Poker winnings on resume
 

I've listed online poker as an interest in my resume (along with stuff like golf).

What do we think about putting an amount in parentheses to legitimize the interest -- something like won $X in 2006 or won $Y to date in 2007 or won $Z in summer 2007?

What if we do none of these and an interviewer asks "how did you do this year" or something along these lines? Do we answer with monetary figures?

what about if we just say "was summer job for summers A and B"?

I won't get into where to list it because that's been discussed forever and never really been resolved, but comments are welcome.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

It's been discussed a lot on here. Generally it's a very bad idea.

edit: I guess I didn't answer your Q at all. Unless there's a serious gap in your resume I would just leave poker out altogether and say you were traveling or something.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

The major gap I have is no internship experience at all. Also, these are all for finance jobs (mostly investment banking).

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

How good are you at poker? I know Jason Strasser brought up poker for investment jobs b/c he's been so successful, but if you're grinding 50nl it probably doesn't look as good.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

i used poker to help me get an internship in nyc in the investment banking. It really is hit or miss it depends on who you are being interviewed by. It is a great conversation piece and it sets you apart from the crowd, but that doesn't necessarily mean it sets you apart in a good way.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

Keyser - no big tourney scores but probably make around an IB salary w/ bonus

sig - how did you list it on your resume?

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

No offense but this thread and others like it are nightmares. Find other ways to fill in gaps/show earning potential. Poker generally is going to be negatively viewed by employers, they don't care about how much you won or that you played for a living, etc etc etc. No reason to even mention it, keep it a seperate part of your life.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

I somewhat disagree. Most people I've spoken with are fascinated with poker and poker players. They, of course, don't want a degen gambler working for (read: stealing from) them, but if you've been pro for a while and are just tired of it, I think that's a perfectly reasonable interview topic. You can talk about it, and they love hearing it.

I would however, leave gambling off of the resume, and I'd only bring it up if they asked about the employment gap.

As far as the $$ is concerned, "enough to live off of", with a sly smile should end that discussion. You don't need to tell them, and not telling them adds to the intrigue (which is why they're interested in your poker playing in the first place). If it does come up, make sure they know that you are deciding to take a job because you don't want to grind in a smoky casino with degens for 12 hrs a day -- not because you are busto (regardless of what's true). It makes you seem more intelligent and cleaner cut.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

the problem is, even if you make a lot of money ppl still view it as gambling (which it is, but not in the sense they think of it as), and therefore, they think primarily luck contributed to your winnings.

even my dad used to be like "ugg, well don't lose it all," even after my discussions with him about how i minimize the luck involved by being way over-rolled for the limits i play.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

Putting interests on a resume is generally very stupid.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

Really?

I remember Vault guides saying this is normal and don't think my career office objected to it.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

On my application to a financial trading company how much I made that year. I already knew they were interested in poker players though, so obviously it helped.

In general it probably depends on what job you are applying for. Also, it's prolly not helpful to include if you couldn't make a decent living off it.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

Unless you're interviewing for trading positions, I would leave it off. IB is a field that doesn't require a whole lot of intelligence and employers will fail to see the connection between poker and math.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

[ QUOTE ]
Putting interests on a resume is generally very stupid.

[/ QUOTE ]

My resume said "reliable leadoff hitter and outfielder for any corporate softball team" in the "other" section and it was well-received by everyone that interviewed me.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Putting interests on a resume is generally very stupid.

[/ QUOTE ]

My resume said "reliable leadoff hitter and outfielder for any corporate softball team" in the "other" section and it was well-received by everyone that interviewed me.

[/ QUOTE ]

I can see this working in some spots, and totally turning someone off in other spots - I would guess people who didn't receive it well wouldn't bother with an interview.

Regardless, I think the other poster was referring to the:

Interests: Hiking, basketball, interwebs, etc. etc. crap that people throw on unprof. resumes.


