University finance societies give students an edge in the job market

In a tough employment market, many students are joining university finance and trading societies in order to learn more about banking and improve their chances of landing a job.

Members get to meet senior and junior bank employees, discuss how to prepare for interviews, play trading games and find out which sectors and firms seem right for them.

&quotWe give students the opportunity to experience at first hand the many aspects of the finance world, from trading, to mergers and acquisitions, to fund management, from the perspective of many different firms,&quot said Anthony Lai, this term's president of the Oxford University Investment and Finance Society (OUIFS).

Financial services firms make good use of the society to make contact with the kind of students they want to hire.

&quotStudents can talk - at length - to experienced professionals, recent graduates, and one another, about any topics relating to their possible role, and more often than not, get straight answers on workload, expectations and opportunities,&quot said Lai.

&quotOf course, we cannot hope to give the same insight as an internship would offer, but we can certainly put our members several steps ahead on the road to getting one.&quot

OUIFS events last term included a talk by financial journalist and stockbroker Saquib Mir, an interview and CV workshop with Deutsche Bank, a talk on investment management by a Barclays stockbroker and an investment banking case study by some Morgan Stanley employees.

Visits to Royal Bank of Scotland, ING Barings and Goldman Sachs also took place. &quotGenerally, we organise one presentation or speaker event a week, at the same time and same place each week, so that it becomes a regular stop for our members. We also organise one or two visits to London firms, and a couple of social events each term,&quot Lai said.

The informal nature of the events gives students the chance to talk in depth with bank employees and find out about the culture of different firms, far more than is possible at a careers fair or crowded recruitment drive, Lai added.

Stefan Scibor-Kaminski, a second year reading geography at St. Peter's College, Oxford, said: &quotIt is really useful to meet people as you get to ask questions that you couldn't find the answers to in company booklets.

&quotI find the smaller events more useful as you feel less intimidated about asking questions, and it's easier to get a chance to talk to the people from the company one-on-one rather than having a crowd of people around you.&quot

Anthony Mann, last term's OUIFS president, said: &quotSome members take an instant dislike to a sector, others are immediate converts. I have seen people taking the decision to apply for Equities after weeks of deliberation because they have played a game and realised that they got a buzz out of it.&quot

Interactive trading games are highly popular. &quotThe big name banks always pull a big crowd, and interactive events have been increased at the request of members,&quot said Mann. Last term OUIFS organised trading games with Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Fidelity Investments.

Personal contacts gained through OUIFS, as well as knowledge about banking, can give members a distinct advantage over non-members in their job search, Lai believes.

&quotI have met several bankers who were members of the society and who now help out the banks they are employed in by coming up to presentations that our society holds,&quot he says.

&quotInevitably, banks which over-hired last year have either made layoffs or cutbacks in this year's recruitment,&quot he said. &quotOur society though is in a very strong position to continue to attract their interest.&quot

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