)... I had some very good experience though and got lucky when I interviewed.

3.2 won't be impressive but it might be enough to get your foot in the door and allow them to read your resume and cover letter, if those impress them you'll have the interview and then YOU are all that matters.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
3.2 won't be impressive but it might be enough to get your foot in the door and allow them to read your resume and cover letter, if those impress them you'll have the interview and then YOU are all that matters.

[/ QUOTE ]

getting an interview with a 3.2 from a non-target, without connections will not be that easy.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

What's considered target? Is there a list of these? or do you guys just go upon undergraduate rank? And then after rank what is out of the range of non target?

like is it <50, <40? what?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

a 'target' school is one where undergrads are actively recruited on campus, so h/y/p/w/s plus maybe 10-15 or so others (mit, cornell, columbia, nyu/stern, cal, etc). there is some correlation with undergrad rank, but also with geographic location and where the people in charge of recruiting at the various firms are alums of.

edit: note that the above list is geared toward top tier banks, consulting firms, and hedge funds ... moving down a tier or two or adding accounting firms to the mix expands the list of targets a lot, but my general statements about how the lists are made would still hold.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Hey Borno hows the court case coming?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Borno,

I am only a first year, going to be a second year this coming fall 2007. I am very interested in becoming an analyst after undergrad, but my GPA is low as of now, 2.9 but I think I can raise it to 3.0+ However, I have had 4 internships already, 3 of them being in the business finance field. Should I keep going with these internships or just concentrate on school? A lot of times these internships give me less time for school, thus bringing my grades down slightly.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
Borno,

I am only a first year, going to be a second year this coming fall 2007. I am very interested in becoming an analyst after undergrad, but my GPA is low as of now, 2.9 but I think I can raise it to 3.0+ However, I have had 4 internships already, 3 of them being in the business finance field. Should I keep going with these internships or just concentrate on school? A lot of times these internships give me less time for school, thus bringing my grades down slightly.

[/ QUOTE ]

Are you trying to work in a bulge bracket firm?

Also are these internships providing skills/experience that will actually benefit you when interviewing for a (I presume you meant) I-banking analyst position?

What school?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
Borno,

I am only a first year, going to be a second year this coming fall 2007. I am very interested in becoming an analyst after undergrad, but my GPA is low as of now, 2.9 but I think I can raise it to 3.0+ However, I have had 4 internships already, 3 of them being in the business finance field. Should I keep going with these internships or just concentrate on school? A lot of times these internships give me less time for school, thus bringing my grades down slightly.

[/ QUOTE ]4 is more than enough, get your grades up

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

i'm getting a research internship in economics hopefully. You guys can have the banking and finance jobs, i'll be happy in theorectical graph land. holla.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Hey Borno, how hard are trading internships to come by? I am going to be a 3rd year economics major from a top 40 school, 3.2 gpa, decent resume etc.

I feel that most finaince jobs will be incredibly boring and I will hate my job, however, I am very interested in trading and thats what I want to pursue as of now.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
Hey Borno, how hard are trading internships to come by? I am going to be a 3rd year economics major from a top 40 school, 3.2 gpa, decent resume etc.

I feel that most finaince jobs will be incredibly boring and I will hate my job, however, I am very interested in trading and thats what I want to pursue as of now.

[/ QUOTE ]

You probably have very little to no chance of landing one at a Bulge Bracket IBank or large trading firm, but you might have a shot at a smaller firm, especially if you start in BO stuff.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

emon can you explain what exactly trading entails I have a vague idea but would like someone knowledgable in the field to give me some more details.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
emon can you explain what exactly trading entails I have a vague idea but would like someone knowledgable in the field to give me some more details.

[/ QUOTE ]

There are a number of things that different firms do. TONS. These range from buying and selling stocks similar to a day trader to trading derivatives to market making, and many more. Trading is a very broad category.

I am going to be working for a market maker in the fall.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Do you have any advice as to where to start in looking for an internship in this field?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
Do you have any advice as to where to start in looking for an internship in this field?

[/ QUOTE ]

What school do you go to?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Princeton

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
Princeton

[/ QUOTE ]

go to the career fair in october, ask everyone there about internships, even though they won't be thinking about summer hires yet.

go to info sessions run by companies in december.

apply to everything on tigertracks in january/february.

career services is not as useless as they seem, bring your resume to them for proofreading and advice on wording/formatting/etc.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Princeton

[/ QUOTE ]

go to the career fair in october, ask everyone there about internships, even though they won't be thinking about summer hires yet.

go to info sessions run by companies in december.

apply to everything on tigertracks in january/february.

career services is not as useless as they seem, bring your resume to them for proofreading and advice on wording/formatting/etc.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks for the advice. Is it a lot harder to get an internship as a sophomore as opposed to a junior?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Princeton

[/ QUOTE ]

go to the career fair in october, ask everyone there about internships, even though they won't be thinking about summer hires yet.

go to info sessions run by companies in december.

apply to everything on tigertracks in january/february.

career services is not as useless as they seem, bring your resume to them for proofreading and advice on wording/formatting/etc.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks for the advice. Is it a lot harder to get an internship as a sophomore as opposed to a junior?

[/ QUOTE ]

as a sophomore without connections, you should be focusing mainly outside BB firms, but can definitely still get something if you are knowledgeable in interviews and have a good gpa and relevant coursework on your resume (eg taking eco 362 this fall) so that you get them. also, having even a mediocre finance-related internship now will help in the search next year.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Yea since you're at a good target school just go to the career office and get the schedule and talk to someone there. Then just go to all the events. You 99% won't get an internship at a BB after sophomore year but it's probably a good idea to apply anyway so you experience the process. But also apply at smaller firms, and you should be able to get something.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Finance major going into sophomore year at LSU w/4.0 gpa. Served five years active duty enlisted military after H.S. (so obvs older than average undergrad). Advice on getting internship with a top firm? Also, will taking honors classes help with getting internships/into top mba program?

Thanks

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Disclaimer: I am not in the industry but am in a similar situation and have read/heard a fair amount about the process.

First, the active durty military will be a positive for your resume. Especially if you were in a high pressure branch of the military (ie airforce pilot, marine, special forces).

Second, you gpa is excellent and also very imporant. You need to maintain a very high GPA.

Your main problem is you go to LSU. LSU is a non target school for the top firms/investment banks. Try to use LSU alumni or contacts to pass your resume through the system to get the internships. Make sure to keep that GPA up.

Also, since you go to a non target you should be focused on work experience. Try to have relevent summer inernships during your sophmore summer/school year.

I don't think taking honors classes will be a huge benfit to your resume. Most employers probably won't see your transcript until they have already really expressed interest/ hired you and are doing a background check. I'm not sure how it effects MBA applications.

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

Hello, I am a rising sophomore at a top school in New York. I had a very basic job this summer not related to finance, and was hoping that I would land a finance internship this year.

GPA: 3.7

However, my skills are limited to:

Basic economics courses: micro/macro/accounting/econometrics/stats
Computer skills: word, excel, access, pp

and no computer language [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

I have friends who have landed bulge bracket internships with less credentials, but I think they have connections. Any advice on what I should work on to become more competitive this winter during interview season?

Re: Ask Borno about undergrad business internships
 

which school?