Friday, March 2, 2007

A Good Investment Banking Resume

A Good Investment Banking Resume
Makes You Stand Out from the Crowd


A good investment banking resume has unique qualities in its layout and content. Before I go into details, let me talk about the off page criteria which are equally important.

Investment Banking Resume - Off Page Criteria
You might hire a resume writer to produce an extremely professional resume for you. However there are factors beyond the hands of the resume writer. Here are several off page criteria you should consider in preparation of a really outstanding resume for your investment banking career.

Please keep this in mind as you need to work towards it while you are still at school or just begin your first full time job.

Work History
Headhunters are reluctant to propose a candidate who changes job every year. Likewise, hiring managers hesitate in considering this type of candidates. They just don’t have the confidence that the candidate will stay long enough in order to be contributive to their firms.

One major factor that investment banks rate our (headhunters’) services is how long our candidates stay with their banks.

Tip: the primary off page criteria of an investment banking resume is your work history. Make sure to choose your first full time job carefully and stay there for a considerable period of time.

Degrees & Professional Qualifications
In a young banker’s resume, degrees and qualifications count heavily. I come across a candidate who obtained two bachelor’s degrees and two master’s degrees in five years. He also made his CFA while working full time. I was completely impressed even before I read his work history.

This example could be a bit extreme, but investment bankers do want to look for outstanding people who are able of multi-tasking, who is good at time management and can cope with the crazy work schedules of investment banks.

Tip: the second off page criteria of an investment banking resume is qualifications and studies. Bottom line is to show the hiring manager that you are hungry of knowledge and you can manage the time between work and study. This is especially important for young bankers when hiring managers had not much reference to check on your abilities.

Money-Related Hobbies/Activities
This is something you should start building as an undergraduate. Bankers don’t want to hire someone whose life is between home and school. Get involve in some activities, such as you are a treasurer of the student union at the same time provide research assistance to professors. Remember, taking up a role is better than pure participation. Taking up a finance-related or leadership role is even better.

Have you ever run a shadow investment portfolio? Try it. The hiring manager would be interested in it. Keep track of the transactions, profit and lost numbers. It doesn’t matter you made a fortune or went broke. The objective is to demonstrate your potential of becoming an investment banker.

Try The JPMorgan Online Trading Game
JPMorgan has designed the FantasyFutures online trading game. Students from the US or Europe can participate. The simulated interest rates game allowed students to act like traders – tracking global markets and taking risks. Winners will be published weekly, and will receive an invitation to visit JPMorgan’s trading floor, apart from other prizes.

Tip: the third off page criteria of an investment banking resume is money-related hobbies. Create or invent some investment or money-related hobbies/activities while at school. It will certainly make you stand out from your rival applicants for your first full time investment banking job.

Tomorrow, I’ll talk about the layout and content of a good investment banking resume.

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A Good Investment Banking Resume


1 comment:

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