Chisness, I think it really depends on where you are trying to get a job. At reach firms, it might be a good way of setting you apart and getting an interview. In situations where your credentials are good enough without poker, I would opt to avoid the topic if possible - atleast on your resume, there may be times to bring it up during an interview, depending on the interviewer.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

catalyst,

I don't think an Interests section as you described really matters one way or another. It's something interviewers might bring up and I'm sure it's ignored otherwise.

I'm actually kind of torn on whether these are reaches or not because

1) they don't hire many people for full time (most come from internships)
2) my GPA is slightly above the 3.5 cutoff (though I'm majoring in engineering + econ which will hopefully help some)
3) no summer internships

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

On this note, does anybody have advice on how to fill out a first resume?

I am a good student, but have limited work experience and no internships. Putting interests on a resume was discussed earlier, and was generally looked down upon. I am working on getting my first resume together to apply for an internship next summer, but I really don't know what I am going to do to fill a full page.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

[ QUOTE ]
On this note, does anybody have advice on how to fill out a first resume?

I am a good student, but have limited work experience and no internships. Putting interests on a resume was discussed earlier, and was generally looked down upon. I am working on getting my first resume together to apply for an internship next summer, but I really don't know what I am going to do to fill a full page.

[/ QUOTE ]

Volunteering.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
On this note, does anybody have advice on how to fill out a first resume?

I am a good student, but have limited work experience and no internships. Putting interests on a resume was discussed earlier, and was generally looked down upon. I am working on getting my first resume together to apply for an internship next summer, but I really don't know what I am going to do to fill a full page.

[/ QUOTE ]

Volunteering.

[/ QUOTE ]

learn a new language or computer skills on your own and put it on resume

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

It's best to have your resume customized to the position you are applying for. For example, having half of a page dedicated to your computer skills when applying for a paralegal position is a little too much.

Go to the website of the company you are applying for and try gearing your resume to match their needs.

I would put interests on a resume if I didn't have a lot of work experience and needed to fill up some space. I think it is best to leave off interests though if you can. Another good way to take up space is to list the awards you have received over the years. Also, I think the most important things employers are looking for is work experience. You need to stand out from other people applying for the same postion, and doing some internships is the best way.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

[ QUOTE ]
What if we do none of these and an interviewer asks "how did you do this year" or something along these lines? Do we answer with monetary figures?


[/ QUOTE ]

Answer in BB/100.

-McGee

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

I'd suggest against it. Last time I said I played online poker in an interview the response I got was "didn't they make that illegal?"

Regardless of what you say after being asked that question, they will have a negative view of you. That question usually comes at the beginning too, so it's sure to spoil an interview quickly.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

what about on a college application? [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

Stick this thread in the muck. I simply can't understand the reasoning behind wanting to do this, why do people feel the need to include poker? Simply leave it out and move on, you have to realize there's no upside to it and a considerable downside ~

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

Focus entire resume around your poker career and attach printouts of PokerTracker graphs.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

[ QUOTE ]
Stick this thread in the muck. I simply can't understand the reasoning behind wanting to do this, why do people feel the need to include poker? Simply leave it out and move on, you have to realize there's no upside to it and a considerable downside ~

[/ QUOTE ]


QFT! Although many of us on this forum love poker and understand the skill behind it, there are just too many people out there that consider it gambling and associate negative things with poker. Dont put it on your resume, or bring it up in an interview.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

[ QUOTE ]
QFT! Although many of us on this forum love poker and understand the skill behind it, there are just too many people out there that consider it gambling and associate negative things with poker. Dont put it on your resume, or bring it up in an interview.

