Interns starting to think less about their future, more about today
At its most base level, an internship is designed to accomplish one thing really: to provide experience that hopefully results in a shoe-in job offer immediately after graduating. But it seems the future generation of bankers, consultants and tech execs have different priorities when it comes to the ideal internship.
Vault.com recently came out with the results of its internship survey, which highlight an interesting trend among college students. Interns care more about immediate gratification than what doors the program will open down the road.
Of the three factors that were most important to students when selecting an internship, the top two were location and pay. Career advancement and the opportunity to earn a full-time position fell to third and fourth, respectively, with the latter dropping an astounding 12 percentage points over the last two years. Interns increasingly care more about their paycheck and a short commute it appears. I guess that’s good for big banks, as they tend to pay the best.
Vault, which surveyed interns in banking, financial services, consulting, accounting and also media and tech, surmised that student debt may play a big factor. Indeed, NYU students are rebelling against low wages at some school-sponsored internships. The graduate student union is currently in negotiations with the school on behalf of irate MBAs.
Meanwhile, Vault also handed out its awards for the top internships on Wall Street. In a bit of a surprise, boutique firms Evercore and Perella Weinberg finished in the top two positions within investment banking, ahead of the likes of Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan, which finished fourth and fifth, respectively. Boutiques have been killing it lately, and apparently the droves of future bankers have taken notice.
Reasons Why You Should Want to Be an Investment Banker (eFinancialCareers)
You won’t have a great work-life balance, that’s for sure, but you have a few other things to look forward to.
Skill Sets That Banks Need the Most (eFinancialCareers)
Which skills are most likely to get you a finance job now? We've identified the top 30.
Banner Year For Goldman in M&A (WSJ)
If you work in M&A, you’re probably having a good year. If you happen to be advising for Goldman Sachs, 2014 has been one big party. The bank’s M&A group may work on $11 trillion worth of deals this year, something that hasn’t been done since the crisis.
Big Shakeup at Banco Santander (WSJ)
Banco Santander has ousted its chief executive and made several changes to its board of directors in what are the first major moves under new chairwoman Ana Botín, who took over after her father’s death in September. Javier Marín, who had only been CEO for two years, was known to have differences with the younger Botín.
ING will cut as many as 1,700 jobs over the next three years as it seeks to reduce spending and become more efficient. The bank will invest more in technology though, so there may be some hiring within that unit.
Talk About Drawing a Line in the Sand (Bloomberg)
Steven A. Cohen is amazing. He remains wrapped up in a 25-year divorce battle with his ex-wife over a few million dollars, even though he’s worth billions. He appears willing to take the stand and talk about any lies he may have told in his professional life after a judge found it would be pertinent in establishing or tearing down his credibility. Essentially, he’s willing to open up a can of insider trading worms to keep 0.001% of his wealth from a woman he divorced in 1990. And he’s likely spent more on legal fees than the payoff itself.
JPM Going Long on Data (Financial News)
J.P. Morgan continues to grow its data and analytics business. It just hired former Nasdaq exec Lucien Foster as a director within its aptly-named Intelligent Solutions unit.
Buzz Around the Office
Maybe Learn How to Use the Product First (Bloomberg)
“I still think we should buy them. He is on your schedule for Dec 15 or 16 -- we will need to sell him. I have a plan.” That’s what Twitter Chief Financial Officer Anthony Noto, a former investment banker, tweeted out publicly in what was supposed to be a direct message to a colleague. That should be an interesting meeting, if it is still on.
Quote of the Day: “This is a case to restore faith in the old-fashioned idea that divorce is something that lasts forever. The only thing that distinguishes it from countless others is the seemingly inexhaustible legal resources that each side has brought to bear.” – U.S. District Judge William Pauley on the Cohen divorce case
