Bertilla tells us her 5 top tips for attending a Women in Investment Banking event!

Top tips for attending a Women in Investment Banking careers event

Are you a woman interested in a career in investment banking? TARGETjobs Events' prestigious application-only Women in Investment Banking event gives career motivated female students a unique opportunity to hear first-hand what it is like to work in an investment bank. A day packed full of advice sessions, interactive activities and networking opportunities - there really is no better place to find out more about investment banking and the careers on offer - and a unique chance to meet influential representatives from the sector!

On the day, attendees have the opportunity to network with inspirational women in the sector, improve their employability and enhance the skills they need to secure future graduate schemes and internships! This is an unrivalled opportunity to get noticed by members of the partnering companies' recruitment teams, meet senior representatives and find out first-hand how to start a career in investment banking.

I was lucky enough to recently attend the fantastic event. Here are my 5 top tips that should hopefully help you make the most of this incredible opportunity:

1.     Keep an open mind. You might walk into the room with numerous preconceived notions about investment banking; perhaps you’ve even heard about bankers getting no sleep for three days straight! This event will dispel those myths for good – but only if you don’t let those horror stories stop you from realising how incredible a career in investment banking could be.

2.     Be confident. You are here for a reason! You have gone through a selective process and you are one of the chosen few. What’s more, the sponsors have invested a lot by sending so many experienced representatives to the event, so they want to meet you as much as you want to meet them. Put yourself out there and meet as many people as you can; ask those questions because there is no better time or place to do so!

3.     Do your research. Nothing is more embarrassing than asking a question about the sponsors that could have been answered by a quick Google search; it could set you apart in the mind of the recruitment teams for all the wrong reasons!

4.     Keep up to date. Brush up on the latest happenings in the financial and banking industry – even just 15 minutes of scanning through the FT beforehand will really show initiative and interest.

5.     It’s okay if you don’t know the jargon. If you are new to investment banking and (like me) don’t do a finance- or economics-related degree, don’t worry about not understanding the jargon – the important thing is to show initiative and willingness to attempt things you are not familiar with. The representatives don’t expect you to be the finished product who knows everything!

So there you have it – a career in investment banking is notoriously challenging, but attending this event confirmed how fun and rewarding it could be at the same time. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did!

Bertilla Chow, Law, University College London

What I gained from attending Women in investment banking and why you should apply

Siew tells us about her experience of attending Women in investment banking! 

Name: Siew Sanz Ng

University: University of Oxford 

Course: Philosophy, Politics, and Economics

Being a PPE undergraduate, my insights into the global finance industry were rather limited. What helped strengthen my knowledge base and connected me to different experts in the industry were Women in Investment banking. Apart from busting intimidating jargons, the event helped me to understand the differences between areas such as merger & acquisition, asset financing, sales & trading, asset wealth management etc., which area falls into the public or private side and how these different areas interact with one another. The event also equipped me with the tools and resources to find out more about each area specifically.

More importantly, I was interacting with key financial experts, allowing me to gain personal insights into the industry – what attracted them and what exasperated them. This helped me to better understand how my skills and personality will fit into the sector and eventually helped me to make the right decision on which division to apply. Furthermore, speaking to them definitely boosted my confidence in the interviewing process because I was able to draw on the insights on individuals who knew the industry inside out.

Hence, this is why you should apply for Women in Investment Banking. Not only will you get the opportunity to deepen your formal and informal understanding about the industry, you get to build sustainable relationships with both the experts and other attendees of the event. I still keep in touch with them and received support from them throughout my internship application process. If I had not attended this event, I would not have found out about the Deutsche Regional Internship Opportunity and would not have eventually received an internship offer from Deutsche Bank.  

Our next event is on 6 November 2015. Apply now!

http://targetjobsevents.co.uk/women-in-investment-banking