[/ QUOTE ]
I would claim that I understand the "skill behind poker", but if I am reviewing someone's resume, I am still hesitant to looking at poker as a positive thing. While poker metaphors might sound good, not much about poker is transferable to the real world. From a potential workplace point-of-view, time an applicant spent playing poker is basically time wasted - time he didn't spend learning anything that the company might need.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

[ QUOTE ]
what about on a college application? [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]

On a college application I think it's a fantastic idea provided you make a lot of money and write well. Make sure to send out a bunch though, because some individual admissions officers will hate it, whereas others will eat it up. Has to be well written though of course. Can't write like lilholdem and get in to Yale just because you made $500k.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

PS JSchnett you should start a new thread. I think whether to write about poker or not on a college application is an interesting question. I love the idea, but I'm a student myself, so I'm not the best judge.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

Writing poker on a college resume is pretty stupid IMO.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

[ QUOTE ]
Writing poker on a college resume is pretty stupid IMO.

[/ QUOTE ]

not on the resume. for the personal statement

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

I thinking adding poker as an interest can be a plus for finance interviews. I have also been told this by many Ibankers and people in asset managment and equity research.

The key is to first explain that poker is a game of skill in the long run. By using analytical and quantitative skills, poker players can have a competitive advantage to win in the long run. Like the financial markets, poker is a volatile game. Players have to endure loosing streaks, similar to long term investors need to endure market down turns and stay the course to achieve optimal results.

Many people will also ask if you are a risk taker. Using poker, you can say you take calculated risks that are profitable in the long run. You need to analyze the risk to determine if the expected value warrants taking the risk.

Note, if you add poker to your resume be prepared to answer questions about odds. Second note, I hope you go to a target school (HYPS) and have a high GPA, because if you have no related work experience you are way behind your competition.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

Also, I think if you list poker just as an interest, the people that don't understand poker a lot may just skim over that detail and not really hold it against you. However, for people that are interested in poker, adding it to your interests can cause the interview to get sidetracked for a while which is a good think in Ibanking interviews because it prevents bankers from asking you the tougher questions.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

Everyone (faculty) I've asked at my university confirm what PRE told me awhile ago - internships. Internships are huuuuge. Get em.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

yeah seriously internships are HUGE. as mwgr said, no related experience puts you way behind the competition. also tons of the ibanking full time jobs are given to interns.

i wish i had known this before, but even making more $$ through poker than would be possible with an internship doesn't make it a good overall choice. also, keep in mind that most people can only play around 20 hrs of poker per week and with a job might be able to do 12 or something, so it's not a huge difference.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

if i didn't get a good full time offer, i wonder if i could try to get an internship and just graduate a year later, while taking a few quarters off for poker so as to not pay additional tuition

any thoughts on this?

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

I haven't read the rest of this thread, but I can tell you what my grad school advisor told me about taking last summer off to play poker. He said that its not really the fact that you like to play poker or gamble and did it for a living one summer because you were good enough to support yourself; a lot of recruiters will find that fact very interesting (esp. if they like to play themselves), and they'll realize that it takes good analytical skills to make money at poker. The problem is that they'll say to themselves "Well, if this guy makes so much money playing poker, then why would he want to come work a 40 hour job for us?" So from his point of view, the company wants to know that you are committed to working full time for the rest of your life, and if you take time off to play poker instead of getting experience in an internship, they may see it as not being ready to accept a full-time job.

Not sure if that's really the case or not, but regardless, I left my poker career off my resume and focused on other stuff; theres really no reason to leave it on your resume at all IMO.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

ThePlan has a good point. From an employer's point-of-view, it is in many jobs almost a requirement that you *need* the job. I would be skeptical in hiring someone who just won the lottery for a $20/hour job, as I would be afraid they just wouldn't show up some times or just quit after 3 months (waste of training).

I disagree with most people who think poker makes sense on a resume, unless it somehow was for a poker-related job.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

I actually think putitng poker under "interests" is a very good idea IF you have a very solid resume besides that (good grades, internships, etc.). Poker actually helped me get my current job, but 99% of the other people I interviewed with loathed it.

Re: Poker winnings on resume
 

if you're applying to a trading position, definitely put poker under 'interests'

it worked for me